Eamonn Wall, UMSL’s Smurfit-Stone Corporation Professor of Irish Studies, served as the honorary marshal for the 2025 St. Patrick’s Day Parade on Saturday in Downtown St. Louis. One of his duties was to see the runners and walkers off for the annual races in the morning. (Photo by Ryan Fagan)

Eamonn Wall, the Smurfit-Stone Corporation Professor of Irish Studies at the University of Missouri–St. Louis, has known Maureen McGlynn and her family for years, but a recent phone call from McGlynn was, as Wall said, “out of the blue.”

Turns out, McGlynn, the CEO of the Metropolitan St. Patrick’s Day Parade in St. Louis, was calling to ask if Wall would serve as the honorary parade marshal of the 2025 St. Patrick’s Day Parade. Wall, a native of Enniscorthy, County Wexford, in Ireland and a longtime UMSL professor, quickly accepted the invitation.

“You get a call like that, and at first you think maybe it’s a crank or a joke,” Wall said with a laugh. “I was thrilled and honored. I know the parade people and the parade people know me, but I didn’t have any inside track on it. It was a fantastic surprise, obviously.”

Wall points out that the honor isn’t just about him.

“It’s a recognition for me personally, for things I’ve done in the community over the last 25 years, and for the books that I’ve written, but it’s also recognition for UMSL,” he said. “The reason I’m in St. Louis is UMSL, and the reason I’ve been able to do things in the community is because of this Smurfit-Stone chair and the endowment and the funding.”

Shane Curley, an Irish Fianna Fáil politician, is the 2025 Irish guest of honor for the parade.

The timing, Wall noted, was rather incredible, and not just because it’s his 25th year at UMSL or because he has his 12th book coming out this summer. It’s the family connection.

“I am the eldest of eight kids in my family, and my youngest sister, Sinead, is the grand marshal of the St. Patrick’s Day parade in my hometown of Enniscorthy, County Wexford,” Wall said. “She has Down syndrome, but she lives a completely active life. She’s being honored for her things that she’s done in charity over the years. It’s a great honor for our family to have the old person – me – and my youngest sister both as parade marshals this year.”

This isn’t the first time Wall has been celebrated for his contributions to the St. Louis Irish community. In March 2024, Wall was recognized as an esteemed honoree at the Irish American Heritage Celebration, held at St. Louis City Hall, for his impact on the community. His selection was made by Recorder of Deeds Michael Butler, as part of Butler’s quest to highlight the cultural diversity of the city and the impact of those cultures on St. Louis.

“It’s great for me, personally, as somebody who lives in St. Louis and is part of UMSL, but it’s also a great thing as an immigrant,” Wall said. “When you come to America as an immigrant, you just hope to have a job and have a good life and everything, and that’s reward enough. So then to get this recognition? And, of course, the most special recognition for anybody is the recognition of their own community.”

One of the reasons Wall has spent two-and-a-half decades in St. Louis is the city’s strong connection to his home country, Ireland. He mentioned the parade in Downtown St. Louis, as well as the parade in the Dogtown neighborhood put on by the Ancient Order of Hibernians. Wall also singled out St. Louis Irish Arts, a school of Irish music and dance; St. Louis Tionól, the music festival held at different locations across the community; and the Missouri River Irish Fest held every Memorial Day weekend in St. Charles.

Wall took care to mention the number of organizations teaching Irish dance classes, as well as the multiple music venues that seek out Irish musicians to perform. And, of course, the large number of Irish pubs in St. Louis, including John D. McGurk’s in Soulard.

“With Irish heritage, and really with any heritage, you can’t take for granted that it will survive,” Wall said. “It survives because of strong organizations, strong community leadership, strong involvement and a lot of sacrifice.”

Wall is part of that Irish community leadership. He created his Irish Lectures and Concerts Series to bring a bit of Ireland to campus. Last Thursday, Eileen Ivers, a fiddle player who performs traditional Irish music as part of her show, played at the Blanche M. Touhill Performing Arts Center.

Wall is a prolific writer himself, publishing books of poetry and books of cultural and literary criticism. His 12th book, “Conocimiento: Writing Irish Borderlands,” will publish this summer.

“I’ve been active and busy,” Wall said. “As my mother said, it keeps me off the streets and out of the bars, you know. I stay at home to write books.”

Also this summer, Wall will make his annual trip back to Ireland, bringing UMSL students as part of a four-week study abroad program in Galway, on the western side of Ireland. One his very first tasks when he started at UMSL was to create this program, and each June and July he takes a group of students to learn at NUI-Galway. The experience is unforgettable, and not just because the students get to exchange St. Louis’ mid-90s summer temperatures for mid-60s in Galway.

“I started that in 2002, so for the last over 20 years, UMSL students have gone to Galway every year to study,” he said. “It’s very exciting for everybody, particularly for the students. For many of them, it’s their first time ever outside of America. And Galway is a great place to go.”