Ireland Funds NYC dinner raises $2.7m for Irish charities
Howard Lake | 8 May 2016 | News
The American Ireland Fund 41st Annual New York Dinner Gala last week raised $2.7 million for the support of hundreds of Irish charities and causes.
“I am absolutely delighted to see that the dinner has been such a huge success,” said John Fitzpatrick, Chairman of The American Ireland Fund. “Our leadership, committed members and supportive guests always seem to come together to champion great causes in Ireland with incredible passion and generosity,” he said.
The Gala is the largest of the 150 events held globally by The Ireland Funds. Adam Clayton of U2 joined supporters of The Ireland Funds on the night to celebrate the successful Music Generation program which was first launched in the US at The American Ireland Fund New York Dinner Gala in 2010.
$1m gift
Announced during the event was an additional $1 million gift to Music Generation from The Stavros Niarchos Foundation. Members of the Stavros Niarchos family were in attendance and several young musicians who have benefited from Music Generation attended the Gala and performed moving pieces using traditional Irish instruments.
In 2015, U2 and The Ireland Funds – who together gifted $10m in 2010 to launch the initiative – donated a further $3.5 million to the program to develop its next phase. Already, Music Generation is established in 12 areas of Ireland, providing access to music education for some 35,000 children and young people annually and creating 350 employment opportunities.
Image: euro and dollar banknotes by Octavus on Shutterstock.com
Advertisement
About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale.
He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.