U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday honored seven "extraordinary Americans," among them physician and philanthropist Dr. Miriam Adelson, with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
The medal is the U.S.'s highest civilian honor and is bestowed upon those who have made "especially meritorious contributions to the security or national interests of the United States, to world peace, or to cultural or other significant public or private endeavors," according to the White House.
Adelson was recognized for her work as a philanthropist and humanitarian, and as a doctor specializing in the treatment of narcotic addiction, the White House said.
During the ceremony, Trump also praised Adelson's efforts on behalf of the Jewish people and the State of Israel.
First Lady Melania Trump, senior cabinet members, U.S. Supreme Court judges and prominent public figures attended the ceremony in the East Room of the White House, where formal events are held.
Other honorees included retiring Utah Senator Orrin Hatch, former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Roger Staubach, and Supreme Court Justice Alan C. Page, as well as late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, music icon Elvis Presley and legendary baseball player Babe Ruth, whose relatives received the awards on their behalf.
Presenting the medal to Adelson, Trump described her as a "renowned philanthropist, somebody who has worked so hard – she doesn't have to do it but she does; 24 hours a day, this is what she does. A medical doctor, Miriam has dedicated her life to fighting addiction, something we're all becoming too familiar with.
"Through decades of innovating research, philanthropy and treatment, Miriam has helped thousands break free from their addiction to drugs and alcohol.
"In 2006, Miriam and her husband, Sheldon, who is with us today – thank you, Sheldon – established the Adelson Medical Research Foundation to prevent, reduce, or eliminate life-threatening diseases. To protect the sacred heritage of the Jewish faith, Miriam and Sheldon have supported Jewish schools, Holocaust Memorial organizations, and helped Jewish Americans visit the Holy Land.
"Miriam, I want to thank you very much for saving so many lives and helping so many people to get back to a normal way of life. You've been incredible. I know the work you've done. And you have been truly incredible," Trump said.
He also said the Adelsons had spared no effort to see the U.S. Embassy in Israel moved from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, as was done in May.
"They were very happy to see the embassy move to Jerusalem. They were very happy about that. So congratulations on that also. They fought very hard for that, the capital of Israel," Trump said.
In a statement released Saturday, Adelson said she was "deeply humbled and moved by this exceptional honor. Liberty is at the heart of my decades of work against substance abuse. Drug dependency is enslavement, for the user and his or her family and society, and treatment an emancipation.
"Together, my husband, Sheldon, and I have dedicated our lives to freedom: to a free market that benefits the greater good and to philanthropic endeavors that succor those suffering from poverty and disease."
Adelson is the sixth Israeli to receive the prestigious award. Other prominent recipients include late President Shimon Peres (2012), psychologist and Nobel Prize laureate Professor Daniel Kahneman (2013), violinist and conductor Itzhak Perlman (2015), former Prisoner of Zion Natan Sharansky (2006), and Rachel Harel, a member of the Dutch Resistance against the Nazis during World War II (1946).
Adelson, 73, was born in Haifa and was an internist and emergency room physician at Tel Aviv University's Sackler School of Medicine. She studied chemical dependency and drug addiction as an exchange student at Rockefeller University in New York, where she met Sheldon Adelson. They married in 1991.
The couple opened their first drug abuse clinic in Tel Aviv in 1993. Miriam Adelson helped develop a methadone program for teen addicts and has co-authored numerous research papers on methadone treatment.
In 2000, the Adelsons opened the Dr. Miriam and Sheldon G. Adelson Clinic for Drug Abuse Treatment and Research in Las Vegas to help treat painkiller and opioid addiction.
The Adelsons are very active in the Las Vegas Jewish community and generously support many organizations, including Birthright Israel, the Jewish Federation of Las Vegas, the Zionist Organization of America, AIPAC, the Anti-Defamation League and more.
The Adelson family owns the company that is the primary shareholder in Israel Hayom.
