Sheldon Adelson. Photo: Wikimedia Commons.

Sheldon Adelson

American business magnate

As one of the world’s most generous and influential Jewish philanthropists, Sheldon Adelson continues to make outsized gifts to a range of Jewish and non-Jewish groups.

Along with his spouse Miriam Adelson, an Israeli research physician, he founded the Adelson Foundation, which has two branches: the Adelson Family Foundation, which works to strengthen the State of Israel and the Jewish people, and the Adelson Medical Research Foundation, which focuses on healthcare.

Just one recent example: In 2015, the Adelsons announced that they would donate $40 million to this year’s Taglit-Birthright Israel program, bringing their total contribution to the program to more than $250 million. Birthright provides free 10-day educational trips to Israel for Jews ages 18 to 26.

Adelson also in 2015 notably co-hosted a summit in Las Vegas to counter the efforts of the BDS movement.