IRISH-AMERICAN businessmen in California have pledged $175,000 (€133,000) a year to keep open a diplomatic post in San Francisco that faces the axe due to Government cutbacks.
Barry O’Brien, the vice-consul in San Francisco, is to return to Ireland when his mission ends this summer. He will not be replaced, leaving one diplomat for a consulate that covers 13 states, including California, Washington, Oregon, Nevada, Colorado and Utah.
In a bid to keep Mr O’Brien in San Francisco, the group has pledged to create a fund that would pay his wages and other costs associated with the position.
A non-profit body, Friends of the Irish Consulate, is being set up to administer the fund. It is not yet known whether the Government will accept the proposal. The idea was suggested to Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Richard Bruton at a meeting in Silicon Valley last month.
Kerry native Brian Sheehy, founder of Future Bars and the owner of several drinks establishments in San Francisco, said those at the meeting explained to the Minister that Mr O’Brien had been pivotal in linking Irish businesses with venture capitalists and market insiders in Silicon Valley.
He added: “Having people like Barry O’Brien provides a vital support service for those tech people and business people here. Through his connections, he has been able to introduce like-minded people, and it’s a concern to us that he is being taken away when he has been so influential in helping businesses.”
Others at the meeting who have pledged support are Kalan MacGinley of Macquarie Capital; founder of Segala and chief executive of Meta Cert, Paul Walsh; founder and chief executive of Swrve, Hugh Reynolds, John Collison of Stripe; Fergus Hurley of Focal Labs; Billy Alvarado of Stripe and founder of Frontdesk Anywhere, Joe Kiernan.
Mr Sheehy said the Irish Network and other Irish-American business groups in San Francisco would easily collect the funds as Mr O’Brien’s input was seen as crucial to a range of ventures. “We know that raising the money will not be a problem. There are many people who would be willing to stump up cash for this,” he said.
Mr Sheehy pointed to Mr Barry’s track record as vice-consul. He recently organised an annual internship for Irish graduates to Silicon Valley Bank and has been instrumental in setting up a trade mission to Ireland to be led by Washington governor Chris Gregoire this summer.
He has contacts in major Silicon Valley enterprises including gaming giant Zynga, and he helped set up branches of the Irish Network in San Diego, Washington, Arizona and Seattle.
Neil Sands, vice-president of the Irish Network in San Francisco,said: “For Irish companies entering new markets, it is all about creating local partnerships. Resourcing government bodies such as the Irish Consulate is vital in that regard for Ireland.
“Effective officials like Barry have amassed a deep network of regional contacts, which is a great advantage to both the Irish at home and here among the diaspora.”
The consulate in San Francisco covers a massive area which has been the breeding ground for corporations including Microsoft, Google, Twitter and Facebook that have chosen Ireland as their European hubs in recent years.
