May 28, 2014
The United States Cardinals will gather in New York City on Friday, May 30, for the traditional fundraiser for scholarships for The Catholic University of America, the university founded by the U.S. bishops over 125 years ago. The 25th American Cardinals Dinner will be held at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel.
Cardinal Timothy Dolan, Archbishop of New York, and John Garvey, President of The Catholic University of America, will serve as co-hosts for the dinner.
Prior to the dinner, Cardinal Dolan will serve as the principal celebrant and homilist at a 4:30 p.m. Mass at St. Patrick's Cathedral at 5th Avenue between 50th and 51st streets. Visiting cardinals, bishops, and clergy will concelebrate the Mass, which will be open to the public. The reception at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel at 301 Park Ave. will begin at 6:15 p.m., followed by dinner at 7:30 p.m.
"It is an honor to host the dinner with Cardinal Dolan," says President Garvey. "We are proud to have him as an alumnus of The Catholic University of America. He has been a big supporter of the University and its mission. Just two years ago Cardinal Dolan gave an inspiring speech to our graduates at commencement. We deeply appreciate his generosity in hosting this fundraising dinner to help our students obtain their goal of a Catholic University education."
Cardinal Dolan noted the unique role that Catholic University has for the Church in this country. He said, "The Catholic University of America has a special history as the University founded by the bishops of the United States. I am proud to be an alumnus, and it is a joy to be able to serve as co-host for this 25th annual scholarship dinner."
Eight American cardinals are expected to attend the dinner, including those who currently serve or have served as archbishops of U.S. dioceses and as members of the CUA Board of Trustees. To read the biographies of the cardinals who will attend, click here.
Also expected to attend the dinner are Most Rev. Carlo Maria Viganò, Apostolic Nuncio to the United States, and Most Rev. Allen Vigneron, Archbishop of Detroit and Chairman of the CUA Board of Trustees.
Each year a different diocese or archdiocese hosts the black-tie event; this is the third time the dinner has been held in New York City (the second dinner in 1991 and the 12th dinner in 2001). In recent years the dinner has been held in such cities as Phoenix, Atlanta, Houston, Boston, Las Vegas, Miami, Minneapolis-St. Paul, San Francisco, Washington, D.C., and Chicago. Since its inauguration, the annual event has raised more than $29.5 million to support scholarships for Catholic University students.
MEDIA: For more information about the event, contact Katie Lee or Mary McCarthy Hines in the CUA Office of Public Affairs at 202-319-5600 or cua-public-affairs@cua.edu , or Joseph Zwilling, director of communications, Archdiocese of New York, at 646-794-2997 or joseph.zwilling@archny.org .