Over 100 people came to a cocktail reception at Shaarey Zedek Synagogue on  Dec 5  to kick of the Canadian Associates of Ben Gurion University's   fundraising event May 4, 2014 at the Fairmont, honouring  prominent community leaders Marjorie and Morley Blankstein, whom Rabbi Alan Green referred to as  the "Baba and Zaida of Winnipeg's Jewish community."  The event was the largest that the Winnipeg Chapter of CABGU has had in a long time here.

Sheldon Zamick, new President of the Winnipeg Chapter of CABGU spoke of the countless hours of volunteer time in addition to financial resources that the Blanksteins have committed to the Winnipeg Jewish Community and said that "they are the two people we most wanted to honour."

 Marjorie said they were excited about all the new developments occurring at BGU and noted "I remember Sheldon as a little boy."

 Morley Blankstein reminisced about how when he and Marjorie were first in Be'ersheva, it was a place where you went "to buy a camel," but now "there is a high speed train going back and forth daily from Tel-Aviv."

However the situation has vastly changed today. Ben Gurion University of the Negev has become all the more important to the future development of the State of Israel. The fact "that the Israel Defence Forces have moved their training and intelligence bases to the Negev area, near Be'er Sheva, is proof of that" said Prof Drory, who spoke at the event. [Editor's comment: Some of these bases used to be in the Kiryah compound in the heart of Tel-Aviv, and it is no accident in my view that the IDF has moved them out of the most densely populated area in Israel, bearing in mind they could be a target in a future war].

Ben Gurion University has opened an Advanced Technological Park (ATP) right next to BGU and we hope that BGU will do to the Negev what Stanford University did to the Silicon Valley," said Ariel Karabelnicoff in an interview after the event.  “It will encourage synergy between industry, academia, and the IDF technology units where some 5,000 career staff and soldiers are expected to work. Thousands of high tech jobs will be created in the ATP with economic development following to the Negev. Ben-Gurion University is a key component to undergird this development, and will provide the training and the human capital needed for it. The Advanced Technology Park will house 16 buildings on two million square feet, and will likely become one of the largest centres of cyber security in the world."  

At the kick off, a short video was screened outlining how BGU's cutting edge Homeland Security Institute, and explained how scientists at BGU are developing ways to  protect Israel against cyber-attacks, which includes teaching computers how to recognize what different "metaphors" of language mean in different cultures in order to  monitor and  detect codes from other countries (For example the term "shark", as in "my lawyer is a shark"  has  a different meaning in  the United States than it does in Iran.) BGU scientists are  also  developing ways to protect Israel's National Water Carrier System (to ensure the water source isn't contaminated and looking at alternatives in the event it was) ,  and improving  emergency responses.

Proceeds from the tribute event to the Blanksteins will go towards a project in the Homeland Security Institute (HSI) which will be chosen by the Blanksteins.

"Currently the HSI is working on high resolution Ground Penetrating Radar to detect subsurface threats like underground terrorist tunnels, land mines and more," added Karabelnicoff.

Mark Mendelson,   the National Executive Director form CABGU spoke of how the Winnipeg chapter has of CABGU been re-energized and noted he expects to have hundreds of people come out to honour the Blanksteins whom he described as the most delightful, youthful octogenarians he had ever met.

He also noted that February 9th 2014, CABGU would bring the first ever Bedouin medical doctor who graduated from BGU to speak in Winnipeg.

The Ben-Gurion Lunch Gala is on May 4, 2014 at 12:00 to 2:30 p.m. in the Ballroom of the Fairmont Hotel Winnipeg. A kosher lunch will be provided. CABGU will be honouring Marjorie and Morley Blankstein in support of the Home Land Security Institute, Cybersecurity Project at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. Chairs: Kim and Bob Silver. Honorary Patrons:  Tannis and George Richardson; Yhetta Gold and Arthur Mauro. Keynote Speaker:  Professor Yuval Elovici, BGU