Dr. Miriam Adelson honored with lifetime achievement award

The Israeli-American Council honored Dr. Miriam Adelson on Sunday with the “Defender of Am Yisrael (The People of Israel) Lifetime Achievement Award.”

Adelson received the award at the council’s Los Angeles regional gala celebrating Israel’s 78th Independence Day.

The ceremony, held at a private Beverly Hills home, was attended by former hostage Bar Kuperstein, who was taken by Hamas-led terrorists during the Oct. 7, 2023, attack in Israel.

“The best day of my life was when all the hostages returned,” Adelson said when accepting the award, according to a statement released Monday by the Israeli-American Council. “It was around my birthday, and I said, ‘God gave me this gift.’ It added a few years to my life.”

Adelson is a physician, businesswoman and philanthropist. She is the top shareholder of Las Vegas Sands Corp., the market leader of the casino industry in the Chinese enclave of Macao and the operator of the iconic Marina Bay Sands resort in Singapore. Her family also owns the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks, the Las Vegas Review-Journal and the Hebrew-language Israel Hayom newspaper in Israel.

“Dr. Miriam Adelson is a titan of our times and a tireless champion for Am Yisrael,” said the council’s CEO, Elan S. Carr, in a Monday statement. “Her commitment to the security and unity of our people is more vital than ever during these challenging times. With this award today, we celebrate her and honor her remarkable legacy and ongoing devotion to our shared future.”

Shawn Evenhaim, the council’s chairman emeritus, presented the award. Evenhaim said that after the Oct. 7, 2023, attack, Adelson “showed the Jewish world what courage and leadership truly mean.”

On that date, Hamas-led terrorists killed around 1,200 Israelis, took 251 hostages and triggered a war that led to the deaths of tens of thousands of Palestinians.

“You used every resource at your disposal to advocate for the return of the hostages. You were persistent until the last hostage was brought home,” Evenhaim said, according to the council’s statement. “As you often say, all Jews are your family, and through your actions, you have shown what that truly means. You treated the families of the hostages as your own. We, and Jews around the world, are deeply grateful.”

Last week, Adelson was inducted into the Nevada Business Hall of Fame, an event organized by UNLV’s Lee Business School.