Meeting Friends
After two years of social distancing, the Friends of Shamir Medical Center met for an especially festive event at the home of Michal and Ohad Levkovitz. The guests were welcomed by the chairman of the association, Yair Shamir, Chair of the Friends association, Dr. Osnat Levtzion-Korach, and Sigal Adar, the association’s CEO.
In a “one-on-one” conversation with journalist Vered Rivlin-Ramon, Dr. Levtzion-Korach – the first woman to serve as the general director of a government hospital in Israel – talked about Shamir’s dramatic growth. The 1-million-m2 construction approval to the medical center; the relocation of the Be'er Ya'akov Psychiatric Hospital, the Shmuel Harofeh Geriatric Hospital, and the Institute of Forensic Medicine to the Shamir campus; and the expected – and massive – growth in the population residing in the medical center’s vicinity are all factors leading to its turning into Israel’s largest medical center.
This dramatic growth requires preparations, including Shamir Medical Center’s flagship project: The construction of a new emergency department and a hospitalization and operating tower. This $300-million-project was presented to the audience by Dr. Daniel Trotsky, head of the emergency department.
Sigal Adar, CEO of the Friends of Shamir Medical Center, who has been leading the association’s recent re-establishment, said that while the members could not meet for two years, their involvement and support has led to many positive developments. New friends have joined, giving a significant boost to the medical center’s development. The Friends association has tripled its total donations to the medical center, bringing the total up to NIS 42 million a year.
The event’s participants included hosts Ohad and Michal Levkovitz, Assi and Dafna Schmelzer of the Shlomo Group, Meir and Tamar Hadar of the Recanati Group, Gad and Etty Propper, Maria and Adv. Chaim Aharon, Varda Burshtein, Yuval Tal, founder of Pioneer, Adv.& CPA Liat Neuwirth, Doron and Keren Brin Safra, Menachem Oren and his daughter Shira, Kinneret Galon, Danny Barkan, Eran Reinish, Ovi Hamama, Tal Kedem, CPA Yehuda Orbach, Tali and Alon Fine, and Oded Gal.
Photo credit – Niv Kantor