Rev. John I. Jenkins, C.S.C. received the 2009 Gold Medal award from the American Irish Historical Society (AIHS) at its 112th annual banquet Nov. 5 at the Waldorf-Astoria hotel in New York City.
The AIHS Gold Medal recognizes individuals who have made a special or unique contribution to American Irish life. Past recipients include President Ronald Reagan, Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan, the actor Liam Neeson, Cardinal John O’Connor of New York and Donald Keough, chairman of the board of Allen & Company, former president and chief operating officer of the Coca-Cola Co. and chairman emeritus of Notre Dame’s Board of Trustees.
The AIHS is an international center of scholarship, education and cultural enrichment founded in 1897 in order “that the world may know the contribution to the United States of America made by Irish immigrants and their descendants.”
The society maintains an extensive collection of Irish and American Irish books, newspapers, archives and memorabilia in its landmark headquarters on Fifth Avenue’s Museum Mile. Its highly acclaimed literary journal, The Recorder, chronicles the surging creativity of Irish writers on both sides of the Atlantic.
