We were delighted to welcome nearly 400 guests to our 70th Anniversary Dinner on Monday 25th November at the newly renovated ballroom at the Marriott Grosvenor Square. A staggering £2.5m was raised on the night.
Donors had the opportunity to explore the kitted- out ambulance and medicycle situated in the ballroom. The ambulance was generously donated by Alan Rind in honour of HRH Prince William’s visit to Israel.
Guest speaker, Noam Gershony told guests about how MDA “saved my life” when his Apache helicopter collided with another helicopter during the 2006 Lebanon War. No-one thought that the then 23-year-old would survive.
Incredibly, Noam rehabilitated and went on to win Israel’s first gold medal in the men’s singles quad tennis tournament at the 2012 London Paralympics. An emotional Noam said: “I owe my life to MDA – the guarding angels of the people in Israel.” Noam received a standing ovation by all in the room.
Star of BBC’s Live at the Apollo, ground-breaking ventriloquist, Nina Conti, provided some light entertainment later into the night.
Speaking after the event, MDA UK Chief Executive Daniel Burger said: “It was incredible to hear about the lifesaving work that MDA does through Noam’s experience and to have HRH’s ambulance in the room really conveyed how important MDA’s work is. We are so thankful to our incredible donors who enable us to save lives in Israel, here’s to another fantastic 70 years ahead of saving more lives.”
