This is the tale of Edward Flanagan, a young Irish lad shepherding a flock of sheep on a farm in Ballymoe, who became the famed Father Flanagan, founder of America's Boys Town, guardian of thousands of orphaned, neglected, and abandoned boys, and advisor to presidents. From a large Irish family, Flanagan suffered through ill health and setbacks to pursue his desire to join the priesthood. Following his older brother and fellow priest to the plains of Nebraska, he served several parishes and opened a hotel for homeless men before finding his life's mission to care for and give a voice to young boys whom society had despaired of and cast aside. Father Flanagan opened his home in 1917 for boys of any race and creed. In this definitive biography, the authors recount his struggles with drought, fire, lack of funds, and skeptical citizens to create a safe haven for these boys. He welcomed Hollywood to Boys Town to recount his story in two films, sent off scores of his boys to do battle in World War II, and toured the orphanages of Asia and Europe to report on the needs of children victimized by that war. At the time of his death in 1948, Father Flanagan was seen as one of the world's foremost advocates for children, especially those without parents or relatives to care for them and those judged guilty of some crime and locked away in reform schools or prisons. The legacy of Father Flanagan is one that inspires all who care for the welfare of children today.

In his quintessential biography of Father Edward J. Flanagan, author Father Clifford Stevens paints an insightful, inspirational and enlightening portrait of the man who founded Boys Town and led a cultural revolution that forever changed the way children were viewed, valued, and cared for in society. Father Flanagan was a complex human being, greatly influenced by his upbringing in a loving, close-knit family, and by the countless teachers, priests, relatives, friends, and recipients of his kindness who guided and nurtured his life's journey. Father Stevens, a former Boys Town youth who knew the legendary priest, captures those experiences - the milestone moments that made the man - to create a compelling story of Father Flanagan's 61 years on earth.

It’s not your father’s Ireland. Not anymore. A story of modern revolution in Ireland told by the founder of IrishCentral, Irish America magazine, and the Irish Voice newspaper. In a May 2019 countrywide referendum, Ireland voted overwhelmingly to make abortion legal; three years earlier, it had done the same with same-sex marriage, becoming the only country in the world to pass such a law by universal suffrage. Pope Francis’s visit to the country saw protests and a fraction of the emphatic welcome that Pope John Paul’s had seen forty years earlier. There have been two female heads of state since 1990, the first two in Ireland’s history. Prime Minister Leo Varadkar, an openly gay man of Indian heritage, declared that “a quiet revolution had taken place.” It had. For nearly all of its modern history, Ireland was Europe’s most conservative country. The Catholic Church was its most powerful institution and held power over all facets of Irish life. But as scandal eroded the Church’s hold on Irish life, a new Ireland has flourished. War in the North has ended. EU membership and an influx of American multinational corporations have helped Ireland weather economic depression and transform into Europe’s headquarters for Apple, Facebook, and Google. With help from prominent Irish and Irish American voices like historian and bestselling author Tim Pat Coogan and the New York Times’s Maureen Dowd, A New Ireland tells the story of a modern revolution against all odds.

This guidebook provides a handy reference for youth to the eight most important social skills and their behavioural steps. Each step includes a rationale for why it is important and hints on how it can best be applied. Eight social skills are included: following instructions, disagreeing appropriately, accepting criticism or a consequence, talking with others, showing respect, accepting "no" for an answer, introducing yourself, and showing sensitivity to others. The behavioural steps to each skill are presented, each with a rationale that youth will respond to and helpful hints on how they can accomplish the behaviour.

In 1917, Father Edward J. Flanagan founded his Home for Boys. But it became far more than a simple home for orphans because of the unique character and bold, forward-looking principles of its founder. As the reputation of Boys Town grew, Flanagan became a fierce advocate for children on the national and then international stage. In the words of Flanagan and others, this book recounts his defense of the disadvantaged in many settings - children from abusive or neglectful homes, African-Americans excluded from full rights of citizenship, young boys and girls "sentenced" to the notorious Irish industrial schools, interned Japanses-American families, and World War II orphans. The remarkable story of Father Flanagan is a legacy that has the power to inspire and instruct us yet today.

A biography of the priest who devoted his life to caring for homeless boys.