Alabama-Israel Leadership Gala 2023 - Brief Record of the Evening
Honoring Leadership, Celebrating Friendship, Cultivating State-to-State Relationship for the Mutual Benefit of Our People
Celebrating the 75th Anniversary of Israel
and the 80th Anniversary of Alabama’s Historic Resolution
What: The Alabama-Israel Task Force (AITF) and Israel Leadership Institute (ILI) host the Alabama-Israel Leadership Gala 2023 - Special guests include Alabama and Israeli dignitaries, the Cherokee Tribe of Northeast Alabama, Israel Leadership Institute Founder/Director, and more. Special commemoration honoring Israeli Consul General Anat Sultan-Dadon, and special Israel Leadership Award presentations to Alabama Chief Justice Tom Parker and CTNEAL Principal Chief Larry Smith. Also personal Gala video greetings and congratulatory remarks from the Alabama Governor and Israeli Speaker of the Knesset (Israel's National Parliament).
When: 7pm Saturday April 29th, 2023
Where: The Epicenter (4839 Calvary Blvd Tanner, AL 35671 - located one mile west of the I-65 & I-565 Huntsville/Decatur interchange on the south side of Hwy 20)
Alabama-Israel Leadership Gala 2023 - The Record
Gala Overview - Slides/Links/Photos/Videos (HTML) • Gala Photo Album (HTML)
Honoring Leadership, Celebrating Friendship,
Cultivating State-to-State Relationship for the Mutual Benefit of Our People
This is a tremendous honor and opportunity as we host distinguished leaders from Israel, Alabama, and the Cherokee Tribe of Northeast Alabama for a special gala celebration of the 75th anniversary of the rebirth and founding of Israel as a modern state, and the 80th anniversary of Alabama’s historic resolution calling for the establishment of the Jewish State and homeland. Join us for a unique evening of commemoration and solidarity!
Israel Leadership Award Presentation Honoring
Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court, Tom Parker
Israel Leadership Award Presentation Honoring
Principal Chief of the Cherokee Tribe of Northeast Alabama, Larry Smith
Special Commemorative Presentation Honoring
Consul General of Israel to the Southeast, Anat Sultan-Dadon
Pastor David Nelson offered the blessing of invocation. Pastor Nelson has a special passion for Israel and a love for the Jewish people, supporting Israel and visiting and leading tours to the Holy Land 17 times, with more planned in the near future.
Pictured: Pastor David Nelson, The Rock Family Worship Center - Huntsville
U.S. National Anthem - The Star Spangled Banner
Israeli National Anthem - Hatikva (“The Hope”)
Israeli National Anthem - Hatikva (“The Hope”)
MOMENT OF CONTEXT - 75 YEARS YOUNG, OVER 3000 YEARS OLD
This year is the 75th anniversary of the rebirth and founding of Israel as a modern state. While the evening certainly celebrated the miracle of that, the 75 year history is part of an over 3000 year history of the Jewish people and their ancestral homeland. So to ensure our evening was in that context, there was a moment to REMEMBER …
3000 YEARS
MOMENT OF REFLECTION - WHAT DOES ISRAEL MEAN TO ME?
For those who embrace biblical faith, among many things, a few words that come to mind are:
Hope - That even when hope is lost, it is not. Dead bones can live again.
Prophesy - That ancient utterances from the Hebrew Prophets are still being fulfilled.
Miracles - That what is impossible - whether by limitations of natural law, or time, or generation, or human ability - can be transcended. That miracles do happen.
Promises - That biblical promises are kept, and the One who gave them is faithful.
Homeland – That there is a historic and ancestral homeland of the Jewish People, a birthright dating back to the patriarchs (Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob), and it has not been forfeit. That the gifts and calling of God are irrevocable.
What does Israel mean to you?
PURPOSE OF THE EVENING
BROADLY, we gathered to:
Honor Leadership, Celebrate Friendship, Cultivate state-to-state relationship for the mutual benefit of our people.
SPECIFICALLY, we gathered to:
Celebrate the 75th anniversary of Israel – the miracle of the rebirth of a nation. The like of which has never occurred. Not only after so many being displaced from their ancestral homeland for so long, but doubly so it occurring just 3 years after the ashes and genocide of the Holocaust. The world has witnessed the resurrection of a nation.
As part of and in association with that celebration, there is a special moment in Alabama history that relates to it. Not as a cause, but as a witness and an inspiration to remind us, as a state we have a legacy to carry on. In 1943 - in the midst of World War II – when the axis powers were not only waging world war against America and Europe, but also seeing the mass murder and systematic extermination of the Jewish people, Alabama led the nation in a call for the establishment of the Jewish state in its ancestral homeland through a joint resolution, that passed both state houses five years before Israel was reborn as a nation. This year is also the 80th anniversary of Alabama’s historic 1943 joint resolution.
So for us, it is also a DOUBLEANNIVERSARY and a time especially worthy of celebration, commemoration, and solidarity.
Pictured: John Buhler, Co-Chair Alabama-Israel Task Force (AITF); Co-Founder Christian Advocates for Israel (CAFI);
BEYOND TONIGHT
Beyond tonight, we want to do our part to carry on that legacy.
One of the ways we plan to do so - in a very practical and tangible way - is by investing in leadership.
We want to help raise up the Davids, Josephs, and Esthers of the next generation.
So this evening was a charitable benefit with all proceeds going to support expanding the Alabama-Israel partnership with and through the Israel Leadership Institute (ILI).
Pictured: John Buhler, Co-Chair Alabama-Israel Task Force (AITF); Co-Founder Christian Advocates for Israel (CAFI);
ALABAMA GOVERNOR
Celebrating the 75th Anniversary of Israel and the 80th Anniversary of Alabama's Historic Resolution.
Pictured: The Honorable Kay Ivey, Governor State of Alabama
ALABAMA GOVERNOR
Celebrating the 75th Anniversary of Israel and the 80th Anniversary of Alabama's Historic Resolution.
The Honorable Kay Ivey, Governor, State of Alabama.
Celebrating the 75th Anniversary of Israel and Reaffirming the Bonds of Friendship (Act 7, SJR 8, 2023 Regular Session).
Reading of the Alabama Joint Resolution (SJR8).
Pictured: The Honorable Mark Gidley, House of Representatives, State of Alabama
ALABAMA JOINT RESOLUTION (SJR8)
Alabama Joint Resolution (SJR8) presented from the state of Alabama to the state of Israel in the Alabama Legislature.
The state of Alabama expressed a deeply meaningful gesture as the 75th anniversary of Israel’s Independence was approaching. Alabama honored Israel’s 75th anniversary, reaffirmed Alabama’s historic resolution from 1943, honored the 80th anniversary of its passing, and reaffirmed the bonds of friendship between Alabama and Israel in a purposeful, powerful, and warm joint resolution (Act 7, SJR 8, 2023 Regular Session). It received overwhelming bipartisan support, including every single Alabama Senator cosponsoring it, from the originating chamber.
For many the timing is also especially meaningful as the resolution (SJR8) passed the Alabama Legislature Thursday April 6th, the day the biblical Passover began. So it was a very special gift to Israel and the Jewish people during Passover, and to the Christian community during Holy Week. The Alabama Governor signed it Friday April 14th, the morning after the seven days of Unleavened Bread completed, and just a week and a half before the actual day marking the 75th anniversary of Israel's Independence (Yom Haatzmaut).
The Historic 1943 Joint Resolution from Alabama (Act 144, SJR 4, 1943 Regular Session) Calling for the Establishment of the Jewish State in its ancestral Homeland.
In 1943 - in the midst of World War II – when the axis powers were not only waging world war against America and Europe, but also seeing the mass murder and systematic extermination of the Jewish people, Alabama led the nation in a call for the establishment of the Jewish state in its ancestral homeland through a joint resolution, that passed both state houses five years before Israel was reborn as a nation. This year is also the 80th anniversary of Alabama’s historic 1943 joint resolution.
Israeli Consul General Anat Sultan-Dadon was honored with a commemorative plaque inscribed with text from the historic 1943 resolution from the Alabama Archives.
Pictured: Anat Sultan-Dadon, Consul General, State of Israel; Laura King, Co-Chair Alabama-Israel Task Force (AITF), former President JFHNA, former National Network Chair Jewish Federations of North America;
ISRAELI CONSULATE
Israeli Consul General Anat Sultan-Dadon shared special remarks celebrating the 75th anniversary of Israel and the 80th anniversary of Alabama's historic resolution. Two days prior she was presented SJR8 commemorating the same, in the Alabama Senate Chamber in Montgomery.
Consul General Sultan-Dadon joined the Israeli diplomatic corps in 2004 and has held various positions at the Embassies of Israel in Cameroon, Germany, the Netherlands, and Australia. At the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Jerusalem, Sultan-Dadon has also held positions in the Euro-Asia and the Asia-Pacific Divisions.
In her current role, Sultan-Dadon is responsible for overseeing and advancing all aspects of the bilateral relations between Israel and the seven states covered by the Consulate General of Israel to the Southeast: Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee.
Pictured: The Honorable Anat Sultan-Dadon, Consul General, State of Israel;
ALABAMA-ISRAEL PARTNERSHIP - INTRODUCING A DEAR FRIEND FROM ISRAEL
While introducingEeki Elner, Israel Leadership Institute (ILI) Founder/Director, Pastor Patrick Penn shared some history of how they personally met, and how it related to the founding of the Alabama-Israel Task Force (AITF) 10 years ago – as this year is also the 10th Anniversary of AITF.
In 2007, Patrick and several pastors/leaders were in Israel and received a briefing in Sderot on some of the challenges of living near the Gaza border. In early 2013, Laura King, a close friend from the local Jewish community, asked Patrick if his church would be interested in hosting a friend she recently met (ILI Director, Eeki Elner) for an update from Israel. Patrick and his congregation hosted the evening, and several areal leaders also joined them. While Eeki was speaking, Patrick kept thinking he knew him from somewhere. Late in the service Patrick ran to his office and returned with a picture. It was a photo of Eeki with Patrick and several Huntsville leaders also at the service that night (John Buhler and Bob Somerville), in Sderot together many years earlier. Being suddenly reunited so many years later - unplanned, unexpectedly, providentially - around the world, in Huntsville, led to a number of meetings considering how to steward such a providential reunion, which led to the vision and birthing of the Alabama-Israel Task Force.
Pictured: Patrick Penn, Co-Founder, Alabama-Israel Task Force (AITF); Pastor, The Dwelling Place Church;
ALABAMA-ISRAEL PARTNERSHIP - LEADERSHIP IN THESE CRITICAL TIMES
Israel Leadership Institute Director, Eeki Elner shared special remarks about the Alabama-Israel partnership to help train, equip, and raise up leaders for these critical times, and for the next generation.
The Israel Leadership Institute (ILI) is one of Israel's most advanced and creative leadership schools. The ILI's leadership and board of directors include some of Israel's most distinguished leaders across a variety of disciplines. The ILI is a non- profit organization that began in Sderot, on the Israeli-Gaza border. That location, in one of the most dangerous places in Israel, gained the ILI an outstanding reputation in Israel - and globally - as a symbol of the struggle for democracy, freedom, and the fight against terror, and the ILI has since become an epicenter of leadership development in Israel.
Pictured: Eek Elner, Founder and Director, Israel Leadership Institute (ILI)
The Alabama-Israel partnership has included work in Kiryat Shmona (Northern Israel, near border with Lebanon, in the finger of the Galilee). We received a special message expressing gratitude for that help and celebrating the 75th Anniversary of Israel with us.
Pictured: The Honorable Ofir Yehezkeli, Deputy Mayor, Kiryat Shmona
Alabama, Israel, ILI, and EPDR - Eeki Elner, Founder Israel Leadership Institute (ILI)
shares highlight from Alabama-Israel partnership in Kiryat Shmona
ISRAEL LEADERSHIP AWARD PRESENTATION
TOM PARKER, CHIEF JUSTICE, ALABMA SUPREME COURT
Laura King, Alabama-Israel Task Force Co-Chair, shared the reasons AITF had nominated Chief Justice Parker for consideration of the Israel Leadership Award. AITF had nominated Chief Justice Parker having witnessed first-hand his exceptional work and leadership on behalf of the Alabama-Israel relationship.
Eeki Elner, Israel Leadership Institute Director, presented the Israel Leadership Award (Crystal Flame) to Chief Justice Parker on behalf of the ILI Steering Committee and Board of Directors in Israel.
About the Israel Leadership Award
The Israel Leadership Award is presented from the Steering Committee and Board of Directors of the Israel Leadership Institute (ILI). The ILI is one of Israel's most advanced and creative leadership schools, with a board of directors including some of Israel's most distinguished leaders across a variety of disciplines. Recipients of the award are chosen for their demonstration of personal leadership, commitment to their public mission, their strong support of Israel, and in recognition of their outstanding contribution to the state of Israel and their unique contribution to the relationship between Israel and communities abroad.
ISRAEL LEADERSHIP AWARD RECIPIENT
TOM PARKER, CHIEF JUSTICE, ALABMA SUPREME COURT
ISRAEL LEADERSHIP AWARD PRESENTATION
LARRY SMITH, PRINCIPAL CHIEF, CHEROKEE TRIBE OF NORTHEAST ALABAMA (CTNEAL)
John Buhler, Alabama-Israel Task Force Co-Chair, shared the reasons AITF had nominated Chief Smith for consideration of the Israel Leadership Award. AITF had nominated Chief Smith having witnessed first-hand his exceptional work in bringing two indigenous peoples together and as the CTNEAL formally recognized Israel and Jerusalem (Cherokee Tribe of Northeast Alabama Recognizes Israel as a sovereign Jewish Nation and Jerusalem as its Eternal Undivided Capital - http://www.aitf-web.org/event_20210925_overview.htm ).
Eeki Elner, Israel Leadership Institute Director, presented the Israel Leadership Award (Crystal Flame) to Chief Smith on behalf of the ILI Steering Committee and Board of Directors in Israel.
About the Israel Leadership Award
The Israel Leadership Award is presented from the Steering Committee and Board of Directors of the Israel Leadership Institute (ILI). The ILI is one of Israel's most advanced and creative leadership schools, with a board of directors including some of Israel's most distinguished leaders across a variety of disciplines. Recipients of the award are chosen for their demonstration of personal leadership, commitment to their public mission, their strong support of Israel, and in recognition of their outstanding contribution to the state of Israel and their unique contribution to the relationship between Israel and communities abroad.
ISRAEL LEADERSHIP AWARD RECIPIENT
LARRY SMITH, PRINCIPAL CHIEF, CHEROKEE TRIBE OF NORTHEAST ALABAMA (CTNEAL)
ISRAELI KNESSET
Shalom from Jerusalem.
We received a special message from the Speaker of the Israeli Knesset celebrating the 75th Anniversary of Israel, acknowledging Alabama's historic resolution from 1943, and sharing appreciation for the expanding work between Alabama and Israel. The Speaker of the Knesset in Israel is next in line to the Israeli President (i.e. the equivalent of the U.S. Vice President and Speaker of the House, combined).
Pictured: The Honorable Amir Ohana, Speaker of the Knesset, Jerusalem (Israel's National Parliament)
Celebrating the 75th Anniversary of Israel. Shalom from Jerusalem.
The Honorable Amir Ohana, Speaker of the Knesset, Jerusalem (Israel’s National Parliament).
The celebration included rejoicing with the Jewish Folk Song, Hava Nagila ("Let Us Rejoice!"). For no anniversary celebration for Israel and the Jewish people would be complete without including song and dancing ...
Hava Nagila (“Let Us Rejoice!")
Jewish Folk Song
PRAYER FOR ISRAEL
“Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee.” (Psalm 122:6)
“For Zion's sake will I not hold my peace, and for Jerusalem's sake I will not rest ...” (Isaiah 62:1)
“Ye that make mention of the Lord, keep not silence, till he establish, and make Jerusalem a praise in the earth” (Isaiah 62:6-7)
Pastor Robert Somerville led in Prayer for Israel. Pastor Bob has a tremendous heart for Israel and the Jewish people, has led countless trips to Israel, and for many decades has included a strong ministry emphasis on the Jewish roots of the Christian faith. He also serves on the board of the area Jewish Federation to help build bridges and expand relationships with the broader non-Jewish community.
Pictured: Pastor Robert Somerville, Director, Awareness Ministry; Board Member, Jewish Federation of Huntsville and North Alabama (JFHNA);
BLESSING OF BENEDICTION
Rabbi Moshe Cohen, offered a blessing of benediction, declaring over Israel and the anniversary celebration - in Hebrew and in English - an appropriate rabbinical conclusion for the special evening. Rabbi Moshe and Mushky Cohen moved to North Alabama in 2015 as leaders of Chabad, a global Jewish movement answering the call to reach out and serve the Jewish community, all around the world.
Pictured: Rabbi Moshe Cohen, Chabad of Huntsville and North Alabama
SPECIAL THANKS
We would like to especially thank the following for their generous financial support for this special evening.
Also special thanks to Steven Brickman, John & Anne Cox, Michelle Glass, Bob Somerville, Lou & Beverly Weiner, Charmin Whitsett, Temple B’nai Sholom, Etz Chayim, Calvary Assembly, The Dwelling Place, and The Rock Family Worship Center.
We would also like to thank the many volunteers, and Pastor George and Phyllis Sawyer for their tremendous help and support!
And we would like to thankeach one able to be present - by your seat or table reservation, you helped to tangibly bless Israel, and extend the Alabama-Israel partnership through the ILI.
ISRAEL INSIGHT
Larry Brook, editor and publisher of both Southern Jewish Life Magazine and Israel InSight Magazine, joined us for the evening.
Israel InSight Magazine is a unique magazine especially for Israel’s Christian friends, and recently debuted the full print edition.
Larry Brook, editor and publisher of Southern Jewish Life Magazine for over 30 years out of Birmingham, has had a growing vision for it. We know him personally and he is not only a prolific writer but a careful steward of history and a storehouse of subtle details often overlooked.
It is a testament to the growth in Jewish-Christian relations and passionate Pro-Israel advocacy in recent decades, that being Jewish he shared, “Yes, there are many reasons Christians support Israel. And now, through this new magazine, Israel InSight, we want to celebrate this powerful and unprecedented support for Israel and, as Jews, embrace it, honor it, empower it further and express our gratitude.”
This will be a tremendous resource - “Israel InSight will include a vast array of stories unseen in any other publication. The magazine will recognize and celebrate the values and pro-Israel commitment that Jews and Biblically-inspired Christians share. It will also highlight the strong and diverse advocacy emerging as Jews and Christians work together on behalf of Israel in these hostile times.”
While written primarily for Christians, the new magazine offers stories that will appeal to all who are interested in Israel. And it is being launched from Alabama to the South, Southeast, the nation, and beyond. May it be a special gift to many.
We have subscribed and received the first full print edition. It is excellent! If it may interest you, we would highly recommend it.
The Alabama-Israel Task Force (AITF) seeks to provide a bridge and catalyst for broader cooperative efforts and help cultivate an even stronger and expanding state-to-state relationship between Alabama and Israel for the mutual benefit of our people.
The Alabama-Israel Task Force facilitates state-to-state cooperation in areas of mutual interest including: Leadership Development, Economic Opportunity, Cultural Understanding and Community Partnership, Student Exchange and Academic Cooperation, Strategic Forums for Next Generation Leaders, and Joint Initiatives Inspired from Biblical Faith.
