Raising nearly $800,000 at a not-for-profit gala is no small feat as is having over 1200 people registered for the event. When you add a pandemic to the mix and make it a virtual event, one would assume that it would be impossible to come close! But that’s precisely what the Canadian Associates of Ben-Gurion University (CABGU) has done in a matter of just 7 weeks.

“We are a lean but unbelievable keen staff at CABGU with an incredibly generous and committed group of lay leaders,” says Mark Mendelson, CABGU’s CEO. “These are members of our community who are dedicated to the advancement of Israel’s Nation Building University. Achievements like this make me so proud!”

Mendelson knew that every final detail of the event was accounted for, beginning with the star attraction. Famed Israeli actress Shira Haas, star of the popular Netflix series ‘Shtisel’ and ‘Unorthodox’, recently nominated for both a Golden Globe and Emmy, is the featured speaker. Fresh off her recent press tour for the newly released movie ‘Asia’, she will be joining the event live from Israel. Haas will be taking questions from Senator Linda Frum who will be moderating the conversation along with Professor Daniel Chamovitz, the university’s President.

CABGU’s “An ‘Unorthodox’ National Virtual Gala for Brain Research at BGU” will raise money for the Canada Fund to Advance Brain Research. “The Fund will go a long way in assisting researchers at the university with conducting ground-breaking and out of the box research,” says Mitchell Oelbaum, National President of CABGU.

“CABGU launched The Canada Fund to Advance Brain Research at BGU in April,” adds Mendelson. “We know that there is a strong appetite for the subject of brain research because so many of us know at least one person, if not more, who is impacted by neurodegenerative diseases here in Canada.”

Tickets for the July 7^th National Virtual Gala are sold out. A few sponsorships are still available at www.bengurion.ca.