Last month Concern Worldwide celebrated its 50th anniversary and was honoured by Irish President Michael D. Higgins at a special event. During the ceremony, President Higgins paid tribute to the extraordinary contribution to humanitarian causes Concern Worldwide has made globally for half a century. President Higgins said the work Concern has done has created a vital bridge connecting the people of Ireland with some of the poorest people in the world.
The Irish have proven to be generous people
The event was attended by 170 volunteers, supporters and staff. Dominic MacSorley lauded the incredible generosity of the people of Ireland which has allowed Concern Worldwide to deliver life saving aid to millions of people over the last five decades. He said that the Irish public’s response to images of war and starvation was simply phenomenal and that those images tapped into the natural empathy and generosity of a country which has enabled Concern to sustain itself for the last 50 years.
Ireland’s largest aid agency
Concern was established back in 1968 to provide a response to a devastating famine taking place in a breakaway state of Nigeria. Since then the agency is now Ireland’s largest aid organisation and delivers assistance to more than 26 million people in the some of the world poorest countries. The organisation was initially led by a group of volunteers headed by a couple from Dublin named, John and Kay O’Loughlin Kennedy and they had a bold and inclusive vision to unite supporters regardless of background from all across the country, both North and South.
Celebratory events to take place throughout the year
The group managed to raise today’s equivalent of €4 million in its first year alone and used the money to send a boat filled with vital supplies to a population that was suffering from starvation in Nigeria. At the time it was the largest relief effort to originate from Ireland. To mark its 50th anniversary Concern is organising a number of events over the course of this year which includes and international conference to discuss the issue of conflict which will be held in Dublin in September.
