On Thursday, December 3rd, the New York Young Leaders gathered for their annual Celtic Christmas Celebration.
The guests arrived and were greeted with hors d’oeuvres and cocktails at our good friend Ronan Downs’ Route 66 Smokehouse setting the stage for a festive “Christmas Barbeque” themed evening.
Later in the evening, National Director of The Young Leaders, Pat Tully welcomed the guests and spoke about what a difference the Young Leaders are making in the lives of people across the island of Ireland.
Pat spoke about the great year the New York and the global Young Leaders had, starting in January with the 4th annual Young Leaders Summit, a record breaking St. Patrick’s Celebration in March, the 40th annual New York Gala, the Conference in Ireland, the Summer in the City party, the NJ Golf Classic, the 2nd Annual Global 5K all culminating in the Celtic Christmas Celebration where they named the “2015 Young Leader of the Year.”
The annual award goes to the Young Leader who personified the spirit of The Ireland Funds by working tirelessly to raise the profile of and vital funds for, the work of The Ireland Funds.
The 2015 Young Leader of the Year was Kelly Jones. Kelly is a partner at the law firm Harris Beach PLLC, focusing on litigation. When she’s not working at her day job, she’s out spreading the good word of The Ireland Funds. The best example of that was when she Co-Chaired the St. Patrick’s celebration, gathering over 700 supporters to raise money for Irish causes.
Kelly was introduced by 2014 Young Leader of the Year, Jen Barry, who recognized the hard work and dedication that Kelly brings to the Young Leaders.
The introduction could not have been more appropriate as Kelly began her comments by recognizing that Jen Barry was the one who convinced her to get involved and join the Young Leaders.
Kelly graciously thanked all the other Young Leaders in the room for their support on the St. Patrick’s event and encouraged others to join if they had not done so already.
It was a fitting tribute to a great year and Kelly’s mother Gloria Jones was on hand to celebrate with her daughter.
Kelly’s remarks were followed by a spirited live auction, conducted by Pat Tully and included a trip for two to Ireland to attend the Young Leaders Spring Gala in Dublin. The flights were courtesy of Delta Air Lines.
After the auction, dinner was served and guests continued to enjoy dancing and the live music of Peadar O’hici and his band.
Special thanks to Andrew McLeod and Union Beer Distributors, Ronan Downs and the staff at Route 66, Delta Air Lines, David Diehl and the New York Giants for their live auction donations as well as Patricia Danaher for the raffle donations.