Inspired by their own Irish ancestry, two cousins compiled generations of wisdom, gleaned from women of all walks of life, with one thing in common: a deep and abiding connection to Ireland.
Wise Irish Women: A Journey of Love, Loyalty, and Friendship to Inspire the Irish Spirit brings together the voices of 36 women and their stories covering everything from Irish charm, Irish luck, and Irish love of family, to Irish gumption.
Now that book will be presented on QVC, a global leader in video and e-commerce retail, on March 17 as part of the channel’s St. Patrick’s Day programming. Leading the segment will be long-time host Jane Treacy, who also was profiled in Wise Irish Women. Jane Treacy joined QVC in 1986 as one of their original hosts. The Irish American credits her mother with much of her success at QVC, where she went onto become one of the network’s most beloved personalities. Though her mother has been gone for more than almost 20 years, Jane feels her presence in every aspect of her life. She shares her mother's wisdom and love with her viewers and has been able to help others deal with loss.
“I often think of the Irish saying, ‘Your tears are a gift,’” said Treacy, who relays in the book the story of how her mother urged her to attend her QVC audition. “Had I not had the connection to my mother, had I not experienced the gift of unconditional love that she gave me, I would have avoided the tears. But I also would have missed out on the best gift I was ever given – the gift of a mother’s love.”
Patricia Connorton Kagerer, who co-authored the book with her cousin Laura Prendergast Gordon, said that she was not surprised that Treacy’s success was inspired by her mother’s message to remain true to herself. She, too, attributes her success in a male-dominated industry to the wisdom she learned from her Irish mother and grandmother.
“My mother’s words of wisdom have carried me through some of the most challenging personal and professional times in my life,” she said. “Her words are inscribed on my heart. I carry them with me everywhere I go.”
Co-author Gordon, who is a Deputy City Attorney for the City of El Paso, couldn’t agree more: “Our grandmother was a huge source of strength and inspiration for both of us. Patricia and I knew this particular brand of wisdom needed to be shared, along with words of wisdom from other women with deep ties to Ireland.”
Whether it’s a story about Treacy, acclaimed author Mary Higgins Clark, playwright Marianne McDonald, former Executive Director of Catholic Charities of Dallas Sr. Mary Anne Owens, or the authors themselves, each story is designed to inspire women to make a difference in their own corner of the world.
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