WATCH: 80th Al Smith Dinner at the Waldorf Astoria, NYC

The 80th Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner

The 80th Annual Dinner


This year’s Dinner will take place at the Waldorf Astoria New York on October 16, 2025. The sold-out evening will honor our Happy Warrior, Robert K. Kraft, and feature keynote speakers, Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken and Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo.

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The 80th Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner

Thursday, October 16, 2025
New York, NY

The 80th Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner benefiting women and children in need will take place on October 16, 2025, at the Waldorf Astoria New York, 301 Park Ave.

The evening will be a joyful celebration of our Happy Warrior, Robert K. Kraft, and keynote speakers, Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken and Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo.

The Smith Dinner is sold out. For inquiries, please contact AlSmith.Foundation@archny.org.

Thank you.

The 80th Annual Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner

 The 80th Annual Dinner

This year’s Dinner will take place at the Waldorf Astoria New York on October 16, 2025.

The 80th Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner

Thursday, October 16, 2025
New York, NY

The 80th Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner benefiting women and children in need will take place on October 16, 2025, at the Waldorf Astoria New York, 301 Park Ave.

We invite you to join us for a lighthearted evening celebrating our Happy Warrior, Robert K. Kraft, and keynote speakers, Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken and Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo.

Questions?

For general inquiries, please contact us at 646.794.3315 or AlSmith.Foundation@archny.org

For media inquiries, please click here.

View our 2025 Invitation & RSVP Card

To view photos of last year's dinner, please click here.

View our 2025 Invitation & RSVP Card

Since its first dinner in 1946, The Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner has raised millions of dollars for New York’s most vulnerable women and children. The Dinner has featured renowned cultural, business, and political figures, including most major party presidential nominees during election years since 1960.

Today the dinner is a cultural landmark, a living memorial to one of New York’s most beloved sons, remembered as the first Roman Catholic presidential candidate for a major party and a four-term governor who catalyzed labor reform and social security legislation in America.

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Trump Administration SLAMS Maduros Venezuela as illegitimate at the UN

3 key takeaways from this week's first-of-its-kind State Department religious freedom event

By

Kelsey Dallas @kelsey_dallas

Published: July 28, 2018 9:47 am

Manuel Balce Ceneta, AP

Vice President Mike Pence and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, right, wave following a speech by Pence at the close of a three-day conference on religious freedom at the State Department in Washington, Thursday, July 26, 2018, as the Trump administration comes under criticism for strict refugee and migration policies that have sharply reduced America's intake of people fleeing persecution over their beliefs. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta) 

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SALT LAKE CITY — The State Department succeeded in bringing together a diverse group of government and religious leaders for three days this week in a first-of-its-kind religious freedom gathering. But that's just the beginning of addressing religious persecution around the globe, participants said.

"There are tremendous threats to religious freedom coming in the future," said Emilie Kao, who directs the Richard and Helen DeVos Center for Religion and Civil Society at The Heritage Foundation. "Solidarity is really important."


However, unity will be unsustainable if members of the Trump administration continue to praise authoritarian regimes or anti-Muslim activists, some observers said. Moving forward, government leaders will need to show that they understand what it means to guarantee religious freedom for all.

"It makes it hard to take them seriously when they both undermine religious freedom here at home and when they are ignoring so many other disastrous human-rights abuses," said Michael Fuchs, a former deputy secretary of state, to Politico.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has already announced plans to turn the recent gathering into an annual event. Here are some additional takeaways from the first Ministerial to Advance Religious Freedom:

 

Manuel Balce Ceneta, AP

Archbishop Demetrios of America, right, from Greek Orthodox Archdiocese, attends the first-ever Ministerial to Advance Religious Freedom at the State Department in Washington, Thursday, July 26, 2018, attended by Vice President Mike Pence and hosted by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta) 

1. The Trump administration is taking religious freedom activism to a new level.

The ministerial consisted of three days of official events and dozens of side events, which were attended by survivors of religious violence, clergy members, government officials, diplomats and leaders of social service organizations. Speakers highlighted major threats to religious freedom, shared success stories and created goals to guide future work.

What impressed some participants is that top U.S. officials seemed deeply invested in the success of the gathering.

"At every event, there were senior U.S. government leaders and State Department officials," said Brian Grim, president of the Religious Freedom and Business Foundation.

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