JINSA Mourns the Passing of Sheldon Adelson

(Photo by Denise Truscello/Getty Images)

JINSA mourns the passing of Sheldon Adelson, a giant of philanthropy, business, and politics.

Mr. Adelson was the personification of the American success story. A grandson of a coal miner and son of Jewish immigrants from Ukraine, he grew up in a two-room apartment in Boston in genuine poverty. By sheer grit and genius he became one of the wealthiest people in the world. Yet he never forgot those less fortunate, or the country that made his success possible, and used his wealth to fund an astonishing array of charities and projects in medical research, addiction, education, civics, politics, and Jewish life.

When the pandemic hit last year and shuttered his casinos, Mr. Adelson still paid his thousands of employees their wages and health benefits, and even covered their lost income from tips. An ardent American patriot and defender of Israel, he along with his wife Dr. Miriam Adelson have generously supported a range of causes in America and Israel, American military veterans (of which he was one), and organizations, such as JINSA, that promote a strong America and a close U.S.-Israel alliance.

A truly consequential person with passionate beliefs, he was an advisor to presidents and yet remained a gentleman in dealings with ordinary people.

JINSA extends its deepest sympathy to his wife Dr. Miriam Adelson, their children and grandchildren, and his many friends around the world.

May his memory be a blessing.