Oliver Murray is the new Chair of the Ireland Fund of Canada. Irish Connections Canada caught up with Oliver in his office in downtown Toronto where he holds the position of President and CEO, Brandes Investment Partners.

ICC:    Oliver, tell us your story of what brought you to Canada.

OM: I was born in Dublin in 1962 and moved to Canada in 1986.  The economy in Ireland then was not as robust as it was through the Celtic Tiger so I came to Canada to see a new country and to pursue new opportunities.

ICC: Have you always been involved with the Irish community since you arrived here?

OM: When I first came to Canada I was not involved in the Irish community at all. I concentrated on building my career. Before leaving Ireland, I worked in the financial services industry and continued in that area when I came to Canada.  Ten years after arriving in Canada, I met a fellow through business named Tom Delaney and he suggested I purchase a table at the Ireland Fund of Canada's annual St. Patrick's Day luncheon.  Ever since then I have been a regular attendee at this annual luncheon, but other than attending, I did not get involved in the organization.

ICC: How is it we find you then as Chair of the Ireland Fund of Canada (IFOC)?

OM: One day I met Robert Kearns for lunch.  He was at the early stages of planning for Ireland Park and the entire story resonated with me in a significant way. While I was not aware of any of my family members who left Ireland during the famine, I am sure there were some who did and of course, there were family members who left Ireland around 1918 due to the then economic conditions and the spread of the Spanish flu, so this exodus of Irish over many generations resonated with me greatly.  I certainly was not aware of the story of so many who arrived here in the summer of 1847 but I did agree that it was a story that needed to be told and agreed to join Ireland Park Foundation. The Ireland Fund of Canada was a major supporter of the Ireland Park project and matched the donations from the Canadian and Irish governments. Through Ireland Park activities, I got to meet a lot of people on the Board of Directors of the Ireland Fund of Canada and the Chair, Sue Storey, invited me to join the Ireland Fund of Canada once the park project was completed. In June 2009, I was appointed the Chair of the Ireland Fund of Canada.

ICC: What is the future role of the Ireland Fund of Canada?

OM: The Ireland Fund of Canada has had a history of dealing with projects of peace and reconciliation over the years and Irish Canadians should be very proud of the role they have played through the Ireland Fund in helping to bring about peace in Ireland. While there is a still lot of work to be done in Ireland, the economic situation is such that support of Irish Canadians back to the homeland is not as necessary as it was when the various Ireland Funds were established around the world.

Our vision going forward as the IFOC is to use our resources to help nurture the Irish community across Canada. We will still be involved in projects and issues back in Ireland but our primary focus will shift to the Irish community in Canada. What I want to see is the Irish community in Canada take its rightful place as one of the founding communities of the country. So, what does that mean? It means we have vibrant community associations  where our culture is part of the fabric of  this country-  where our music, dance, literature, sports, work ethic- all these things are embedded in the cultural life of Canadians.  I believe this is very important for our generation to do in a way that is sustainable over the long term. It is the most important thing we face at this juncture.  Despite the economic downturn in Ireland, I believe this will be temporary and people being forced out of Ireland because of economic conditions will cease.  It is now up to us as well as those second, third and fourth generation Irish to ensure our traditions are upheld and celebrated as part of our heritage here in Canada.