Connection at the core of intimate evening in Cork.
Irish funds industry colleagues enjoy a candlelit dinner at the basis.point Regional Dinner in Cork.
Guests at the 3rd basis.point Regional Dinner, in Fota Island Resort Hotel in Cork, were treated to a special evening, celebrating regional industry collaboration and collective giving that demonstrated how challenges can become opportunities.
When faced with an AV technical failure, Edel O’Malley and her basis.point team, embraced the unexpected. What followed was a pared-back, more intimate evening that brought us closer to our guests — a true example of agile thinking in motion.
Edel O’Malley with Allie McCarthy, Student Mentoring Alumnus, Bryan Glendon, KPMG and Celine McGrath, BITC Regional Coordinator
Sometimes, the most powerful moments happen without a microphone. And whilst guests missed out on some of the formal presentations, many had the chance to chat informally with Allie McCarthy, BITCI Mentoring Programme Alumnus, as she interacted with guests with a grace and confidence that belied her young age.
Eoin Fitgerald, Chairperson of basis.point acknowledged the important role that the funds industry play both in generating employment and wealth in the South East but also in giving back to the local community through basis.point’s collaborative work.
Funding for educational programmes in this region, has reached over €3 million, which represents over 40% of all grant allocations, allocated to help children and families. Spanning the complete educational lifecycle from early intervention programmes delivered by the Early Learning Initiative, to youth entrepreneurship programmes with Foroige, and mentoring programmes for school leavers, delivered by Business in the Community.
Eoin Fitzgerald, basis.point Chairperson, speaks from the centre of the room.
Speaking from the heart, Eoin shared his personal reasons for becoming involved with basis.point. Originally from Carlow, Eoin is one of 10 children and was the first of his family to gain a third level education.
He emphasised the influence of school teachers in his life and his commitment to offering the same opportunity to other young people.
I want to help people – like this guy – who are coming through the education system behind me.
basis.point has allowed me – in a very small way – to help 74,000 children to achieve their individual potential.
Through basis.point, I’m able to have a greater impact than I can have on my own.
Celebrating the impactful work in the Munster and Southeast region, enabled by corporate and individual donations, Eoin encouraged everyone to get more involved and to continue to build on this strong foundation.
Students from the Cork School of Music set the scene for a wonderful evening.
The evening wasn’t purely serious business. A wonderful young string quartet from the Cork School of Music, provided the perfect backdrop as industry colleagues enjoyed a relaxed evening amongst friends. Sincere thanks to our sponsors BNY and Matheson. Now in it’s third year, we are indebted to a group of colleagues and volunteers from both organisations, whose vision and hard work have ensured that this event is fast becoming a highlight in the basis.point calendar.
A heartfelt thank you to our inspiring speakers Eoin Fitzgerald, Edel O’Malley, Pat Lardner, Karen Conboy, Frank Murphy, Jonny Holland who captivated the room with their personal stories and insights.
Above all, we are especially grateful to our guests — whose respect and attentiveness created a space where every voice was heard and valued.
Although we had hoped to share stories about the impact that mentoring we will be sharing takeaways from Celine McGrath, Bryan Glendon and Allie McCarthy in the future— a conversation we’re excited to continue.
Supporting young people to reach their potential throughout the entire country is a key focus for our work. It is encouraging to see the level of support in Munster and the South East. It is now our priority to build on such a strong foundation.
Picture credits John Allen
