The Tree of Life Award is the highest humanitarian award the Jewish National Fund presents to one individual or family each year in appreciation of their outstanding community involvement, their dedication to the cause of American-Israeli friendship, and their devotion to peace and the security of human life. The award recognizes leaders of achievements and innovations in industry, government and education. Past awardees have included individuals who have made diverse contributions from

Isaac Stern Isaac Stern (July 21, 1920 – September 22, 2001) was an American violinist. Born in Poland, Stern came to the US when he was 14 months old. Stern performed both nationally and internationally, notably touring the Soviet Union and China, an ...

, to Arthur G. Cohen,

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of ...

and

Susan Polgar Susan is a feminine given name, from Persian "Susan" (lily flower), from Egyptian '' sšn'' and Coptic ''shoshen'' meaning "lotus flower", from Hebrew ''Shoshana'' meaning "lily" (in modern Hebrew this also means "rose" and a flower in general), ...

. Past presenters of the award have included

Margaret Thatcher Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. She was the first female British prime ...

and

Shimon Peres Shimon Peres (; he, שמעון פרס ; born Szymon Perski; 2 August 1923 – 28 September 2016) was an Israeli politician who served as the eighth prime minister of Israel from 1984 to 1986 and from 1995 to 1996 and as the ninth president of ...

Recipients

* John W. Barfield (Founder The Bartech Group, Inc.; author; philanthropist) * Ron & Daron Barness * Sid & Alicia Belzberg * Raymond Brown & Wanda Akin Brown *

Ben Carson Benjamin Solomon Carson Sr. (born September 18, 1951) is an American retired neurosurgeon and politician who served as the 17th United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development from 2017 to 2021. A pioneer in the field of neurosurgery, ...

Chris Christie Christopher James Christie (born September 6, 1962) is an American politician, lawyer, political commentator, lobbyist, and former federal prosecutor who served as the 55th governor of New Jersey from 2010 to 2018. Christie, who was born in ...

, governor * Arthur G. Cohen *

Bonnie Comley Bonnie Comley is an American three-time Tony Award-winning theatre producer. She has won an Olivier Award and two Drama Desk Awards for her stage productions. She is a member of The Broadway League and serves on their Audience Engagement and Educ ...

* William Cunningham (President of the

University of Texas The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...

) * Paul Dresselhaus (1999) * Elizabsth H. Dole * Richard Egan *

Tovah Feldshuh Terri Sue "Tovah" Feldshuh (born December 27, 1948) is an American actress, singer, and playwright. She has been a Broadway star for more than four decades, earning four Tony Award nominations. She has also received two Emmy Award nominations f ...

Carly Fiorina Cara Carleton "Carly" Fiorina ('' née'' Sneed; born September 6, 1954) is an American businesswoman and politician, known primarily for her tenure as CEO of Hewlett-Packard (HP). As chief executive officer of HP from 1999 to 2005, Fiorina wa ...

, former

CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especiall ...

and presidential candidate * Ohio Lt. Governor

Lee Fisher Lee Irwin Fisher (born August 7, 1951) is an American attorney, politician, and academic. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the 64th lieutenant governor of Ohio, with Governor Ted Strickland, from 2007 until 2011. He serves as the De ...

* Steven Goodstein * Former Vice President Al Gore * Dr. John C. Hitt *

Kathy Ireland Kathleen Marie Ireland (born March 20, 1963) is an American author, entrepreneur, fashion designer, philanthropist, and former fashion model. Ireland was a supermodel in the 1980s and 1990s, initially known for appearing in 13 consecutive ''Spo ...

* New York Congressman

Steve Israel Steven J. Israel (born May 30, 1958) is an American political commentator, lobbyist, author, bookseller and former politician. He served as a U.S. Representative from New York from 2001 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was elected ...

* N. Richard Kalikow * John Adam Kanas * Gary L. Krupp (2001) (Founder Pave the Way Foundation, Inc) *

Stewart F. Lane Stewart F. Lane (born May 3, 1951) is a Broadway theatre, Broadway producer, director, playwright and former actor. He has also written books, including ''Let's Put on a Show!'' and ''Jews of Broadway''. He has also produced in Dublin. In addition ...

* Jeffrey E. Levine * M. David Low (President of UT-Houston) * William C. McCahill *

M. Peter McPherson Melville Peter McPherson (born October 27, 1940) is president emeritus of the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities. He previously served as a special assistant to President Gerald Ford, administrator of USAID under President Ronald Re ...

* Akron Mayor

Don Plusquellic Donald L. Plusquellic (born July 3, 1949) is the former mayor of Akron, Ohio. First elected in 1987, he became the 59th Mayor of Akron after previously serving 13 years on Akron City Council. Plusquellic has served his seventh term, making him t ...

* Jana Robbins *

Stephen M. Ross Stephen Michael Ross (born May 10, 1940) is an American real estate developer, philanthropist, and sports team owner. Ross is the chairman and majority owner of The Related Companies, a global real estate development firm he founded in 1972. Rel ...

* Secretary of State

Colin Powell Colin Luther Powell ( ; April 5, 1937 – October 18, 2021) was an American politician, statesman, diplomat, and United States Army officer who served as the 65th United States Secretary of State from 2001 to 2005. He was the first African ...

* Jana Robbins *

* Roy J. Saunders * Henry Segerstrom – presented in 1995 by

* Fred & Shari Schenk *

Jerry Zaks Jerry Zaks (born September 7, 1946) is an American stage and television director, and actor. He won the Tony Award for Best Direction of a Play and Drama Desk Award for directing '' The House of Blue Leaves'', ''Lend Me a Tenor'', and '' Six De ...

Mort Zuckerman Mortimer Benjamin Zuckerman (born June 4, 1937) is a Canadian-American billionaire media proprietor, magazine editor, and investor. He is the co-founder, executive chairman and former CEO of Boston Properties, one of the largest real estate in ...

External links

Official Website

References

{{Reflist
Real Estate Weekly article

Jewish National Fund press release

Jewish News article

Jewish National Fund article

Israeli awards