SZ's Emotional and Inspiring Evening Commemorating 110 Years
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On Thursday evening, December 8th, Shaare Zedek Medical Center celebrated its 110th anniversary with a gala evening and concert featuring Avraham Fried and Rami Klinstein attended by close to 3000 people at The International Convention Center – Binyanei Hauma in Jerusalem.
The concert, which served as the official launch of a new world tour for the Jewish music superstar Fried, commemorated the thirtieth anniversary since he released his first album. Featuring hits from all across his renowned career as well as several brand new songs being performed for the very first time, the event received rave reviews from all in attendance.
The evening began with a specially produced movie clip detailing Shaare Zedek’s integral role in Jerusalem’s modern development from the very moment the hospital opened its doors in 1902. Whereas Shaare Zedek originally was a quaint local hospital most often referred to as Wallach’s hospital in reference to its original Director General, Dr. Moshe Wallach, today it has grown to be a world renowned center of clinical and academic excellence treating over 300,000 cases per year. The film chronicled this remarkable progression including detailing the job it played in Jerusalem’s “homefront defense” in times of war and terror attacks.
Avraham Fried, who visited the hospital earlier in the year, recorded a special tribute film featuring his time spent with doctors and patients and told the crowd how amazed he was at the dedication invested by the medical staff at the hospital.
The musical peak for the program came after the intermission when Fried welcomed to the stage Israeli singing sensation Rami Klinstein, whose many hits have made him one of the most sought-after acts in the country. Kleinstein and Fried admitted that they had only met for the first time the day before for rehearsals but had immediately hit it off, both as friends and performers. The two then performed an inspiring duet of the hit song Aleh Katan Sheli (My Little Leaf) which offers a powerful metaphor detailing the bond between parent and child and how to overcome life’s challenges. Kleinstein also performed several of his signature songs and left the stage to thunderous applause.
Along with the many highlights offered by Fried’s inspiration-filled songs, the emotional climax of the evening came after the intermission with a presentation by a former Shaare Zedek patient who left few dry eyes in the concert hall.
The story of Aryeh Greenblatt began over ten years ago when he was diagnosed with a serious disease that left him with only one option to live – a bone marrow transplant from his then-infant son. Through archival footage from 2001, the concert attendees heard the emotional story of how Greenblatt underwent the procedure under the guidance of Dr. Yaakov Ashkenazi at Shaare Zedek together with Professor Jacob Rowe, who was then at Rambam Medical Center in Haifa and has since joined the staff at Shaare Zedek. Not knowing if he would survive the transplant but aware that it was his only option, he chose to go ahead and offer his son the chance to give him the gift of life.
After the film clip completed, Mr. Greenblat took the stage and emotionally told the crowd how indebted he felt to Shaare Zedek. The audience burst out into loud applause when he called his now twelve-year old son to join him at the podium. Over the clapping Greenblatt then said “but the story doesn’t end there…”
A couple years later, then in full remission but deprived by the disease of the ability to naturally conceive, Greenblatt and his wife decided that they wanted to expand their family. To achieve this dream they turned to nowhere else other than Shaare Zedek and the IVF clinic under Professor Ehud Margolioth. Again, Shaare Zedek performed a medical miracle for the Greenblatt family and less than a year later their family was made complete with the birth of a baby daughter. Greenblatt again faced racous cheers when he invited his daughter and wife to come on stage, completing a remarkable and in many ways miraculous story of how Shaare Zedek has changed lives.
Introduced by Shaare Zedek’s Director General Professor Jonathan Halevy, Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat addressed the event and said that both as a citizen and as the city’s mayor he has come to appreciate the important role that Shaare Zedek plays in Jerusalem’s development. He congratulated the hospital and said that he felt confident that Shaare Zedek would always have a place in the city. Professor Halevy used his remarks to thank the dedicated staff of the hospital who he described as a family without whom Shaare Zedek’s remarkable development would never be possible.
The evening began with a special VIP reception for close friends and supporters of Shaare Zedek and all proceeds from the concert will go to development projects currently underway at the hospital.
