The Charles and Jean Neil Irish Fiction Initiative was established in 2002 by Andrew C. and Erin Richardson to honor Andy’s maternal grandparents, who provided limitless love and support to their grandchildren. Andy (’88) earned a bachelor’s degree in business from Notre Dame before pursuing an MBA at the University of Chicago. Andy is chief financial officer for the Howard Hughes Corporation. At Notre Dame, he serves on the Graduate Studies and Research Advisory Council, and he and Erin are members of the Sorin Society.

The Neil Endowment has helped provide resources such as newspaper microfilm sets and the addition of some rare travel accounts of Ireland, including the 1824 illustrated book, A picturesque tour through Ireland by Dennis Sullivan, held only in fifteen libraries. At the core of the University’s Irish Fiction Initiative is the outstanding Loeber Collection of Irish Fiction. Funding from the Neil Initiative continues to fill gaps in the collection and add 20th- and 21st-century Irish fiction works. The projected result is the strongest collection of fiction relating to Ireland in this country, if not the world.

In addition to this endowment, the Richardsons also support the Ernest and Sandra Richardson Memorial Scholarship for Undergraduate Studies in the Mendoza College of Business, the Andrew C. and Erin Richardson Graduate Fellowship, and the Andrew and Erin Richardson Women’s Golf Scholarship.