Friends Of Mercy St. Patrick's Dinner

(Left to Right) Friends of Mercy Medical Center St. Patrick's Dinner co-chairmen Jeffrey Mulhall and Kevin Laurie, honoree Gerry Oaks, Friends of Mercy President Stephen McLoughlin, and St. Patrick's Dinner co-chairman Francis J. Darcy.

The Friends of Mercy Medical Center will hold their 41st annual Gentlemen's St. Patrick's Dinner on Thursday, March 15th at the Hempstead Golf and Country Club. The black-tie event will honor Gerry Oakes, Director of the Nassau/Suffolk Chapter of Swim Across America which has raised more than $1 million to support Mercy's "M.I.R.A.C.L.E." Pavilion, home to the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in Nassau County.

Co-Chairmen of this year's event will be Kevin Laurie and Francis Darcy of Rockville Centre and Jeffrey Mulhall of Garden City, who energetically support both The Friends and numerous other community activities.

The Friends of Mercy was founded in 1935 as an organization of men dedicated to volunteering their time and efforts to raise funds for the construction of the new Hospital and advancement of medical and surgical care for the patients of Mercy Medical Center. The group sponsors several fund-raising events each year, including a Golf Outing in September and The Mercy Ball in December. In the past two years, the Friends have raised over $700,000 which supported a new radiology suite in hospital's Express Emergency Care Center, and for the new North Pavilion which opened last February.

The Friends traditionally present the proceeds of the previous year's fundraising activities at the St. Patrick's Dinner. It is one of the group's most convivial events, and a significant fund-raiser for the Medical Center. Tickets are $300 per person, with 50/50 tickets also available. For reservations or information contact Mercy's Development Department at (516)705-1021.