The Ramsey Event Center in Franklin will hold the 2024 Israel Summit next week after the event’s original venue, the Sonesta Nashville Airport Hotel, broke its contractual obligation to host the summit.
“God is doing amazing things in Tennessee, and we are even more excited about the upcoming Israel Summit,” two of the summit’s sponsors, HaYovel and The Israel Guys, announced Tuesday. “Dave Ramsey stepped in TODAY and offered his state-of-the-art event center for the Israel Summit!”
The Ramsey Event Center is owned by financial advisor and radio host Dave Ramsey, who is also the founder and CEO of the company Ramsey Solutions.
“Ramsey Solutions is proud to stand beside our friends from Israel by providing them a safe place to hold their event as our gift to them,” Ramsey said in a statement.
With Ramsey’s last minute offer to host the Israel Summit, which is a “gathering of pro-Israel advocates affirming Israel’s unconditional sovereignty over their entire land,” the event is still scheduled to be held on May 20-22.
The first annual event was originally planned to be held at the Sonesta Hotel in Nashville until leadership said it was dropping its contract to host the event, citing “threatening” calls and messages.
Organizers of the summit are urging event attendees to make new travel and hospitality arrangements for the event, as the Ramsey Event Center is approximately 27 miles from the Sonesta Hotel and the Nashville International Airport.
Before Ramsey’s invitation to host the summit in Franklin, First Liberty Institute – which represents HaYovel – sent a letter to the general manager at the Sonesta Hotel advising that the hotel’s decision to drop its contract to host the summit is “unlawful religious discrimination in a place of public accommodation.”
“HaYovel respectfully requests you fulfill your contractual obligations as agreed and provide HaYovel express written affirmation that you will do so. Failure to provide the written affirmation and fulfill the Contract may result in legal action against the Sonesta and all other responsible parties,” the letter, sent by Hirram Sasser, the executive general counsel for First Liberty Institute, said.
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Kaitlin on X / Twitter.
