Our Mission
French Heritage Society is an American non-profit organization created in 1982 that includes 10 chapters in the US and one in France.
Through various activities and our educational program, we are dedicated to preservation, restoration and promotion of the beautiful French heritage throughout the United States and France.
The central mission of French Heritage Society is to ensure that the treasures of our shared French architectural and cultural heritage survive to inspire future generations to build, dream, and create by:
- Preserving the rich French architectural and cultural heritage throughout France and in the US by raising funds for restoration, preservation and cultural grants.
- Transmitting and safeguarding the skills, knowledge and love of the heritage through transatlantic educational programs for students, architects, artisans, art connoisseurs and collectors.
- Fostering Franco-American friendship and cross-cultural exchange through select tours in France and the U.S., lectures, conferences, galas and other events on both side of the Atlantic.
Board of Directors
Elizabeth Stribling
Chairman of the Board
Mrs. Elizabeth Stribling has served as Chairman of the Board of French Heritage Society since 2007 and has served on the Board of Directors since 2002. She founded the real estate brokerage of Stribling & Associates in 1980, and on April 1st, 2019 sold it to Compass, a national brokerage, where she is Vice Chairman, New York Development. Elizabeth Stribling is highly regarded as a business and civic leader. She was honored as the “Woman of Achievement” by the American Cancer Society in 2007 and has received the Spirit of Achievement Award at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University, National Women’s Division, New York Chapter. In 2005, she was a Corporate Honoree at the French Consulate in support of the Morris-Jumel Mansion. She was also Corporate Honoree at The Winter Ball of The Junior League of New York in 2004 and has previously received the “Henry Forster Award” for Outstanding Achievement and Conduct within the Residential Brokerage Profession of New York City. In 2018, she received the Bernard Mendik Lifetime Leadership in Real Estate Award from the Real Estate Board of New York for exceptional service to the real estate industry and professional accomplishments. She also received a Lifetime Achievement Award from Who’s Who in Luxury Real Estate in 2018.
She is a recipient of the French National Order of Merit with the rank of Officer as well as being awarded in 2012 the rank of Officer in the Legion of Honor by the French Government. In 2018, she was promoted to the grade of Commandeur in the Legion of Honor and hopes to be decorated with this award in the near future.
Elizabeth Stribling is currently on the Board of Governors of the Real Estate Board of New York. She is a former Trustee of The Hewitt School in New York City, from which she graduated. She received a BA cum laude from Vassar College, and did graduate work at Girton College, Cambridge University.
Mrs. Stribling is currently on the Board of Directors of the New York Landmarks Conservancy, the Women’s Committee of Central Park Conservancy, and the American Hospital of Paris. Mrs. Stribling and her husband, Guy Robinson, have graciously received FHS trip participants at their homes in New York, l’Île de la Cité in Paris, and in the South of France. They are also the founding members of FHS’s Ambassadors Circle.
David M. Gray
Treasurer
David M. Gray, Ph.D; OBE David Gray has served as the Treasurer of the French Heritage Society for many years. Early in his career, he was a Professor of International Relations at several universities, including Arcadia University, the University of Pennsylvania, and Drew University. He later served as both Executive Vice President and Director of International Programs at Arcadia University (formally Beaver College). Subsequently, he co-founded the Institute for Study Abroad, which became the largest university-based study abroad organization in the United States. He presently serves as Chairman and CEO of the Study Abroad Foundation, which operates study abroad programs for Asian students in English-speaking countries. For his pioneer work in international education, he received Honorary Fellowships from Queen Mary College, University of London, and London Guildhall University. In 2008 he was awarded an OBE (Most Excellent Order of the British Empire) by Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth, II.
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French Heritage Society’s New York Gala – The Black & White Ball==
Private Club, New York, NY==
November 21, 2019==
©Patrick McMullan==
Photo – Patrick McMullan/PMC==
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CeCe Black
Timothy Corrigan
Ronald Lee Fleming
Rosann Gutman
Kazie Metzger Harvey
Isabelle de Laroullière
Silvina Leone
Michèle le Menestrel Ullrich
Founding President
Jean Doyen de Montaillou
Maureen Nash
Jean Shafiroff
Ann Van Ness
Denis de Kergorlay
Denis de Kergorlay is a graduate of the Institut d’Études Politiques and holds a law degree from the Université d’Assas. A former lecturer at the Institut International d’Administration Publique in Paris, he was also the cultural attaché at the French Embassy in Thailand.
He returned to France in 1978 to take over the management of the Château de Canisy, his family estate in Normandy, which he has transformed into a private historic site open for prestigious gatherings with an international character (symposia, concerts, seminars). His volunteer activities have included involvement with the humanitarian NGO Médecins Sans Frontières for over 10 years.
Comte Denis de Kergorlay began his presidency of the French Heritage Society in 2008. He has generously hosted receptions for American and French members in France, and has travelled to many regions throughout the U.S. to participate in FHS Chapter events.
He is also Executive President of Europa Nostra, the European Federation of Heritage NGO’s present in more than forty European countries and President of the Cercle de l’Union Interalliée in Paris. He has also served as Vice President of the La Demeure Historique – French heritage organization partner of FHS.
Jennifer Herlein
Executive Director
French Heritage Society as its Executive Director in February 2017 and is delighted to be in a role that’s at the perfect intersection of her passions and experience. Before joining FHS, she most recently managed development events at the French Institute Alliance Française in NYC. Before relocating to NYC in 2016, Jennifer lived in Chicago where she was the Executive Director at Fulcrum Point New Music Project, a new art music organization. She also served as the Public and Governmental Affairs Officer at the Quebec Government Office in Chicago, facilitating relationships between cultural and academic entities in Quebec and the U.S. Additional experience includes being the donor-related special events liaison for the Chancellor at the University of Illinois at Chicago and establishing a multi-faceted cultural programs department at Alliance Française de Chicago. Jennifer has an MBA with a focus on marketing and international business from the University of Illinois at Chicago, an MA in French Studies and a BA in French and English from The University of Iowa. Her studies led her to live in France for over two years where she taught English at the Université de Poitiers, and to participate in an intensive business program in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
Yann Coatanlem
Christian Draz
Elisa Fredrickson
Dena Kaye
Sarah de Lencquesaing
Judy McLaren
Juan Pablo Molyneux
Michel Moscovici
George P. Sape
Cassandra Surer
Jacqueline Wilson
Barbara Wolf
Honorary Directors
Administration
New York Office
Paris Office
News from our Chairman
Coups de Coeur de Libba
Paris Art Studies
Paris always offers a superb choice of art expositions at all of its museums – large and small – throughout the city. A visit to ... Read More >
Fragonard Boutiques
I am lucky to have a home in the hills above the Riviera overlooking the perfume city of Grasse. With abundant roses and jasmine in ... Read More >
Grand Coeur, Paris
When I heard that the Michelin two-star chef of the acclaimed Mirazur Restaurant, perched high above Menton on the Riviera, had opened a brasserie in ... Read More >
Chez Monsieur (Royal Madeleine)
The mere mention of the word bistrot evokes Jean Gabin films and Georges Simenon short stories. Where can one find such a mythic place in ... Read More >
Partners in Preservation
National Trust for Historic Preservation
An organization who provides leadership, education, advocacy, and resources to save America’s diverse historic places and revitalize our communities.
Les Vieilles Maisons Françaises
An association dedicated to the preservation of built heritage and landscape, is an association which acts to strengthen funding for heritage, and heritage education and training.
La Demeure Historique
A historic association of private monuments who represents more than 3,000 châteaux, manors, abbeys, or mansions throughout France, and advises owners about sustainability and promotes historic preservation and cultural heritage.
Le Comité des Parcs et Jardins de France
A committee who federates the activities of French national and regional associations concerned with parks and gardens, especially their promotion and protection of adjoining landscapes.
La Fondation du Patrimoine
The organization participates in funding for heritage; identifys buildings in peril; encourages partnerships on a national and local level, and with companies; and promotes job creation and the transmission of trades and know-how.
Other Partners
- Cultural Services of the French Embassy in the US
- The Preservation Society of Newport County
- Cercle de l’Union Interalliée
- American Institute of Architects