Seven immigrants from English-speaking countries will be honored as winners of the 2019 Sylvan Adams Bonei Zion Prize, an annual award presented by the Nefesh B’Nefesh aliyah organization.
Michael Dickson, executive director of StandWithUs-Israel will be honored with the Israel Advocacy Award; Beverly Gribetz, principal of the Evelina de Rothschild-Tehilla Secondary School in Jerusalem will be presented the Education Award; Ora Paltiel, director of the Hadassah Center for Research in Clinical Epidemiology will receive the Science and Medicine Award; Leah Abramowitz, co-founder of Melabev, the dementia-focused organization for the elderly, will receive the Community and Non-Profit Award; and Danny Hakim, founder and chairman of Budo for Peace and chairman of Kids Kicking Cancer Israel will be given the Culture, Art and Sports Award.
Harold “Smoky” Simon, who flew missions during Israel’s War of Independence, will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award for his role in founding the Israeli Air Force and chairing World Machal, an organization for overseas veterans of Israel’s wars.
The Young Leadership Prize will be presented to Miriam Ballin, founder of the United Hatzalah’s Psychotrauma and Crisis Response Unit.
The Bonei Zion (“Builders of Jerusalem”) Award was named after real estate magnate and philanthropist Sylvan Adams, who at the end of 2015 immigrated to Israel from Canada and settled in Tel Aviv. He has gained recognition for funding Israel’s “Beresheet” lunar spacecraft now on its way to the moon and bringing the famed Giro d’Italia bicycle race to Israel.
