Ashkelon

A selfless bar mitzvah act for Israel

  •   A gift of an ambulance to Magen David Adom is honoured in Sacramento
  • 1/11/2013
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    On 8th January 2013, dignitaries from Israel and the U.S. gathered in Sacramento to honour the selfless action of Robert Leeds of Los Angeles, who decided to donate his bar mitzvah money, in lieu of presents for himself, to purchase an ambulance for the city of Ashkelon, Israel. Ashkelon is Sacramento’s newest sister city, and Gideon Lustig, Deputy Consul of Israel to the Pacific Northwest, was greatly moved at the dedication ceremony which took place outside City Hall, beneath the sign which points to the California capital’s ten sister cities. He himself grew up in Ashkelon, and knew the value of Robert’s gift to Magen David Adom, Israel’s national emergency medical response service.​
     
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    Established in 1930, Magen David Adom’s ambulance and medical teams provide emergency medical treatment to over 568,000 people a year. Over the years, it has also sent ‘several dozens of humanitarian aid missions to help victims of natural disasters in many parts of the world’, including the recent severe earthquake in Haiti. (MDA Website) Robert’s Voluntary gift of a brand new ambulance for the organization which has over 13,000 highly trained volunteers added to its fleet of 750 life saving vehicles throughout the country.

    Sacramento Council Member Steve Cohn described Robert’s generosity in terms of the concept which is so important to all Israelis-tikkun olam-(to repair the world), reflected in Magen David Adom's mission.


    Other elected officials flocked to pay tribute to the 13-year-old on Tuesday, including Sacramento  Council Members Steven Cohn (instrumental in promoting the Ashkelon-Sacramento Sister City relationship), Allen Warren, and Jay Schenirer, as well as American Friends of Magen David Adom CEO Arnold Gerson, Jewish Federation of Sacramento Executive Director Melissa Chapman, StandWithUs Chair Gail Rubin, and Barry Broad, chair of Askelon-Sacramento sister city initiative.

     

    That evening Mayor Kevin Johnson honored the Leeds family and thanked them for their generosity at the Sacramento city council meeting. ​

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    Gideon Lustig, Deputy Consul of Israel to the Pacific Northwest, honours Robert Leeds in Sacramento

    The Sacramento City Council had voted to make the ancient coastal city of Ashkelon its tenth sister city in August last year. The city is known for its 12km of beautiful beaches and its archaeological sites from over 4,000 years ago. It is mentioned in the Bible several times.

    See KCRA’s video report on the memorable ceremony here: ‘Instead of Bar Mitzvah gifts boy buys ambulance’
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