The Ellis Island Honors Society —  formerly NECO — was established in 1984 at the behest of President Ronald Reagan to celebrate the contributions of immigrants and their descendants to the United States. EIHS was founded on the conviction that diversity of the American people is what makes this nation great. EIHS’s mission included a commitment to honoring and preserving the nation’s racial and cultural diversity and to foster tolerance, respect and understanding among religious and ethnic groups.

EIHS began awarding the Ellis Island Medal of Honor in 1986. Included among the first group of recipients were Rosa Parks, Lee Iacocca, Bob Hope, and Mohammad Ali. The Medal exemplifies the spirit of America at its annual gala which is a celebration of patriotism, tolerance, brotherhood, and diversity. The Ellis Island Medal of Honor recognizes individuals who have made it their mission to share with those less fortunate their wealth of knowledge, indomitable courage, boundless compassion, unique talents, and selfless generosity; all while maintaining the traditions of their ethnic heritage as they uphold the ideals and spirit of America.

Both the United States Senate and House of Representatives have officially passed resolutions recognizing the Ellis Island Medal of Honor, which ranks among this country’s most prestigious awards. Each year, Ellis Island Medal of Honor recipients are announced in the halls of Congress and are listed in the Congressional Record.

At the request of the City of New York, EIHS was designated the exclusive organizer of the United Nations 50th Anniversary Parade, which took place in 1995.

James Byrd, Jr., a Black man, was brutally murdered by white supremacists in 1998. Partnering with the James Byrd, Jr. Foundation for Racial Healing, EIHS created two scholarships for high school students, and was privileged to donate Mr. Byrd’s headstone at the request of the Byrd family.

EIHS was appointed by New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani to the newly established Immigration Coalition to help in the fight against hate crimes and anti-immigrant sentiments across the US.

Ellis Island Medal of Honor recipient Colonel William S. McArthur carried the Medal into space aboard the Space Shuttle Discovery on October 11, 2000.

EIHS underwrote the creation of “Angels of Courage” silver lapel pins, which were made to honor and raise funds for the families of the September 11 terrorist attacks.  The silver used in the pins was recovered from the World Trade Center site and made available to EIHS through the generosity of Scotia Bank in tribute to the police officers, firefighters and EMS workers who lost their lives in the attacks.

EIHS was proud to be the official sponsor of a highly successful benefit honoring First Responders who served during the attacks of September 11, 2001. All funds raised from this benefit went toward helping victims of the attacks and their families. 

EIHS also partnered with Gift of Life International to bring life-saving cardiac care to children in need worldwide. With EIHS’s help, over 250 children have received necessary heart surgeries and hundreds of others have received basic medical care.

An Interfaith Service of Prayer was held on Ellis Island in July of 2002. International clergy and representatives from diverse religious groups joined to read prayers and sacred texts in the spirit of unity through diversity.

EIHS responded to the Haitian Earthquake disaster by partnering with New Yorkers for Haiti, an ad-hoc advocacy group working through the office of the Manhattan Borough President. Over $80,000 was raised, and available for relief efforts on the island within three days of the last tremor.

Armenian President Serge Sargsyan was the first sitting president of a foreign land to receive the Global Humanitarian Ellis Island Medal of Honor Award, which was presented to him on Ellis Island in 2011.

EIHS quickly responded after Hurricane Sandy left areas of the tri-state region destroyed. In partnership with The Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation, EIHS, through the generosity of its Medalists, raised funds to assist those in need of help.

EIHS traveled to Belfast, Northern Ireland in September of 2013 to present First Minister Peter Robinson, deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness and Dr. Ian Paisley, The Lord Bannside, with the Global Humanitarian Ellis Island Medal of Honor Award in recognition of their efforts to bring peace and stability to the citizens of Northern Ireland.

In response to the devastation in The Philippines caused by Typhoon Haiyan in 2013, EIHS partnered with the American Red Cross to bring basic necessities and medical care to the region.  By reaching out to our family of Medalists, EIHS was able to make a substantial donation to the relief efforts.

Towards the end of 2013, EIHS was proud to donate hundreds of stuffed teddy bears that played the song “God Bless the USA (Proud to Be an American)” to our servicemen and women overseas. EIHS was happy to support our good friend and 1994 Medalist Marvin Scott, the celebrated news anchor for WPIX-NYC, as he once again traveled to Afghanistan bringing gifts from home to our troops.

EIHS was proud to facilitate and donate the cost of rehabilitating one of the elevators in the Great Hall on Ellis Island. Inoperable after damage caused by Hurricane Sandy, EIHS sought out experts who replaced electrical panels and performed much-needed repairs to counteract the effects of the salt water that flooded the buildin.

EIHS enlisted the scouts of Cub Pack 134 from Long Island for a food drive in 2014 to benefit The Ronald McDonald House of Long Island.  After our holiday food drive, EIHS began underwriting monthly dinner events at The Ronald McDonald House benefiting 42 families, all of whom were experiencing childhood medical crises.

Two important figures in EIHS’s history, Executive Director Rosemarie Taglione, who was often called “the heart” of EIHS and EIHS Founder, William Denis Fugazy, Sr. left us in 2015. Rosemarie had worked with Bill Fugazy, Sr. for over 42 years, traveling the world and changing countless lives.

In partnership with John Jay College of Criminal Justice, EIHS established the Ellis Island Honors Society Scholarship in Memory of NYPD Officers Rafael Ramos and Wenjian Liu, two officers who lost their lives on December 20th, 2014 while protecting and serving the citizens of New York. Established in 1964, John Jay College of Criminal Justice is the preeminent international leader in education for justice in its many dimensions.

For the 2015-2016 academic year, EIHS underwrote the Study Abroad Program at Adelphi University of Long Island. This generous grant allows International Studies majors to travel the world for cultural and educational opportunities.

EIHS was honored to have worked with Make-A-Wish Metro New York and Western New York in 2015 to make a young boy’s dream of visiting Walt Disney World Resort come true.  Little Marc, who was diagnosed with sickle cell disease, and his family spent a fun-filled week exploring the Magic Kingdom and other Disney attractions. 

EIHS hosted a “Pre-Thanksgiving” luncheon in the Great Hall on Ellis Island to honor recently naturalized citizens. EIHS worked closely with New York-based Immigration Advocacy Services to welcome a dozen new Americans and their families to the United States.

The National Park Service partnered with the Tribeca Film Institute in April of 2016 to host The America I Am, a youth short film competition that received hundreds of entries from around the country.  The competition was to foster creativity and an appreciation for their country. EIHS was proud to sponsor the EIHS Award, a $10,000 production prize and scholarship for post-production services and film education. 

In observance of Memorial Day in 2016, EIHS travelled to the Museum of the American Armor to celebrate with the ethnically diverse group of military personnel belonging to the famed “Fighting 69th” U.S. Army regiment. EIHS presented a check to the Long Island Family Readiness Group that supports the men and women of the “Fighting 69th” who are deployed overseas.

Also in 2016, EIHS were invited to the Museum of American Armor for their annual gala. This year, New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli was honored for his continued advocacy on behalf of veterans throughout the state and 1993 Ellis Island Medal of Honor recipient Ray Kelly, the former New York City Police Commissioner, was recognized with the museum’s Military Heritage Award. EIHS’s support will allow curriculum to be created that allows students to have a deeper understanding of the contributions of immigrants.

In the same year, EIHS was the major sponsor of the 25th anniversary of the Good Shepherd Services’ annual Thanksgiving Community dinner. Good Shepherd Services is a youth development and family service agency serving vulnerable New York City residents. The dinner took place at Good Shepherd Services’ Red Hook Community Center Beacon at The Patrick F. Daly School. EIHS staff were happy to volunteer alongside the student chefs to help prepare and serve dinner.

EIHS underwrote the 2017 PBS recording of the Pacific Symphony’s performance of the multi-media concert Ellis Island: The Dream of America. Created by composer Peter Boyer, a 2019 medalist, it uses immigrant diaries to dramatically tell first-hand accounts of the immigrant experience.  The program is broadcast annually as part of the acclaimed Great Performances series and was the first-ever national broadcast from the Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall. The venue is named for the philanthropist, entrepreneur, cultural leader, and patron of the arts, Henry Segerstrom, who is himself an Ellis Island medalist.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, EIHS worked tirelessly to support front-line workers around the country. With partners including New York City Health + Hospitals, the NYC Emergency Management Agency, the Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York City, and AmeriCares we provided 50,000 fresh, nutritional meals to essential workers in the hard-hit tri-state area. In Los Angeles, EIHS partnered with restaurants such as Planet Hollywood to support Nurses’ Week and area hospitals.

EIHS also partnered with JungoTV for a 3-day telethon of sporting events which raised money to support hospitals in the Midwest.

In order to combat rising food insecurity, EIHS made a significant contribution to Feeding America, the nation’s largest food bank

EIHS is proud to have been the sponsors of the historic Entrance Stones that stand on either side of the main entrance to the Ellis Island main building. Since 1986, major benefactors to EIHS’s initiatives are gratefully acknowledged by having their family names inscribed on a bronze plaque on the back of the Entrance Stones.