Donna M. D’Urso, Director
Donna M. D’Urso has a long history and legacy of Catholic-centric philanthropy and service. Ms. D’Urso has been President of the New York Chapter of the Patrons of the Arts in the Vatican Museums since 2019, and was a Director for the organization since 2016. She also previously served on the Board of Convent of the Sacred Heart School (1995-2004) and the Board of Directors of the Ladies of Charity (2017-2020).
Ms. D’Urso has volunteered on and contributed to many event committees, including for The Path to Peace Gala, The Inner-City Scholarship Gala, The Franciscan Friars Gala, Cardinal’s Christmas Luncheon, The Sisters of Life, and the St. Vincent’s Hospital Luncheon-Westchester. She has also helped to support the Missionaries of Charity in the Bronx, the Motherhouse in India, CNEWA, Ladies of Charity/Catholic Charities, St. John Vianney Residence, Order of Friars Minor, Capuchins (St. Mary Province), and more. She has also been a Dame of the Holy Sepulchre since 1997.
Ms. D’Urso built an extensive career in retail and design. She earned her B.A. from the New York School of Interior Design, and owned a furnishing store in New York City offering interior design services, which drew upon her years of experience in sales, design planning, and client presentation. She also has experience in the fashion industry, having worked in the fine jewelry department of Bergdorf Goodman and starting the Bridal Registry department with The LS Collection.
In her retirement, she continues to enjoy volunteer work and traveling. Every Easter, she prints 30,000 cards for St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York to promote the devotion of Divine Mercy – a tradition which started when she and her mother gifted the painting to Cardinal Dolan, Archbishop of New York, after bringing it back from Poland nearly 20 years ago.
The Endowment for Long Term Stability
Safeguarding the financial future of the Friends of the Vatican is essential to carrying out its mission long-term, and gifting to the Foundation’s Endowment is the best and most impactful way to safeguard that future. Each year, the Board of Directors takes a percentage of the investment income from the Endowment to make grants towards its mission of ensuring the preservation of Vatican City.
Gifts to the Endowment are perpetual, as the Board of Directors never draws from the corpus of the gift, but rather only uses a portion of the investment income generated to make grants while continuing to compound the fund. This ensures long-term financial stability and growth for the Friends of the Vatican.
Donating to the Foundation’s Endowment is a gift for the future, as its impact will continue to be realized forever. Investing in the Foundation’s Endowment helps to create a sustainable future for the Friends of the Vatican’s initiatives and for the preservation of Vatican.
