DeBenedictis to marshal St. Patrick's Day Parade
An Irishman-by-marriage has been named the grand marshal of the 2015 Morris County St. Patrick's Day Parade in Morristown.
The St. Patrick's Day Parade of Morris County announced Tuesday that former Madison resident Al DeBenedictis has been selected to lead Morris County's best-known and biggest parade of the year.
He replaced the previously named marshal, John Hyland, who resigned last week due to an ongoing battle against cancer. Hyland's mother, Kathleen, was grand marshal in 1998.
A former Madison resident now living in Lavallette, DeBenedictis has a long history of involvement in Irish culture in Morris and Essex counties, and has been involved in organizing the parade for the last 24 years. He also has been an active member of the Friendly Sons of St. Patrick of Morris County since 1986.
"I've been part of the parade for many years, and to be named with the past marshals is beyond my wildest dreams," he said. "Especially for an old Italian boy."
DeBenedictis admits he "is as Italian as you get," but he married into the Emerald Isle, tying the knot with the former Margaret "Mickie" McLafferty in 1965.
"We are celebrating our 50th anniversary next year, so with (being named grand marshal), it's going to be an eventful year," said DeBenedictis, 73.
A veteran of the U.S. Army Signal Corps who served in Korea, he and his bride moved to Madison in 1978, living there until he retired as a marketing manager for AT&T in 2004. They moved to the Jersey Shore that same year, but DeBenedictis continued his involvement not only in parade activities, but in volunteer service to the Irish-American community.
Those efforts focused on helping children, primarily as an area coordinator for Project Children since 1985. Project Children brings young Irish children from troubled areas of Northern Ireland to the United States for a summer respite.
In 1996,DeBenedictis helped the Project Children add an Intern Program for university students from Northern Ireland to expand their studies with work experiences related to their majors. He also has made frequent trips to Northern Ireland to interview and select Project Children applicants.
DeBenedictis said those study programs included internships he arranged for them at the Morris County Prosecutor's Office, and more recently with the nonprofit Employment Horizons in Hanover.
He previously served the parade committee as a finance chair and trustee, and still is an active member of the parade and finance committees. He also co-chaired the parade journal.
DeBenedictis and his wife raised four daughters, Ann-Margaret Beatty, Geraldine Kilgore, Michelle Rogers and Diane DeBenedictis, and have 10 grandchildren. The couple also served as foster parents for the Newark Archdiocese Catholic Community Services and fostered more than 70 very young children during that time.
He also is very active in his church, serving in Madison as a Youth Ministry Sponsor Catechist for 23 years at St. Vincent Martyr parish. As a member of the Knights of Columbus for 28 years he served on numerous committees and chaired activities,
He is 28-year member of the Knights of Columbus, and currently is a fourth-degree knight and a past grand knight of council No. 8415 in Seaside Park. He also is a member of the Community Emergency Response Team in the shore area and manned emergency shelters in Toms River during tropical storm Irene and Hurricane Sandy.
No public funds are used for the parade, which typically draws the cream of marching bands from the area as well as groups heading to New York for the St. Patrick's Day parade there. It is fully funded by corporate and individual sponsors and has raised almost $300,000 for local charities over the years.
Staff Writer William Westhoven: 973-428-6627; wwesthvoen@dailyrecord.com.