14th Annual Gala Recap November 2015
Transcript of 14th Annual Gala Recap November 2015
IAJF 14th Annual Gala Recap
OnNovember4,2015,IAJFheldits14thAnnualGalaatLincolnCenter'sAliceTullyHallin
New York City. A packed house of nearly 1,000 guests were on hand to celebrate the
achievementsoftheIAJFandtostandunitedwithIsrael.
Theevening'semcee,comedianElonGold,warmedupthecrowdwitharousingcomedy
act. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered a personal message to the
audience, thanking the IAJF for its lasQng impact on the lives ofmany Israelis. Consul
General of Israel in New York, Ambassador Ido Aharoni, spoke of the community's
importantwork.NewlyelectedIAJFPresidentRobertKahen,tooktheguestsintoajourney
ofthefamousmelody,"SomewhereOvertheRainbow,"whosetruemeaningisthedream
of the landof Israel.When Israelwasborn thedreamcame true, exemplifying the true
reasonwhyweallgatherforthismeaningfulevent:tocelebrateIsraelandstrengthenit!
OneofthehighlightsoftheeveningwasthehonoringofIAJFVicePresidentYosefShahery
fora lifeQmeofachievements, impactonthecommunityandanunwaveringsupportfor
Israel.ApoignantvideodocumenQngMr.Shahery'saccomplishmentsgaveasmallglance
onthelifeofanoteworthyleaderandvisionary.
AtalentedensembleoftheIDFOrchestraentertainedtheaudiencewithaperformanceof
tradiQonal Israeli songs. The evening's keynote speaker, Ambassador Danny Danon, the
new Permanent RepresentaQve of Israel to the United NaQons, spoke about the ever
increasingproblemofviolenceagainstIsraelisandhisexperiencesattheUnitedNaQons.
Following the event, the IAJF hosted an exclusive a]er-party for over 200 young
professionalsinLincolnCenter.
A record breaking $5 million was raised in 2015 due to the immense support of our
community and the generosity of our honoree Mr. Yosef Shahery, who provided the
biggestsurpriseof theeveningbypledging$1million. Total fundsraisedtodateby the
IAJF since2002nowexceed$37million,whichhasallowed the IAJF tobenefitover170
differentorganizaQons.
Inall,theGalabroughttogetherthosewhoseheartsarefilledwiththeloveofIsraeland
whostandtogetherasone.
IAJFboardmemberswithAmbassadorDannyDanon,MajorGeneralYaakovAyish,MajorGeneral(Ret.)MeirKlifi-AmirandIDFsoldiers
IAJF14thAnnualGalaattheAliceTullyHall,
LincolnCenter,NYCity
KeynoteSpeaker,AmbassadorDannyDanon,PermanentRepresentaPveofIsraeltotheUnited
NaPons
GreePngofAmbassadorIdoAharoni,ConsulGeneralofIsraelin
NY
MasterofCeremonies,ComedianElonGold
NaPonalAnthemsperformedbySophie
SaidmehrandIDFOrchestra
IDFOrchestrainPerformance
RecogniPonofGalaHonoree,
Mr.YosefShahery
The14thAnnualGalaHonoree,Mr.YosefShahery
IAJFViceChairman,Mr.ShahramYaghoubzadeh
IAJFPresident,Mr.RobertKahen
YoungLeadershipDivisionExecuPveBoardMembers,Ms.SheerynKahenandMs.
AshleyEmrani
IAJFVicePresident,Mr.StevenKhadavi