The American Australian Association held its inaugural Benefit Dinner on June 30, 1998 at Windows on the World, New York in celebration of the 50th anniversary of our founding. Australian-born American media mogul Rupert Murdoch AC, son of Association Founder Sir Keith Murdoch, and longtime Patron himself, was fittingly honored. The immense success of this first dinner paved the way for future dinners and enabled the Association to create its Graduate Education Fund. In the twenty plus years since the inaugural dinner, the Benefit Dinner has grown in size and stature and is now the Association’s preeminent marquee event on our annual calendar.
The Benefit Dinner enables the Association to deepen and strengthen the US-Australian relationship, bringing together business leaders through recognizing and honoring prominent American and Australian business leaders who enhance business cooperation and advance the investment and economic relationship between our countries.
Secondly, the Dinner provides an opportunity to highlight the depth and breadth of the innovative and ground breaking research being undertaken by the many talented recipients of the Association’s Graduate Education scholarships.