Mr. Stephen Doyle, President of the Irish Network Seattle, announced today that the 2026 recipient of the Spirit of Ireland Award is Mr. Mark Pigott, Executive Chairman of PACCAR. Mr. Doyle shared that “Mark Pigott has been recognized as a leading industrialist and philanthropist by many nations and we are proud to present the Spirit of Ireland award for his decades of support to Irish business, culture, education, and the arts. PACCAR is a market leader in Ireland with its DAF Trucks. Mark and his family have generously supported professorships and scholarships at Trinity College, University College Dublin ( UCD), and Queen’s University Belfast. He has been active in rebuilding the Walled Garden at Hillsborough Castle and funding the renovation of the recently opened Poetry Ireland House in Dublin. His devotion to Irish literature and his commitment to celebrate new Irish poetry led to the launch of the Pigott Poetry Prize in 2014, which is the largest poetry prize in Ireland. Just as the Pulitzer Prize honors the very best American writing each year, the Pigott Poetry Prize annually highlights the best Irish poetry.”

     Doyle explained that “the Board of the Irish Network Seattle created the Spirit of Ireland award to honor those who came before us and for the sacrifices they made, for their aspirations that their children would enjoy better lives, for their commitment to liberty, for their value of education, for their faith in the essential goodness of people, and mostly for their bravery to trust in a better future. That is the real story of the Irish diaspora that is retold to new generations.”

     Mark Pigott’s family emigrated from Cork and County Kerry in the 1850s and early 1900s. His great grandfather, William Pigott. arrived in Seattle about 1890 and built the steel mill, which is still producing steel in West Seattle. PACCAR designs, manufactures, and supports Kenworth, Peterbilt, and DAF trucks in 100 countries. Mark Pigott has worked at PACCAR for 47 years and was CEO/Chairman from 1996-2014 and is currently Executive Chairman.

To purchase your tickets to the 2026 Spirit of Ireland Literary Dinner, please click here.