Senior Trustees of the Irish Society – Alderman Sir William Russell (Governor); Wendy Hyde (Deputy Governor) and Deputy Edward Lord (Deputy Governor Elect) – made a short but busy visit to Northern Ireland which included:
- Calling on Co-operation Ireland (at St Columb’s Park House, Waterside) for a briefing on 2022-23 projects funded by The Honourable The Irish Society;
- Meeting the Chief Executive of Londonderry Chamber of Commerce for an update and to renew business links with the City of London;
- Joining the Mayor of Derry City & Strabane District Council for a lunchtime briefing;
- Undertaking a site visit to the dis-used Presbyterian Church and community halls at Strand Road, Derry, and discuss with Church Trustees future plans for the buildings;
- Presentation of a £5,000 grant to Ashes to Gold – ‘Working to Restore a Life’s Purpose’, in this case to contribute to their Fishing Project at Moorbrook Lodge which aims to tackle children and young people’s mental health;
- Entertaining the President of Causeway Chamber of Commerce; an East Londonderry SDLP MLA; the founder/owner of Alchemy Technology Services (Global centre of excellence for insurance software implementation) and Coleraine businessman and past President of Royal Portrush Golf Club to dinner at Bushmills Inn;
- Attending a breakfast briefing at Causeway Coast & Glens Borough Council for an update on local economic development and other matters;
- A visit to Killowen Primary School to meet children taking part in Salmon Hatchery in the Classroom, a project funded by the Irish Society every year since 2007;
- Calling in at Sandelford Special School to present an annual grant cheque for £10,000 (in this case to be used towards their mini-bus fund); and
- A visit to Age Concern Causeway – again to present an annual grant of £5,000.
A Local Advisory Committee meeting was also convened, and 22 grants totalling just shy of £25,500 were awarded (see Recent Grants section for details).
