HOD Dallas shines at highly Successful United Hatzalah fundraising Event at Cantoni’s 

The Hebrew Order of David lodge Shimon Peres in Dallas (HOD)-sponsored event to honor Amy Korenvaes for her tireless and dedicated contribution to United Hatzalah on Tuesday evening February 13^th, 2024 at Cantoni was a “home run” -- in so many ways.  We had approximately 120 attendees.  Many attendees wanted to find out more about HOD, the Dallas Jewish community got to see HOD in action, and we had an opportunity to acknowledge the amazing contribution of Amy Korenvaes has made to United Hatzalah. 

Simcha Catering, guided by the expert hand of Lowell Michelson, provided a delicious presentation of food options from four countries - Sushi from Japan, Asian, Israeli and All-American – deliciously tantalizing, as always.  Even the signature drinks were themed in United Hatzalah’s colors -  orange.

Gary Bonner, a past president of HOD,  did a fine job as the Master of Ceremonies.  Boris Gremont produced a video of the work the HOD organization does around the world – some of it absolutely mind-boggling - from collecting hair from hair salons to make into wigs for cancer-ridden patients who have lost their hair, Aishel House, Bikkur Cholim meal deliveries to patients and their families, laying gravestones for unmarked Jewish graves, raising $220,000 for United Hatzalah 10 days after October 7^th, and raising $360,000 for Birthright last year, to name a few. 

Equally spectacular was the video and presentation by Gavriel Friedson, the Director of International Emergency Management and Global Ambassador of United Hatzalah, who shared experiences and the work done on October 7^th in Israel. (For those who are unaware of United Hatzalah  – the average response time from the they receive an emergency call to the time their medics are on-site is 90 seconds).  

Amy Korenvaes was the recipient of a beautiful menorah inscribed by HOD in her honor as the “Woman of Valor Award” and presented to her at the event.  Her award was preceded by a lively auction, while a silent auction and raffle was ongoing during the evening’s events.

The ambiance, created by the beautiful surroundings of the Cantoni Furniture megastore on Alpha Road for the event was amazing.  Everyone enjoyed themselves immensely.

The fund-raising element was also highly successful.  The HOD goal was to raise sufficient funds to buy one Ambucycle - $36,000 – an ambulance on a motorcycle that delivers critical medical help on demand to anyone who needs it – whether needed by a Jewish or Arab Israeli, Bedouin or Palestinian.

Right now they are on track for raising funds for two Ambucycles. 

The committee members who put this event together in record short time were the HOD Community Service Chair, Lowell Michelson, our Senior Trustee, Boris Gremont, our Fundraising Chair, Mark Gardner, and our Vice-President, Ted Solomon.  We had some great sponsors including Neuhaus Café, Cantoni, as well as two HOD members - Wayne Feldman and Ted Solomon.  

As a fund-raiser just for and by our Dallas Lodge alone, this was the best fundraising event in HOD’s history.  It was an elegant evening, and enjoyed rave reviews from participants. “We can all be proud of the effort” said Lowell Michelson.