Actress Sharon Stone receives United Israel Appeal award

The days of risqué sex scenes far behind her, Stone has dedicated much of her time to promoting health issues and combating poverty across the globe.

By NOA AMOUYAL
Sharon Stone with fan wearing t-shirt (photo credit: Imgur)
Sharon Stone with fan wearing t-shirt
(photo credit: Imgur)
The United Israel Appeal presented Hollywood actress and activist Sharon Stone with the Isaiah Award for Distinguished Leadership at Jerusalem’s Mamilla Hotel on Tuesday.
The appeal, which works under the auspices of Keren Hayesod, promotes and raises funds for projects in Israel and Jewish communities worldwide.
The days of risqué sex scenes far behind her, Stone has dedicated much of her time to promoting health issues and combating poverty across the globe.
“We have shortages of crops, but no shortage of wars. This is an illogical state of affairs,” Stone said, lamenting the current state of ongoing conflicts in the Middle East during her somber acceptance speech.
Stone – who currently serves as the global campaign chairwoman of the American Foundation for AIDS research and is the cultural chairwoman for YALA, an online organization for peace in the Middle East – discussed the resonance of the Prophet Isaiah’s legacy and what the award personally means to her.
“The Prophet Isaiah spoke about existing in the moment of now,” Stone said, speaking to her belief that most world conflicts stem from people who are driven by their fears and are unable to live “in the moment.”
Upon introducing Stone, Johanna Arbib Perugia, chairwoman of the appeal’s World Board of Trustees, explained that the award is bestowed to “those who have displayed outstanding dedication to the values of tikun olam – healing the world – and tzedeka [“charity”] – making the world a more just place.”
Speaking to the notion of tikun olam, Stone stressed that everyone is capable of contributing positively to the community, and that doing so is an integral step toward achieving world peace.
Earlier on Tuesday, in accordance with her other major philanthropic interest, Stone also visited Hadassah University Medical Center in Ein Kerem to meet with Prof. Dan Englehard, head of Hadassah’s pediatric AIDS unit.
“I believe in the work you do, one person at a time, building this wonderful place. I urge everyone to do whatever they can do to help Hadassah,” Stone said during her visit, where she met with children suffering from AIDS and their parents.
While speaking to reporters at the hospital, Stone, who is in Israel for President Shimon Peres’s birthday, echoed her interpretation of Isaiah’s legacy by praising the president for being “90 years old and [able to] live in the present and the future.”