"When we band together and defend Israel without apology and without hesitation and convince Americans like us to follow in our footsteps, there's no stopping us," Dr. Miriam Adelson told attendees at a conference of the Israeli-American Council in Hollywood, Florida, on Friday.
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Adelson and her late husband, businessman and philanthropist Sheldon Adelson, turned the organization into the influential body it is today in an effort to make support for Israel a unifying consensus among all streams of US Jewry, without regard to political or sectorial affiliation, and to ensure Israel is always a top consideration for all Jews and Israelis living in the US for an extended period of time.
"Sheldon saw support for the organization as a win-win. He knew Israeli-Americans are not just people with two citizenships. We are greater than the sum of our parts because we express the close ties between two great nations," Adelson told the 3,000-strong crowd that included a great number of senior US and Israeli officials.
Defense Minister Benny Gantz was also in attendance at the conference, the first in-person Jewish event to be held since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic in a significant show of strength for the organization. The IAC has grown to become one of the most influential in its defense of Israel in American public opinion and in the war against elements trying to slander or promote a boycott of the Jewish state.
Adelson noted that despite the organization's successful efforts toward growth, which to a great extent can be attributed to the Adelsons' generous support, more work remains to be done. There is a need to continue to fight to achieve "unity among Jewish Americans and to bring this country [Israel] closer to its greatest ally [the United States] at a time when some on the fringes try to drive a wedge between them," she said.
Adelson encouraged the audience to "educate the second-generation of Israeli Americans on Zionism, loyalty, fighting for our future. Sheldon loved to say: Fight for what you believe in even if you fight alone. We are a force for good, we will go from strength to strength, as Sheldon predicted."
The Adelsons' have made historic contributions to Israel and Jewish causes around the world, bringing over 1 million Jews to Israel and the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial and museum in Jerusalem through the Taglit-Birthright project, upgrading and constructing departments and divisions in universities and hospitals across Israel that have provided opportunities for many, in addition to a variety of other projects.
Together with his wife Miriam, Sheldon Adelson was considered one of the most influential donors in the Jewish world. It is thanks to him that Israelis residing in the US have a new community framework in the form of the IAC.
Following her address to the conference, Adelson spoke to IAC Chairman Emeritus Shawn Evenhaim about her life without Sheldon.
She shared with Evenhaim that on one of her trips to Israel, her husband had noticed a man bringing fathers to his wife every Friday. He decided to do the same from that day on and until his death. Now, the couple's sons are keeping up the tradition, telling her that "not one Shabbat will go by that you don't get flowers."
Adelson told Evenhaim she plans to publish a book on Sheldon's life, to be based on speeches he made and interviews he gave in preparation for an autobiographical project. All profits from the book, which will be published in English, Hebrew, and Chinese, will go to Jewish charities.
The Adelson family owns the company that is the primary shareholder in Israel Hayom. Dr. Miriam Adelson is the publisher of Israel Hayom.
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