At the time of the fall ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, every living hostage was returned. This was never expected, said Marina Furman, executive director of national major donor advancement for Jewish National Fund-USA. That made it a major triumph.
It never would have been possible without the persistence and courage of those who suffered. But it also would not have happened without the consistent, relentless advocacy of American Jews who marched, galvanized others and lobbied their government for help, Furman explained.
That was the message of JNF-USA’s Tree of Life Award Gala on April 16 at Vie in Center City. More than 500 people attended, according to Jennifer Milton, JNF-USA’s senior national communications manager. And more than $1.5 million was raised.
The attendees came out to see Omer Shem Tov — an Israeli hostage who survived 505 days in Hamas captivity — and his mother, Shelly Shem Tov — who, with her husband, Malki Shem Tov, launched the Hostages and Missing Families Forum after Oct. 7, 2023, with the help of JNF-USA — speak and receive the Tree of Life Award.
“The Tree of Life Award is bestowed to a select group of individuals for their exceptional contribution to the Jewish community and the land and people of Israel,” said Milton in an email. “The humanitarian award recognizes outstanding community involvement, professional leadership, and dedication to the cause of American Israeli friendship with the devotion to peace and the security of human life.”
Omer survived, but it was Shelly who advocated. She never gave up hope that her son would return.
When the mother wanted to launch the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, she wasn’t sure what to do, according to Furman. She had never started a nonprofit or raised money before. So, she came to JNF-USA for help, and the organization contributed to her seed money.
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum raised $500,000 in its first week and almost $40 million in its first year. It quickly became a volunteer-driven command center that operated around the clock to help the hostages’ families.
There were essentially three pillars to its work.
On the advocacy front, the forum started the “Bring Them Home Now” awareness campaign, transformed a public plaza in Tel Aviv into an epicenter of rallies and vigils, organized delegations for survivors and family members to meet with world leaders, and operated a media presence in multiple languages.
On the family side, the organization provided medical and psychological support, legal aid and intelligence and information.
It also pursued justice through war crimes complaints against Hamas filed at the International Criminal Court and the publication of medical reports to pressure international organizations like the Red Cross to help survivors.
It ceased operations in February.
Furman credits Shelly Shem Tov and the forum with keeping the hostages at the top of the U.S. agenda. Ultimately, she explained, the hostages were released due to the efforts of the second Trump administration.
“It wouldn’t happen if the American government didn’t think it was important to put a lot of effort into making it happen,” she said.
Shelly Shem Tov has returned to her normal life as an interior designer in Herzliya, but she has also remained a public figure, speaking recently at another JNF-USA event in Denver, Colorado, and at Temple Emanu-El in Palm Beach, Florida. She talks about finding “renewed purpose born from enduring the unimaginable.” She has also called for national unity in Israel and volunteered at rehabilitation centers for wounded soldiers.
“It was important for us to honor Shelly,” Furman said. “Everyone who was a child and had a mother, or every parent, can look at them and think of their own journeys as parents and children.”
The money raised from the event will go toward resilience programs throughout the north and south of Israel, the areas closest to war activity during the conflicts with Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza. Resilience programs include everything from therapeutic zoos to culinary schools to medical centers, all of which JNF has built in those regions in recent years, according to Furman.
“When rockets stop falling, there has to be an incentive to come back to the north. When they see that investment in the north, they believe that there is a future there. That’s resilience on the ground level,” Furman explained. “We work with schools, we work with city councils, with regional councils. We let them tell us what they need, and then we provide funding.”