There’s a door in one of the buildings on Enders Island in Mystic labeled “the Hokey Pokey Room” because it’s where you turn yourself around.

Enders Island, an 11-acre island connected to Mason’s Island in Mystic by a narrow causeway, is home not only to the recovery programs that help people but also to sacred art courses and spiritual retreats, all under the guidance of the Rev. Thomas F. X. Hoar.

Hoar, president and CEO of St. Edmund’s Retreat at Enders Island, is being recognized this year for his work in the Mystic community by serving as the grand marshal in the Mystic Irish Parade March 20.

Neil Ryan, board member of the Mystic Irish Parade Foundation, said Enders Island has supported the parade since the beginning, and both the ministry and Hoar have had a great impact on the community.

“He’s definitely a special person that watches over a really special place that I think we’re lucky to have,” he said.

Hoar said churches were the neighborhood centers when he was growing up in South Boston, but despite serving as an altar boy and being involved in his parish as a child, he wanted to help others by becoming a doctor. The priesthood hadn’t been a serious thought until he went to St. Michael’s College in Vermont as a premed student and started attending daily Mass.

“I had thought about it as a little kid when I was an altar boy, but I had never pursued it, but then I started finding out more about the Edmundites and decided to give it a try,” Hoar said. He first came to Enders Island, which was part of the Society of St. Edmund, as a novice in his sophomore year of college.

After switching from premed to philosophy, becoming ordained, and working 15 years in higher education, Hoar returned to Enders Island in 1991 and served as chair for a task force to evaluate the St. Edmund’s Retreat and develop the ministry.

“Sometimes God writes straight with crooked lines, and it’s been the greatest blessing and joy of my life,” he said.

Enders Island was given to the Society of St. Edmund in 1957 by Alys E. VanGlider Enders to be used as a place of spiritual formation and religious retreats. Hoar said it has since expanded from a secluded retreat space for nuns and 12-step sobriety programs, to a vibrant ministry visited by 16,000 people every year.

Spiritual retreats are still a main component of the ministry, but Hoar also established the St. Michaels Institute of Sacred Art and the recovery residence. He said Enders Island had been home to 12-step retreats for 48 years, and many of the young men who have come to the island for the recovery residence program have gone on to lead successful academic and professional lives, he said.

“You see people’s lives being transformed,” he said. “We’re taking people and showing them a new way of living.”

When he isn’t helping people in the recovery residence, Hoar conducts Mass in the Chapel of Our Lady of the Assumption, makes hospital visits, gives lectures and serves as the chaplain at the Naval Submarine Base in Groton.

However, he said his greatest achievements are facilitating the transition of the St. Edmund’s Retreat to an independent organization and constructing the chapel. He said the chapel has become the heart of the island.

“It’s more than just a nice building,” he said. “It is the physical manifestation of the prayer of God’s people.”

The chapel was constructed from stones from all over the world, including Ireland, where Hoar’s family is from. His great grandfather was originally from County Waterford, and he has been to Ireland several times, including trips to go horseback riding on the beaches of Sligo.

He said St. Patrick’s Day was always a big celebration in his family, and while he isn’t a fan of being in the spotlight, he is honored to lead the parade and sees it as a way to celebrate the ministry at Enders Island. He hopes that being in the parade will show people that they are welcome on the island.

The Mystic Irish Parade Foundation is hosting a grand marshal meet-and-greet with Hoar 6 to 8 p.m., Friday, March 18, at the Harbour House in Mystic. The parade starts at 1 p.m. Sunday at the Mystic Seaport and ends at the Mystic Museum of Art. More information can be found at www.mysticirishparade.org.

a.hutchinson@theday.com