Patrick Quinn ’06, the late ALS Ice Bucket Challenge co-founder and proud Iona College Gael, will deliver a posthumous keynote address during Iona’s 77th annual Commencement Ceremony to be held virtually on Sunday, May 23. The ceremony will be livestreamed on the Iona College website.
The inspirational message is a compilation of Quinn’s speeches as he campaigned to raise funds for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. An Iona rugby player and 2006 graduate, Quinn was diagnosed with ALS in 2013. He would go on to help raise more than $220 million for medical research through the Ice Bucket Challenge, never giving up on his fight to find a cure for the debilitating disease. He passed away in November 2020 at the age of 37 after a heroic, seven year battle.
“Pat Quinn embodied the spirit of Iona College. With perseverance and faith, he fought the good fight and proved to the world that one individual can make a profound difference,” said Iona President Seamus Carey, Ph.D. “As we celebrate the remarkable Class of 2021 and all of their many accomplishments, we do so knowing that they will carry forth the Iona legacy of service, opportunity and the transformative power of education. May God continue to bless the path ahead of them.”
