Uri Geller at the Alyn Hospital – The Jerusalem Post – November 26, 1999

November 26, 1999

HOW MUCH do you pay for a bent spoon? Jerusalem artist Marcia Lewlson forked out $5,000. But the spoon that she bought at auction wasn’t just any old spoon. It was a spoon bent and autographed by internationally acclaimed psychic Uri Geller, who came especially to Israel to help the Jerusalem Fund of Alyn raise money for the rehabilitation of children with physical disabilities.

With Geller as the attraction the JFA dinner had its best attendance ever, with over 400 people crowding into the Jerusalem Hilton ballroom, notwithstanding the competition on the same night of the equally well-attended gala dinner in aid of Shaare Zedek Hospital at Teddy Hall.

What it proved was that Jerusalemites have their hearts in the right place and are subsidising the budgetary inadequacies of the government.

Not only Jerusalemites displayed a generosity of spirit. British Airways, which flew Geller to Israel, also donated two business class airline tickets for the JFA raffle – one to any destination in the world and the other to any destination in Europe.

For the benefit of members of the audience unfamiliar with his story, the charming and urbane Geller, who was once a model and has retained his good looks and slim physique, launched into an oral autobiography, noting that he was only four years old the first time his special powers were revealed.

Geller not only bends metal objects. He also melts them. But, he doesn’t always succeed. During an appearance on Japanese television in front of some 14 million viewers, he disclosed, the spoon didn’t melt. With reference to Alyn, he said,”It’s a great cause. That’s why I came.”

To back that up, he also went out to the hospital to perform for the youngsters. It was a mutual love affair.