On Tuesday, December 20th, 2022, Friends of United Hatzalah will be holding its annual Gala in Miami, Florida at the JW Marriott Miami Turnberry Resort. This will be the third time the gala is held in Miami in support of Israel’s national volunteer-based EMS organization.

The event will feature a special performance by renowned Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli. Bocelli and his wife Veronica are being honored by the organization with the “Humanitarian Award”, as are philanthropists Margo and Yoram Cohen who will be presented with the “L’Dor V’Dor Award”, in recognition of the two couples’ contributions to lifesaving in Israel.

United Hatzalah International Committee Chairman and Board Members Rabbi Erica and Mark Gerson shared their excitement ahead of the event and said: “We are very excited to once again support United Hatzalah volunteers saving lives in Israel with an exciting Gala event in Miami.”

Also in attendance will be Miami-based artist Romero Britto. This year’s gala will also feature a VIP Reception by Dolce & Gabbana, while DJ David Edry will provide entertainment at the event’s afterparty.

While the 900 expected guests at the event will enjoy a great night of entertainment, the evening will be devoted to generating support for the work done by the organization’s network of 6,200 emergency medical volunteers in Israel, which provides its free-of-charge emergency services to all, regardless of race, religion or national origin.

This year’s gala comes just a few months after the organization sent an Emergency Response Team – made up of EMTs and members of the Psychotrauma and Crisis Response Unit – to the Fort Myers region in the days following Hurricane Ian in order to assist with emotional and psychological stabilization of the hurricane survivors and evacuees. This was the third delegation the organization sent to Florida over the past few years, with teams having previously responded to assist after Hurricane Irma in 2017, and the Champlain Tower Collapse in Surfside in 2021. Such international missions have become more common due to the organization’s growing recognition of the need to provide assistance around the globe in addition to its ongoing activities in Israel, which was most evident in its major involvement in responding to the Russia -Ukraine war and resulting humanitarian crisis.

All of the money raised will go towards purchasing new vehicles and medical equipment, as well as training additional volunteers, in order to further reduce the organization’s impressive response time of 3 minutes throughout Israel and 90 seconds in large metropolitan areas. This level of quick response times is enabled by the organization’s country-wide network of volunteers, its state-of-the-art dispatch and command system, and its fleet of nimble emergency vehicles.

“Like all of our events, this gala, in addition to the fundraising aspect, will be aimed at engaging with the Florida community in order to strengthen the sense of shared fate between Israelis and residents of Florida,” said the President and Founder of United Hatzalah Eli Beer.”

We would like people to come out of this gala feeling more connected than ever before. Whenever a terror attack occurs in Israel or a global disaster strikes, this community plays an important role in responding to it. The people here are truly ambassadors of lifesaving to the larger Jewish community as a whole and to the rest of the city and state. This is what being part of the United Hatzalah family means.

United Hatzalah’s Third Annual Miami Gala will take place on Tuesday, December 20th, 2022 at the JW Marriott Miami Turnberry Resort, 19995 W Country Club Dr, Aventura, FL 33180. For tickets, tables, and sponsorship opportunities, please visit the Gala website: https://www.uhmiamigala.com/. 

(Photo credit: GOKSUN photos/courtesy of United Hatzalah)