Development Director at POTS Honored By NY City Council

Council Speaker Quinn, John Murphy, Caroline Kennedy,
Larry McCarthy and Maureen Fergus Sheehan
Photo courtesy of William Alatriste, Staff Photographer/New York City Council

The local nonprofit multi-service agency Part of the Solution (POTS) received some well deserved attention earlier this week when the New York City Council honored Maureen Fergus Sheehan, the development director at POTS, at its annual Celebration of Irish Heritage and Culture on March 9th.

Also on hand at the celebration was Caroline Kennedy, who was accepting the "Irish Man of the Year Award" on behalf of her late uncle, Senator Ted Kennedy. The other honorees at the event were Larry McCarthy of the Gaelic Athletic Association of Greater New York and John O. Murphy, Irish Network NYC.

Here's a bio detailing the impressive scope of non-profit work that Ms. Sheehan has engaged in since serving as a Jesuit Volunteer at POTS in 1990:

Maureen Fergus Sheehan’s grandparents emigrated from County Mayo in Ireland. Her entire professional career has been devoted to meeting the needs of low-income New Yorkers, in particular those suffering or at a risk of hunger. Ms. Sheehan began her non-profit work in 1990, serving as a Jesuit Volunteer at Part of the Solution (POTS), a community-based agency in the Bronx serving the needs of low-income people. Over the years, she has held a number of positions with the agency including serving as its Executive Director (1992-1996) and its Development Director (2006-present). Ms. Sheehan also served as the Director of Development & Communications for New York City’s Food Bank, the Coordinator of the Office for the Homeless and Hungry of Catholic Charities Archdiocese of New York, and the Director of Corporate and Foundation Relations for Catholic Charities. She has been an active member of the Board of Directors of New York City Coalition Against Hunger (NYCCAH) since 1996 and is currently the agency’s secretary. Prior to her non-profit career, Ms. Sheehan worked briefly as a Corporate Finance Analyst with Drexel Burnham Lambert. She holds a Bachelors of Science degree in Business Administration from Georgetown University.

Congrats to Maureen Fergus Sheehan and POTS for this impressive honor!

~ErLu