(Courtesy of Nefesh B’Nefesh) Just moments before the barrage of rocket terror rained down on Israel this week, a championship-winning basketball coach, a former United Nations ambassador, and the president emeritus of the world’s largest Jewish campus organization were among the English-speaking olim honored at the Nefesh B’Nefesh Bonei Zion awards ceremony for their outstanding contributions to Israel’s modern society and history.
Nefesh B’Nefesh, the nonprofit organization that, in cooperation with Israel’s Ministry of Aliyah and Integration, The Jewish Agency for Israel, Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael and JNF-USA, facilitates aliyah from North America, held its annual Sylvan Adams Nefesh B’Nefesh Bonei Zion Prize ceremony to pay tribute to seven olim who have made a remarkable impact on Israel. The honorees (see below) were celebrated at the Tower of David Museum in the presence of Mayor of Jerusalem Moshe Lion, in a ceremony that was originally scheduled to be held last year but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“As Israeli society continues to evolve against the backdrop of a world undergoing major changes and hardships, one of the facets that remain constant are the inspirational and innovative contributions of olim to the strength and vitality of the Jewish State,” said Rabbi Yehoshua Fass, co-founder and executive director of Nefesh B’Nefesh. “As interest in aliyah continues to surge in defiance of the pandemic, Israel can undoubtedly continue to expect the infusion of ingenuity, resources and skills that aliyah brings to our country in the years and decades to come.”
Some 150 guests attended the celebratory event, where Mayor Lion, chairman of Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael; Avraham Duvdevani; Nefesh B’Nefesh co-founders Rabbi Yehoshua Fass and Tony Gelbart; along with Sylvan Adams, the benefactor of the prize, presented the honorees with their awards.
“I am honored to sponsor the Bonei Zion prizes that were awarded to an outstanding and meritorious cohort of recipients this year,” said Adams, benefactor of the Bonei Zion Prize. “As an oleh myself (December 2015), my gratitude to the state in accepting my wife and me as citizens encouraged me to continue to give back, a debt that can never be fully repaid. Mazel tov to the Bonei Zion prize winners, and thank you for your exemplary contributions to our beautiful country and Am Israel.”
Also congratulating the recipients was The Jewish Agency for Israel’s Chairman of the Executive Isaac Herzog, who said that despite being born in Israel, he feels that he’s an Anglo at heart due to his family lineage from the United Kingdom. “Each and every one of you are an example of your incredible contribution to the state of Israel and Jewish people at large. It’s about time you are heralded as a true example of why aliyah is so important to Israel.”
These impressive recipients were chosen by an esteemed panel of committee members, and represent excellence achieved in a variety of fields, including: Science & Medicine; Community & Nonprofit; Education; Israel Advocacy; Culture, Art & Sports; Lifetime Achievement; and Young Leadership.
The 2020 Bonei Zion recipients include:
David Blatt, one of the most successful American-Israeli coaches in European basketball history and the former coach of the NBA’s Cleveland Cavaliers, in the field of Culture, Art & Sports
Debbie Gross, founder and director of Tahel-Crisis Center for Religious Women and Children, in the field of Community & Nonprofit
Ambassador Dore Gold, President of the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs and Israel’s former ambassador to the United Nations, in the field of Global Impact
Prof. Deborah Rund, a leading hematology researcher, in the field of Science & Medicine
Reuven Asch, chief psychologist for the Israeli Ministry of Education, in the field of Education
Zo Flamenbaum, founder of School of Shine, in the field of Young Leadership
Avraham Infeld, president emeritus of Hillel-the Foundation for Jewish Campus life, with the Lifetime Achievement Award
