Gold Medal-Winning Irish Dancer is an Evanston Firefighter

EVANSTON, IL - Achieving a gold medal in Irish Dancing is a feat not many Americans can claim to have achieved.

But Colleen Martin-Hanley, a native of Chicago’s Northwest side, has done that twice.

Trained by Geraldine Foy and the Trinity Academy of Irish Dance, Martin-Hanley reached an elite level of the sport. She was part of two teams, one in 1987 and the other in 1990, to become among the first Americans to win gold at the World Irish Dancing Championships. Her groups appeared all over the world during the late 1980s and early 1990s, even making an appearance on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson.

Now, a quarter-century later, Martin-Hanley is still excelling at what she does. Not as an Irish Dancer, though. As an engineer and firefighter for the Evanston Fire Department.

Martin-Hanley joined the EFD 14 years ago and is the fire apparatus operator at Station #3, driving Engine 24 on her shifts.

“I think it’s the discipline that comes with Irish Dancing and firefighting that could be considered similar,” said Martin-Hanley, who grew up in the Our Lady of Victory Parish in Chicago and attended Good Counsel High School, Loyola University and UIC. “When it comes to training and having a good work ethic, there are a lot of similar attributes.”

Irish dancing was the thing to do for all neighborhood children growing up in her neighborhood.

“We would walk together when we were 4 or 5 years old and learn how to dance,” Martin-Hanley recalls. “It was our friends’ social hour. It started in a basement, where a local woman taught me for the first time. It quickly grew into a love and the only sport I focused on.”

It was her parents - who came to the United States from County Monaghan, Ireland - who always kept her physical and active.

And being the youngest of six with five older brothers taught Martin-Hanley another virtue: toughness.

Two of her brothers went on to be firefighters themselves, thus giving Martin-Hanley a clear in road to her second love.

After receiving her degree in behavioral psychology, Martin-Hanley knew she wasn’t going to be a “behind the desk person.” And the success of her brothers in the world of firefighting gave her the courage to apply to both the Chicago and Evanston departments.

“I’ve always seemed to be drawn to Evanston,” she said. “One of my best friends growing up went to Northwestern, I used to dance at a studio on Davis Street and worked for a time at Evanston Hospital.”

So sure enough it was Evanston, and not Chicago, who called and Martin-Hanley was ready to go to work.

To serve on the department, applicants need to not only have strong physical abilities, but be schooled in both the worlds of firefighting and EMT.

The Irish American News featured Martin-Hanley as the subject of their cover story in May 2015. Author Cathy Cooney-Millar described the specific difficulties facing all female firefighters.

“To be a woman firefighter in a fire department would not be easy feat. Fire Fighters must possess agility, upper body strength, and stamina,” Cooney-Millar wrote. “The physical requirements for strength, stamina, and dexterity or involving outdoor, dirty, or dangerous work is difficult. The fact that women pass the same physical requirement tests as the men to gain employment demonstrates it is a special type of woman who would aspire for such a challenging career.”

In addition, only 4 percent of the 1.1 million firefighters in the United States are women.

But Martin-Hanley was more than up for the challenge.

"The nerves you may have in firefighting get turned into adrenaline and put to good use," she said. “It’s not exactly an instant gratification kind of feeling, but more of letting everything build up for awhile until it’s time to get the job done.”

A lot like Irish Dancing, she says.

Martin-Hanley’s best memories of that lifestyle include the awards, the friendships, performing at the Grand Ole Opry! and the Carson appearance.

She also described dancing with Michael Flatley of "Riverdance" fame, who she calls “a fantastic performer.”

Having already shown her prowess at Irish Dancing and firefighting, Martin-Hanley is now perfecting another craft.

Being a mom.

Her children - Bridie, 3 and Martin, 2 - are now her most important responsibility. Bridie, she says, has already begun asking about Irish Dancing and may want to give a crack at it herself.

The kids also mean a more subdued St. Patrick’s Day celebration for the family.

“We used to go to the parade every year, but with the kids we are somewhat limited,” she said. “Now we’ll just have a few people over to celebrate at our house.”

In addition to Irish Dancing, Bridie has acquired another fun interest.

Firefighting, of course.

“Right now, she’s obsessed with the fire engines,” Martin-Hanley said. “And the trucks, definitely the trucks.”