Events Digest
Forty Years, 750 Organisations
Celebrating Our Anniversary with Partners & Friends in Dublin
On Tuesday October 20, more than 200 of our friends and supporters joined us at the RDS Concert Hall in Dublin for our 40th Anniversary Gala Dinner. We celebrated four decades of investment in Ireland’s young people.
The Partnership was founded in 1986 on a simple belief: that the bond between Ireland and Irish America could be put to work for the next generation. The support of the Irish Government and the vision of friends on both sides of the Atlantic turned that belief into a partnership. Forty years on, it has reached more than 750 schools, universities, and community organisations across the island of Ireland, North and South. It was fitting to mark this milestone in Dublin, among the people and places our work serves.
We were honored that An Taoiseach Micheál Martin TD gave the Special Address. He said:
“For the past four decades, the Irish American Partnership has made an incredible contribution to Ireland’s education and community sectors. Its remarkable contribution is a powerful testament to the enduring generosity of Irish America and its commitment to young people across our island. The Government was proud to support the Irish American Partnership from the outset, and we look forward to seeing their incredible work continue for years to come.”
The Government’s support goes back to our very beginning. In 1986, a grant from the Government of Taoiseach Garret FitzGerald helped turn Paddy Harte TD’s idea into the Partnership. Forty years on, together we have invested more than $68 million in over 750 schools, universities, and community organisations across the island.
President & CEO, Mary Sugrue, reflected on that journey:
“In 1986, the State awarded us £50,000 and a vote of confidence. Forty years on, we hope we have repaid that faith a thousand times over, in classrooms across this island.”
We were glad to welcome U.S. Ambassador to Ireland Edward S. Walsh, former U.S. Ambassador Claire D. Cronin, former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, and former Tánaiste Dick Spring. Padraic White and Dr. Edward Walsh, two of our early directors in Ireland, also joined us.
Our thanks to Martin J. Walsh, former U.S. Secretary of Labor and 54th Mayor of Boston, who spoke on Irish America’s enduring commitment to Ireland. We also thank our MC, Samantha Barry, Board member Sir Bruce Robinson, and Principal Liam Newell of St. Joseph’s Mercy Secondary School, Navan. The artists of the Irish Traditional Music Archive and tenor Rory Lynch of the Royal Irish Academy of Music gave performances that stayed with everyone in the room.
The Gala closed this year’s Leadership Mission to Dublin and Belfast. During the Mission, our delegates presented grants to schools, universities and community programmes, part of the $3.5 million we are investing in 2026.
None of this would have been possible without you. Thank you to our supporters, our Board of Directors, and our Advisory Council. Thank you to the educators, community leaders, and partners who carry out the work every day, and to the members of government and the institutions that have stood with us. The evening was a celebration of what we have built together.
As we look to the decade ahead, we will continue to honor our shared heritage by investing in the education, opportunity, and hope that will shape Ireland’s future.
