The American Irish Historical Society (AIHS) announced Wednesday that it would bestow its 2008 Gold Medal award upon Declan Kelly, Chairman and CEO of Financial Dynamics (FD) in the United States.The prestigious award, which recognizes a special or unique contribution to American Irish life, will be presented to Kelly at the Society's annual dinner on November 6th, 2008 at the Waldorf Astoria in New York.Kelly, 40 is the youngest medal recipient in the Society's 110-year history. Previous honorees include Ronald Reagan, Bono, Liam Neeson, Don Keough and John Cardinal O'Connor "Declan has been an inspiration to many here in the US and in Ireland," said Kevin M. Cahill, M.D., the Society's President-General. "His boundless energy and success in business, his entrepreneurial spirit, his dedication to organizations that help those less fortunate than himself and his undoubted influence on and support for Ireland's special relationship with the US makes him a worthy honoree of our Society." Kelly is an active leader in the Irish American community in a wide range of non profit philanthropic communities. He is a Main Board Director of the American Ireland Fund, a non profit organization dedicated to investing in community related and peace building initiatives on the island of Ireland. Declan is also a Director of Youth Inc., a New Jersey based non profit organization and a member of the Advisory Board of The Irish lobby For Immigration Reform (ILIR). He has previously served on the Board of Directors of Co-Operation Ireland, a non profit dedicated to peace and reconciliation in Northern Ireland, and GOAL, a leading humanitarian aid organization.Financial Dynamics is one of the world's largest business communications companies, representing over 1,000 clients in more than 20 countries. It was acquired in September of 2006 by FTI Consulting, one of the world's leading business advisory and consulting companies with a market capitalization of approximately $3 Billion and more than 3000 employees.