Maccabiah Dinner & Auction Night Wrap-up!
Maccabi's Melbourne and Sydney communities bid bon voyage and showed their support for Team Australia heading to the 19th Maccabiah Games in Israel in July, at the Maccabiah Dinner and Auction Night, held on May 23 (Melbourne) and May 25 (Sydney).
The crowd in Melbourne had the honour of listening to Australian Olympic icon Cathy Freeman, while Sydney's audience heard from three-time Olympian and basketball legend Damian Keogh.
Both guest speakers inspired the audience with anecdotes from their careers, with a reminder to all the athletes in the room about the privilege of wearing green and gold on an international stage.
The gala events also saw the official uniform unveiled by representatives of Australia's junior teams, while some attendees went home with some extraordinary prizes from raffles and auctions.
There was a wonderful atmosphere on both nights as the community gears up for Maccabiah, and the level of support provided was best summed up by Sydney event co-ordinator Tom York OAM, who reminded everyone about the importance of helping our athletes, particularly our juniors, get on the plane to Israel.
"If 5, 10, or even just one of them come back inspired and motivated by the amazing experience and work for the betterment of our community and country – it makes this investment money well spent," he told the audience.