After receiving $1 million as the recipient of 2022 Genesis Prize to the Holocaust Museum of Greece, Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla donated that prize money back to the museum being built in his home city of Thessaloniki.
Bourla was born in Thessaloniki and is a member of the city’s Jewish community, whose roots go back to the 15th century when Jews fleeing persecution from Spain settled in the city.
The annual Genesis Prize has been dubbed the “Jewish Nobel” by Time magazine and honours extraordinary individuals for their outstanding professional achievement, contribution to humanity and their commitment to Jewish values and the State of Israel.
The Pfizer CEO was awarded the honour in Jerusalem on Wednesday at a gala event that was attended by Israeli dignitaries. In attendance at the gala were prominent representatives of the Jewish diaspora and leading members of the global medical community.
President of Israel, Isaac Herzog, praised Bourla for his work on the Pfizer vaccine and his determination through a difficult global climate.
“He believed in the vaccine, and invested every ounce of himself in realizing what seemed at the time a far-fetched fantasy,” said President Herzog.
“The vaccine was developed in record speed, utilizing the technology of tomorrow to successfully hold back a devastating pandemic.”
Read the article in The Greek Herald.