Ireland Reaching Out is an Irish charity dedicated to the development of the Irish Diaspora at home and abroad. It aims to strengthen Irish local communities across the Island of Ireland, north and south, as well as diaspora communities around the world. As a registered Charity, it is guided by a Board of Directors who are leaders in different areas of Diaspora interest.
Mike Feerick
The founder of Ireland Reaching Out, Mike is a US-born Irish businessman specialising in web-based initiatives with social impact. He is founder/CEO of Alison.com, one of the world’s largest free learning websites for workplace skills. Mike founded IrelandXO in 2009. He is a graduate of the University of Limerick (BBS) and Harvard University (MBA)
Fiona Ross
Fiona Ross is a former Director of the National Library of Ireland. She currently serves as the Chair of (CIÉ) Ireland’s pubic transport provider and sits on the Board of the HSE Ireland's public health service. In May 2019 Fiona was appointed as Non-Executive Director at The Scottish Government. She was the founding Director of EPIC The Irish Emigration Museum.
Dr Martin Russell
Martin is an academic specialising in the development of Diaspora engagement strategies. He is a co-founder of the DiasporaLab at the UCD Clinton Institute and is a consultant with the MIEUX (MIgration EU eXpertise) platform, a peer-to-peer experts’ facility supporting migration funded by the EU and the International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD).
Jim Thompson
Jim Thompson is a highly successful Irish-American businessman who is founder, chairman and chief executive of Crown Worldwide Group. In 2012, Jim returned to the village of his ancestors in Co Waterford and purchased to restore the local “Big house”. So began a passion for Stradbally, and learning more about his Irish Roots.
Michael Fahy
Michael is a founding Director of Ireland Reaching Out and has been involved in all aspects of the programme in the past 10 years. He currently acts as the organisation’s Treasurer. He is a retired history teacher and respected local author, having published many local history books.
Elwyn Soutter
Elwyn Soutter MBE is an Ireland Reaching Out Volunteer in Northern Ireland, and specifically, for the Parish of Ahoghill, Co Antrim. Elwyn is a Former Head of the Customs Service of Northern Ireland, a Tidy Towns Adjudicator and genealogist with expertise on Northern Irish records.
Dr Maria Gallo
Maria is the Director of the Learning Centre at Sligo and an Alumni Development Specialist to University Alumni offices. She is a consultant with the Department of Foreign Affairs on Diaspora Strategy relating to Irish Graduates, of Irish heritage and those with an affiliation to Ireland. From Canada, she now lives in Donegal.