Paris: French appeal to Americans to help patch-up Notre-Dame cathedral
As Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris turns 854-years-old, the French are turning to Americans to seek financial help to save its crumbling features.
Published: 1 June 2017 17:22 CEST
Photo: AFP
An integral and defining part of the Paris landscape, the world famous Gothic cathedral has weathered a revolution, two world wars and a topless feminist stunt…and she's showing signs of the strain.
Vital repair work needs to be carried out to fix, among other things, a toppling gargoyle, cracks on the facade and the support structure for the church's famed stained glass windows.
The list goes on…and on.
While an appeal for donations has already been launched in France, a foundation set up by the Archbishop of Paris last year — Friends of Notre-Dame de Paris — is now specifically targeting American donors.
After the foundation received charity status at beginning of May from the American tax authorities, it can now receive untaxed donations and so the project is well and truly underway.
The cathedral is looking for a total of around €150 million for repairs while the government currently donates €2 million a year.
Senior Advisor Fundraising for Friends of Notre-Dame, Michel Picaud told The Local that turning to Americans for financial help was an obvious move given the amount of interest in the cathedral from across the pond.
“It was put it to us that Notre-Dame is a world monument and we could look to raise money for its repair from outside of France,” Picaud said.
“We receive many requests from Americans wanting to know if there is a channel they can use to donate,” he said. “The cathedral is a big part of Paris' history but also a big part of American history in the city.”
Friends of Notre-Dame will hold fundraising events in Paris as well as go on a US trip next spring, when it will visit Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles and Washington, DC in an attempt to raise funds.
When Paris was liberated from occupying forces by French and American troops, the celebrations took place in front of Notre Dame, and today it is a stone's throw from legendary English bookshop Shakespeare and Company.
The good news for Notre-Dame is that Americans have a history of stepping in to save historic churches in France. In 2013, THe Local reported on the story of a Texas oilman donated $100,000 to fix the roof of a 13th-century church in the southwestern French town of Aurignac.
To donate to the renovations and find out more about Friends of Notre-Dame, you can visit their website here.
An experienced diplomat who formerly worked in Belgium, the USA's new Ambassador has arrived in Paris.
Published: 9 March 2022 16:32 CET
France’s new US Ambassador is no stranger to US-European relations, having served as Ambassador to Belgium for four years.
An experienced diplomat and a fluent French speaker, Denise Campbell Bauer, 58, was based in Brussels between 2013 and 2017 after being nominated to the position by Barack Obama – for whom she had raised millions of dollars for his two presidential campaigns.
A noted advocate for women in politics, in 2019, she was executive director of the ‘Women for Biden’ campaign group for Joe Biden’s ultimately successful bid for the Presidency.
Première rencontre officielle ! J’ai eu l’honneur de remettre au Chef du protocole 🇫🇷 les lettres de créance signées par le Président Biden, qui m’accréditent officiellement comme Ambassadrice des États-Unis en France. pic.twitter.com/aLcwu5Q6Vq
— Denise Bauer, Ambassadrice des USA en France (@USAmbFrance) February 5, 2022
She is a former TV journalist and has worked with the American Red Cross.
She was nominated for the post of Ambassador to France and Monaco by President Joe Biden in July, and confirmed by the Senate during a marathon series of votes in December. She presented her credentials last month.
Announcing her nomination, the White House said in a statement: “Denise Campbell Bauer is an experienced diplomat, non-profit leader, and advocate for women’s voices in politics and policy.
“She served as the United States Ambassador to the Kingdom of Belgium from August 2013 until January 2017, where she led one of the largest embassies in Europe and earned a reputation for her collaborative leadership style, high ethics standards, and crisis management skills.”
She takes over the post at a critical time in global politics, with the US and EU nations co-ordinating sanctions against Russia, following the invasion of Ukraine.
She succeeds Trump nominee Jamie McCourt, who left in January. Chargé d’affaires Brian Aggeler has managed the embassy in the short intervening period.