Anaconda St. Patrick’s parade leader Joe Connors Jr. revels in Irish heritage

By Erin Nicholes - 03/13/2008

Joe Connors Jr., a lawyer for the Montana Public Defender Program and an Anaconda native, is the grand marshal for Anaconda’s St. Patrick’s Day parade, which starts at 2 p.m. Friday.

ANACONDA — These days, Joe Connors Jr. makes plenty of public appearances.

He regularly argues in courtrooms as a lawyer for the Montana Public Defender Program, sometimes for high-profile clients.

“I’m in court a lot more than I used to be,” said Connors, 45, an Anaconda native. This week, Connors will step into the limelight again.

He is the grand marshal for the local St. Patrick’s Day Parade on Friday, an honor bestowed upon him by the Anaconda Ancient Order of Hibernians.

“He tries to promote the Christian unity and faith that we try to promote,” said AOH spokesman Jim Killoy, characterizing Connors as a dedicated Irish Catholic and an all-around quality citizen. “And, he’s easy to talk to.” In boyhood and adulthood, at work and at play, Connors’ has always placed his Irish-Catholic heritage front and center.

“It’s part of being in Butte and Anaconda; it’s prevalent,” said Connors, sitting behind his desk in his Uptown Butte office. “It’s part of who I am. Growing up somewhere else, I might not have had those values.” Celebrating his Christian faith and Irish heritage honors his ancestors, who transplanted the family tree to Anaconda straight from Ireland. “It’s important to know where you came from, and what people have done before you to pave the way for the opportunities you have today,” he said.

His paternal grandfather, who still lives in Anaconda, was the son of an Irish immigrant and worked on the county road crew. His maternal grandfather came straight from Ireland to Anaconda to work as a journeyman electrician at the Anaconda Co.’s historic copper smelter.

Those hard-laboring roots gave way to higher-education and professionalism in generations to come.

Connors’ dad, Joe Connors Sr., is a longtime Anaconda lawyer; both Connors and his brother, Ken, followed suit. All three practiced together for years until Connors ran unsuccessfully for Powell County attorney and then went to work for the public defender’s office.

Although Connors initially considered dentistry, he ultimately chose law because it allows a balance between work and family. And when it came to choosing law school, only one institution seemed fitting: Notre Dame.

“Being from the Irish Catholic family, of course, we’re very big football fans,” he said, adding a shirt-tail relative had gone there as well.

“It had more to do with the family thinking Notre Dame was a place of excellence.” While Connors earned an education and built a career, he also made a commitment to promote his Irish heritage, joining the AOH at age 18 and being an active member ever since.

The AOH is a fraternal organization of Irish-Catholic men promoting Christian values and Irish heritage.

“It’s where you get the Irishness through song and storytelling,” he said of the group.

Connors is past president of the local and state AOH groups. During his tenure on the Montana level, he revived the Butte AOH and promoted the organization’s involvement in the An Ri Ra Irish Festival.

For those achievements, and more, Connors is a fitting grand marshal, Killoy said.

“I try to look at how the marshal himself has been better for our organization and recognize that individual for the great efforts he’s put into the organization,” he said.

“He’s been dedicated to the AOH with all the offices he’s served.”