March 2023: A ceremony honoring Prof. Ron Shamir took place on March 27 2023 at TAU

A ceremony honoring Prof. Ron Shamir, marking and celebrating the end of his tenure as head of the Edmond J. Safra Center for Bioinformatics, took place on Monday, March 27 2023, at 17:00, in the Steinhardt Museum of Natural History at TAU.

The event was attended by TAU President, Prof. Ariel Porat, former TAU President, Prof. Itamar Rabinowitz, TAU Rector, Prof. Mark Steif, Vice President for Research and Development, Prof. Dan Peer, as well as Dean of Faculty of Medicine, Prof. Karen Avraham, Dean of Faculty of Life Sciences, Prof. Abdussalam Azem, Dean of Faculty of Exact Sciences, Prof. Tova Milo, Dean of Faculty of Engineering, Prof. Noam Eliaz, and Head of the School of Computer Science, Prof. Sivan Toledo. The guests of honor were Mr. Max Coslov, Program Officer of the Edmond J. Safra Philanthropic Foundation in Switzerland, and Mr. Juir Torenhaim and Mr. Ariel Greenberg, the Edmond J. Safra Philanthropic Foundation representatives in Israel.

Some 100 guests, including the Center’s investigators, students, TAU officials, and Prof. Shamir's family and friends, participated in the ceremony.

The event was opened by Prof. Elhanan Borenstein, Head of the Edmond J. Safra Center and the host of the event, who greeted the audience and Prof. Shamir.

All speakers pointed out how proud and appreciative they are, thanking Prof. Shamir and expressing their gratitude for founding, heading, and steering the Edmond J. Safra Center for Bioinformatics so successfully for 17 years.

Profs. Porat, Rabinowitz, and Avraham greeted Ron and talked about his remarkable accomplishments as the Edmond J. Safra Center head over the years. They highlighted his dedication to promoting bioinformatics research, and the unique way in which he led the Center and expanded it throughout the years.

Mr. Max Coslov greeted Prof. Shamir as well and shared blessing memories of the late Edmond J. Safra and Madame Lily Safra.

In the first musical break, the singer Adi Versano and the guitar player Tal Billu performed the song "Love at the end of summer", which Ron especially likes, dedicating it to Ron and his wife Michal.

It was followed by a short film featuring how the Edmond J. Safra Center was established by Prof. Shamir and his outstanding accomplishments, endeavors and vision. The film included short interviews with Profs. Porat and Rabinowiitz, and with the Center’s PIs and students. For the film click here.

The greetings continued with Prof. Rani Elkon, Edmond J. Safra member (Medicine), who greeted Ron on behalf of the Edmond J. Safra PIs. Prof. Elkon highlighted the inspiration he draws from Ron, and presented him with a gift on behalf of the Center.

Next to greet were Omer Noy and Danielle Miller, Edmond J. Safra PhD student fellows (Computer Science and Life Sciences, respectively), who represented all student fellows of the Center. They also presented a beautiful flower bouquet and a gift to Prof. Shamir.

Gilit Zohar-Oren, the Center's administrative director, spoke next and shared with the audience her experience working together with Prof. Shamir, marking his extraordinary strengths, talents, capabilities, kindness, and modesty. She also presented a flower bouquet to Prof. Borenstein who now heads the Center, thanking him for taking the lead.

The last speaker was Dr. Ittai Shamir, Prof. Shamir's son, who represented the family and shared some personal view points.

Prof. Shamir was invited to speak. He talked about the foundation of the Center and its development over the years. He offered his appreciation to all Edmond J. Safra PIs and students and to the Edmond J. Safra Foundation’s tremendous support throughout the years.

His speech was followed by a standing ovation by all participants.

The ceremony concluded with another song that Ron especially likes, "One day I might spread my wings", performed by Adi Versano and Tal Billu. ​

Prof. Elhanan Borenstein invited the participants to a reception and refreshments in the lobby.

For pictures from the event click here.