Close to 500 MDA supporters, donors, MDA Director General Eli Bin, Chairman of the board of the Israeli Friends of MDA, Gil Weizer, Director General of IFMDA, Orly Ariel, distinguished and honorable guests from the business and private sectors in Israel attended Magen David Adom annual evening Gala held by the Israeli Friends of MDA Association.
The event, honoring the MDA teams and volunteers in celebration of their dedication and efforts in saving lives was hosted by the Israeli actress and MDA volunteer, Miri Bohadana and included a special performance by the famous Israeli singer-songwriter Rita.
The fundraising celebration began with a blessing from the President of the State of Israel, Mr. Isaac Herzog, followed by a reception, displaying MDA's advanced technology, a Dispatch Center station, showcasing calls - received and dispatched in real-time.
MDA volunteers from the National Dispatch Center gave explanations about the system's operations, showing live images from incident scenes, GPS tracking of ambulances, MICUs, and first responder vehicles, as well as the locations of over 2,000 life-saving defibrillators.
Amongst the honorable guests was Maayan Zusman, the widow of the late Dr. Oren Zusman. Oren was a respected cardiologist, who died of cardiac arrest while on duty at the hospital. This tragic incident inspired Maayan to join Magen David Adom in the nationwide project aiming to distribute as many Smart AED's (automated external defibrillators) as possible in public areas across Israel.
Today, there are approximately 1,200 Smart AED's placed in special secured cabinets. In case of a cardiac arrest, MDA's dispatchers will open the AED cabinets remotely.
Yarin Hayat, an MDA EMT dispatcher, and Tal Shprincis, who works for the Ashdod municipality, received a certificate of appreciation for saving the life of the 66 year-old Danny Atali, who went into cardiac arrest while kayaking at the lake.
The Israeli Friends of Magen David Adom Association raised over one million shekels at this fundraising gala event. The funds raised will enable to equip MAD with ambulances, mobile intensive care units (MICUs), medi-cycles and other vehicles, as well as life-saving equipment for the benefit of the people of Israel.
