07 February 2007
The American billionaire Sheldon Adelson has made a US$ 25 million donation to Birthright Israel. The money will allow the organization to double the number of free trips to Israel that it offers Jewish youth this summer, bringing the total to 20,000. The gift is being made by the Adelson Family Charitable Foundation, founded recently by the majority owner of the Las Vegas Sands Corp. and his wife Miriam. According to a Birthright spokesman quoted by JTA, the foundation anticipates making similar US$ 25 million gifts for the next several years. In December, the Adelson foundation gave US$ 5 million to Birthright Israel to pay for 2,000 free trips for Jews youngsters aged 18 to 26. Adelson, whose net worth is estimated at US$ 20.5 billion, is America’s third wealthiest man behind Bill Gates and Warren Buffet.
Birthright Israel estimates that 80,000 to 100,000 Jews worldwide are eligible for its trips each year. The organization's waiting list has about 38,000 names, according to the president of the Birthright Israel Foundation, Jay Golan. “The Birthright Israel program is one of the best ideas our time has seen because it has the greatest potential for establishing Jewish continuity,” Adelson said in a statement. Birthright Israel was initiated in the 1990s by Charles Bronfman, brother of World Jewish Congress president Edgar M. Bronfman.
