Harry McKillop of The Perot Group Announces Winner of
the 2003 Harry McKillop Irish Spirit Award

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The Harry McKillop Irish Spirit Award, established in 2003, announces the first recipient of the $25,000 award, Mrs. Jean Kelly, Founder and Director of the Speedwell Trust of Northern Ireland. The award was created to honor a person of Irish or Irish-American descent in recognition of extraordinary acts of humanitarianism.

The Ireland Funds, Dublin Chamber of Commerce, Belfast Chamber of Commerce, and The McKillop Award Board of Trustees jointly selected the recipient who then designates his or her favorite charity to receive the $25,000 annual gift award.

Ross Perot established The Harry McKillop Irish Spirit Award to honor the life and work of his friend and business partner, Harry McKillop, whose lifelong commitment to principle and “Irish Spirit” values has fueled his dedication to helping people and saving lives. Over nearly three and a half decades, Mr. McKillop has engaged in missions to Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia to focus world attention on the plight of American POWs and MIAs from the Vietnam War. He coordinated the search and verification of reported POW sightings from all over the world. In 1979, he assisted in the celebrated and daring rescue of two American employees of Electronic Data Systems from an Iranian prison.

From Turkey to Mexico to Saudi Arabia, he has rescued and returned home kidnapped individuals he did not even know. In 1995, he organized the rescue of American Marjorie Fuller, held in Japanese and Chinese detention camps on the Manchurian border since the end of WWII. With only a rough photograph of a gate as a clue, and after several minor miracles, he got her out of China. She now lives in a Baltimore-area retirement home. She has no family, but Mr. McKillop visits her regularly.

Mr. McKillop’s life is a testament to the “Irish Spirit.” Such a life is truly worthy of honor and emulation.

This year’s grantee, Mrs. Jean Kelly founder and director of the Speedwell Trust, is a worthy recipient. The Trust began in 1991 as a voluntary organization working for peace and reconciliation in Northern Ireland. Speedwell brings together Catholic and Protestant children, and their schools and communities, in order to develop mutual respect and understanding in a neutral and safe environment. Each year, more than 20,000 children and adults receive cross community environmental education. Mrs. Kelly, a qualified teacher, is a native of Dungannon, Co Tyrone. Mrs. Kelly is Presbyterian and her husband is Catholic; she has a very personal interest in bringing these communities together.

The award will be made as part of the Dublin Chamber of Commerce Annual Dinner. Also attending will be the Irish Prime Minister, Mr. Bertie Ahern, as the guest speaker. Mr. Ross Perot will preside over the Award ceremony. Honored guests include Mr. Redmond O’Donoghue of Waterford Wedgwood, Mr. John Hume Nobel Peace laureate and Member of Parliament, and Mrs. Pat Hume of the Northern Ireland Memorial Fund.

Mr. McKillop, a descendant of Ballycastle, Co Antrim, in Northern Ireland is fulfilling a lifelong desire to recognize the unsung individuals dedicated to the peace and growth of the proud land of his ancestry. Mrs. Kelly, an unsung hero in her country, represents the true spirit that animates The Harry McKillop Irish Spirit Award.

The Speedwell Trust >