AL SMITH DINNER

FALL 2019

HONORING WOMEN

IN 1928, NEW YORK GOVERNOR AL SMITH became the first Catholic to run for president on a major-party ticket. Known as “the Happy Warrior,” Smith lost the election, but his legacy lives on. On October 17, the Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation will hold its 74th annual fund-raising dinner, a nonpartisan gathering of religious, political and business leaders in support of  Smith’s mission of service to the poor and vulnerable.

This year’s theme, “Legacy of Empowerment,” honors women who are leaders in organizations supported by the foundation. In addition, for the first time, the winner of the annual Happy Warrior Award will be a woman: Mary Ann Tighe, CEO of the New York Tri-State Region of the CBRE commercial real estate group.

Crain’s New York Business has named Tighe to its Business Hall of Fame and ranked her the most powerful businesswoman in New York. A tireless philanthropist committed to education, she funds scholarships personally and through the Inner-City Scholarship Fund. Her work for the Archdiocese of New York has also helped secure funds that will enable us to maintain St. Patrick’s Cathedral for decades to come.

For more about Ms. Tighe and other notable women in the archdiocese, see “Women of the Church.”