Your Daily Phil: After hiatus, ROI Summit returns to Jerusalem in ‘shadow of Oct. 7’
Good Friday morning.
For less-distracted reading over the weekend, browse this week’s edition of The Weekly Print, a curated print-friendly PDF featuring a selection of recent eJewishPhilanthropy and Jewish Insider stories, including: Private flights over southern Israel offer wounded war vets a ‘burst of fresh air’; Concluding a 10-year program, UJA-Federation of NY finds volunteering can amplify organizations’ efforts — if they do it right; and Inside the high-stakes, all-hands-on-deck hostage advocacy campaign in Washington. Print the latest edition here.
In today’s edition of Your Daily Phil, we report on a California initiative to outfit foster children with everything they need for college. We mark the upcoming 20th anniversary of the Charles Bronfman Prize with an excerpt from a wide-ranging conversation between Charles Bronfman and Rabbi Sharon Brous, and feature an opinion piece by Jesse Goldberg with a message for Jewish teens and the leaders who work with them. Also in this newsletter: Mark Podwal, Dana Kresel and Regev Ortal. We’ll start with the return of the ROI Community’s signature gathering in Jerusalem this week. Shabbat shalom!
Schusterman Family Philanthropies launched its ROI Summit in Jerusalem this week with dozens of participants from around the world — roughly three-quarters of them new members and the rest returning participants — with a focus on rebuilding Israeli society, combating antisemitism and improving Israel-Diaspora ties, reports eJewishPhilanthropy’s Judah Ari Gross.
The ROI Summit, which has been running for 18 years and counts some 1,700 people in its active alumni network, was historically an annual gathering, with some 150 participants attending each year. After an interruption during the COVID-19 pandemic, the summit returned as normal in 2022. A summit with only existing members, no new ones, was planned in December, but the event was ultimately called off due to the Israel-Hamas war.
The summit, which launched on Sunday, is “taking place in the shadow of Oct. 7, and the effects of the war and rising antisemitism are prominent themes of the gathering,” organizers told eJP.
The five-day event is also being held after Schusterman Family Philanthropies shifted its U.S. operations to focus solely on grantmaking, cutting its Reality program and leadership fellowship. That pivot also included scaling back the ROI Summit and directing it toward Israel-related initiatives and efforts related to combating antisemitism and anti-Zionism, the organization’s co-president, Lisa Eisen, told eJP earlier this year.
As such, the focus areas for this year’s gathering include: contemporary Israel challenges; resilient and safe Israeli society; and combating antisemitism and building bridges to Israel.
The theme of the event is “Beyond the Horizon.” Much of Schusterman Family Philanthropies’ top leadership will attend the gathering, including Stacy Schusterman, the chair of the foundation; Lynn Schusterman, the founder and chair emerita; Ohad Reifen, the CEO of Schusterman Family Philanthropies – Israel; and Eisen.
“As Israel and Jewish communities around the world navigate this time of war, rising antisemitism and significant political, cultural, societal and technological changes, the horizon represents our ability to see through the storm, find direction and prepare for the promise of a better future,” organizers said.
HELPING HANDS
For kids transitioning from foster care to college life, Dec My Dorm helps make their new space home
Incoming freshmen and their families generally undertake the ritual of preparing for the transition to dorm life with massive shopping sprees and online orders to buy just the right supplies. Jill Frankel started Dec My Dorm, which supports college-bound youth aging out of the California foster system by providing essential items for their dorm rooms, because not everyone has access to those resources, she told eJewishPhilanthropy’s Judith Sudilovsky.
A needed support: A program manager at Los Angeles County’s Department of Children and Family Services’ Independent Living Program and member of Los Angeles’ Wilshire Boulevard Temple, Frankel spearheaded the Dec My Dorm as a volunteer project six years ago after hearing a former foster child, now a graduate student at UCLA, speak about her experience on her first day at college, arriving alone from her group home with all her belongings in a trash bag. “It got my little brain going that this is not OK. I had never thought about it,” Frankel told eJP. In addition to lacking financial resources, young people who have been in foster care all their lives — shuttled from group home to family home where everything has always been set up for them — have no awareness of what is initially needed to set up a dorm room, she noted.
Off to a strong start: The first year, Frankel started a wish list of basic essentials including towels, bedding and mattress pads for college-bound foster children on her Amazon account and shared it with friends and acquaintances. Her “little Amazon list” then morphed into a shopping spree for 21 college-bound foster children on a budget of $500 per person from an initial donation from a Jewish businesswoman who has asked to remain anonymous. It has since blossomed into a more extensive list that includes all the dorm essentials and then some for 120 to 130 youth every year.
COMMUNITY CONCERNS
‘Give a damn. Truly care about what matters to you’:
“I was raised to give to the society in which we live. My parents made sure that all of us were instilled with that mindset,” philanthropist Charles Bronfman, 93, tells Rabbi Sharon Brous, founding and senior rabbi of IKAR, in a conversation shared with eJewishPhilanthropy to mark the upcoming 20th anniversary of his eponymous Prize. “A lot of people wonder why I’m so involved with philanthropy. Frankly, I have never thought about it as that. I call it a part of being a citizen.”
On his children creating the Prize as a birthday present: “I almost fell over. I had not expected any such thing. It turned out to be the best gift I ever had in my life and one that I treasure incredibly. Every time there’s a new laureate, and I get asked to present The Prize to them, I’m almost in tears.”
On the laureates: “Initially the one question I had was how the heck can you have somebody under 50 receive a prize? I thought, who’s really done anything by 50? I found out that people have done incredible things. And if somebody is good enough to do some humanitarian work by that age, they’re going to keep on going up and up.”
On his message and legacy: “First off and foremost, what I would say to younger people is this: Give a damn. Truly care about what matters to you. Don’t go through life just saying, ‘OK,’ because that’s not very fulfilling. As for me, I too plan to keep going and keep caring. Do I think that there are more things to do? Yes. I like to be involved in those things that matter to me. And I guess, like most of us, my legacy is, as said by our sages, l’dor v dor, from generation to generation. My children are all good Jews and proud of who they are. That’s my real legacy.”
JEWISH LEADERSHIP PIPELINE
Embracing our Jewish identity
“As a CTeen leader from Skokie, Ill., I’ve always been proud of my Jewish heritage; yet recent experiences have transformed that pride into a profound understanding of our collective resilience and the urgent need for unity,” writes 16-year-old Jesse Goldberg in an opinion piece for eJewishPhilanthropy following his participation in a CTeen Heritage Quest trip to Poland and Israel.
A lesson from Auschwitz: “[I]n the death camps, all Jews were the same in the eyes of the Nazis. This stark reality — that they didn’t care about denominations or levels of observance — drove home a crucial point: neither should we. The divisions we create among ourselves pale in comparison to the unity forced upon us by our adversaries… To my fellow Jewish leaders, especially those in youth organizations: We must stop dividing ourselves. Many groups often cater to specific circles, inadvertently leaving others out. That’s not true to the essence of Judaism. Open your arms wider. Our strength lies in our unity, in our ability to come together despite our differences.”
Our response to hate: “To every Jewish teen out there: Wear your identity proudly. As a former public school student, I’ve faced antisemitism. It’s more than just ‘annoying’ — it’s a dangerous echo of the same hatred that fueled the Nazis and drives Hamas today. Our response to this hatred must be unwavering pride, unbreakable unity and undeniable strength.”
A vision for the future: “The Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center in Skokie says it best: ‘Remember the past, transform the future.’ A future where every Jew feels at home. Where our differences don’t divide us but enrich us. Where we stand together, proud and unafraid, in the face of any challenge. That’s the lesson I learned in the somber fields of Poland and the sun-drenched streets of Israel. That’s the future we must build.”
Worthy Reads
Between Two Worlds: On Ynet, Israeli surgeon Dr. Yaron Rudnitzky details his experience since Oct. 7 pivoting between the battlefields of Gaza and his operating room at Meir Medical Center in Kfar Saba. “On Oct. 7, Rudnitzky was on trauma duty at the hospital. ‘The residents contacted me about a severe gunshot wound requiring urgent surgery. By 10:00 a.m., I was in the operating room, fighting for his life. In such surgeries, you are completely disconnected from everything happening outside — immersed in the internal world of the body you are operating on… I received a call from a unit friend, a senior anesthetist, who told me, “Come, we’re going down to Gaza.” I was still hands-deep in the patient’s intestines. The team closed him up, and we completed the procedure. Meanwhile, the nurse called my wife, placed the phone near my ear, and I asked her to prepare a bag for me. I finished the surgery at 2:00 p.m., reached the unit at 4 p.m., and we geared up. By 8 p.m., we were in the Gaza border region, treating the wounded.’” [Ynet]
Worth a Thousand Words: In The New York Times, Richard Sandomir writes about the life and legacy of Mark Podwal, an artist whose political cartoons, illustrations and other works “grappled with themes of Jewish identity.” Podwal died this week at 79. “Dr. Podwal, who chose dermatology as his specialty because it would give him time to pursue his art, began contributing to The Times’s opinion page when he was a resident at New York University Hospital (now NYU Langone Health). His first cartoon, published after the massacre of 11 Israeli athletes and coaches by Palestinian terrorists at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, depicted a faceless Israeli runner, blood pouring from an abdominal wound, as he crosses under an ornate, undersize arch bearing words from the Kaddish, the Jewish mourner’s prayer. In 1982, he drew another evocative cartoon, an Israeli tank equipped with an oversize menorah as its main gun, to illustrate an article about the war in Lebanon. It was rejected by editors for being too inflammatory, but it was resurrected in 1989 for an essay by Abba Eban, Israel’s former foreign minister, about ‘a false myth of Israeli weakness,’ according to All the Art That’s Fit to Print (And Some That Wasn’t): Inside The New York Times Op-Ed Page (2012), by Jerelle Kraus.” [NYTimes]
Work on the Street
The Wall Street Journal profiles David Rubenstein regarding his philanthropy and his recent purchase of the Baltimore Orioles…
Dana Kresel is the new director of the Spertus Institute’s Center for Jewish Leadership; most recently, she was the executive director of SketchPad, a Jewish collaborative coworking community in Chicago…
Regev Ortal, most recently a lobbyist for J Street, was named the next director of government relations at the Israel Policy Forum…
Makom (formerly the Jewish Foundation for Group Homes) will move into the Jewish Federation of Greater Washington’s building and become a joint owner of the property as the two groups deepen their partnership; Makom plans to establish a clinical services department in the building…
The Times of Israel looks into how American labor unions have taken increasingly hostile stances toward Israel and what it means for Jewish members…
Delta has suspended direct flights between the U.S. and Israel until the end of 2024…
The Evangelical Christian group Samaritan’s Purse donated 42 ambulances — 28 of them armored — to the Magen David Adom emergency service; the organization has also donated two MDA stations, one near Gaza and one near the border with Lebanon…
Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) introduced a bill to establish a national park honoring American businessman and philanthropist Julius Rosenwald, which would be the first national park dedicated to honoring a Jewish American…
Columbia University interim President Katrina Armstrong issued an apology to community members who were “hurt” by the NYPD’s campus presence and disassembly of the school’s encampment…
Jonathan Levin, the new president of Stanford University, says the school’s board will consider a petition on divestment from Israel…
Pic of the Day
Former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett addresses lay and executive leaders from JCCs across North America at the closing plenary of JSummit this week in Chicago. He spoke about challenges and opportunities facing North America’s Jewish community, the current situation in Israel and the evolving relationship between Israel and Diaspora Jewry.
The JCC Association of North America welcomed over 400 lay leaders, executive professionals, presenters, partners and sponsors to the summit, representing 86 JCCs and 27 partner organizations.
Birthdays
Co-founder of Wisdom Without Walls, she is the author of a series of courses for the Melton School of Adult Jewish Learning, Sandra Lilienthal…
FRIDAY: Florida real estate developer of Aventura and Turnberry Isle Resort, Donald Soffer… Author, theater producer, television personality and philanthropist, Candy Spelling… Wealth management advisor, he won four Super Bowls with the Steelers during his eight-year career as a tight end, C. Randy Grossman… Dean of the Yeshiva of Greater Washington, Rabbi Ahron Lopiansky… Senior chairman of Goldman Sachs since 2019, prior to which he served as Goldman’s CEO for 13 years, Lloyd Blankfein… Co-founder and board chair of Broadcom and owner of the NHL’s Anaheim Ducks, Henry Samueli… Justice of the Supreme Court of Israel since 2017, Yosef Elron… Insurance agent in Tulsa, Okla., Lawrence M. Schreier… Real estate developer, sports agent and boxing promoter, Marc Roberts… Former rabbi of Congregation Beit Torat Chaim of Jakarta, Indonesia, Rabbi Tovia Singer… Emergency medicine physician in Austin, he was the goalkeeper for the U.S. field hockey team at the 1984 Summer Olympics, Randolph B. “Randy” Lipscher… Civil rights attorney, author and legal analyst on “The Today Show,” “NBC Nightly News” and MSNBC, Lisa Bloom… Senior vice president of marketing and communications at BBYO, Deborah Gavin Shemony… Former member of the Knesset for the Likud party, Keren Barak… Founder of Passion For A Purpose (PFAP) Consulting and COO of PizzaIDF, Melissa Jane Kronfeld, Ph.D…. Republican policy director at the U.S. Senate Committee on Armed Services, James Mazol… Deputy news team lead at Bloomberg Law, Drew Singer… Senior associate at Blue Laurel Advisors in Israel, Emily Grunewald… Climate activist in Oakland, Calif., Carter Lavin… Senior director of strategic initiatives at Sony Music Entertainment, Alison Bogdonoff… Director of brand and community marketing at Sakara Life, Zoe Plotsky Rosen… Manhattan resident, Isabel Eliana Tsesarsky… Lauren Ackerman…
SATURDAY: One of the highest-grossing Hollywood box office producers of all time, plus the producer of many commercially successful TV shows, Jerry Bruckheimer… Chairman of the board of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, Mark B. Sisisky… Chair of the board of the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York, Cheryl Fishbein… Professor at Harvard Law School, Cass Sunstein… and his wife, with whom he shares a birthday, administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development, Samantha Power… Member of the Knesset for the Likud party, he serves as Israel’s foreign minister, Yisrael Katz… Chair of the board of the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies at American Jewish University, Debbi Kaner Goldich… Owner of Total Wine & More, the largest alcohol retailer in the U.S., he is a member of the House of Representatives (D-MD), David Trone… Professor of political science at Tel Aviv University and professor emeritus at Georgetown, Yossi Shain… One-half the renowned film-making team of the Coen Brothers, Ethan Jesse Coen… Attorney, author of nine books and Fox News weekly host, Mark R. Levin… Retired managing director of equity trading at Goldman Sachs, Andrew Berman… Co-founder of the private investment firm Centerbridge Partners, he is a former board chair of Johns Hopkins University, Jeffrey Aronson… Russian businessman who fell out of favor with President Putin, now living in Israel, Leonid Nevzlin… Director of the board of Jewish Education of Metropolitan Chicago, Alissa C. Zuchman, Ph.D…. Janet Bunting… Senior partner at polling firm Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research, Anna Greenberg, Ph.D…. Emmy Award-winning talk show host, actress and producer, Ricki Lake… Guitarist and music producer in Israel, Nachman Fahrner… Managing editor of the New York Jewish Week, Lisa Keys… Member of the Maryland House of Delegates, Marc Alan Korman… Associate professor of radiology at Duke, he is an Olympic gold medalist in swimming, Dr. Benjamin M. Wildman-Tobriner… Former program director for strategic engagement at B’nai B’rith International, now at Meridian International Center, Sienna Girgenti… COO of TAMID Group, Nathan Gilson… Lecturer in expository writing at UMass Boston, Mia Appelbaum… Member of the Michigan House of Representatives, Noah Jeremy Arbit… Global director of communications at Gallagher Bassett, Scott Frankel…
SUNDAY: Brooklyn resident, Jay Kanter… Former president of the Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles for 16 years, now a consultant at the LA-based Diane and Guilford Glazer Philanthropies, John Fishel… Professor of journalism at Columbia University and a former reporter for The New York Times, Ari L. Goldman… Former publisher of The New York Times, Arthur Ochs “Pinch” Sulzberger Jr. … Senior political analyst at CNN, Gloria Borger… Clarinetist who performs klezmer, jazz, classical music and avant-garde improvisation, David Krakauer… Former U.S. ambassador to Romania, Adrian Zuckerman… Nobel Prize laureate in 2011, astrophysicist and professor of physics at UC-Berkeley, Saul Perlmutter… President of Israel, Isaac “Bougie” Herzog… Director of development at the Los Angeles Conservancy, Elizabeth “Liz” Leshin… Editor-in-chief of The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg… Former member of the Knesset for Likud, Osnat Hila Mark… Senior writer for the Jewish Federations of North America, he is the author of Pastrami on Rye: An Overstuffed History of the Jewish Deli, Ted Merwin… Founder and CEO of Terravet Real Estate Solutions, Daniel Eisenstadt… Founder and CEO at P3 Media, he has won three Emmys, a Peabody Award and a Polk Award, Adam Ciralsky… Arlington, Va., resident, Karen Elyse Simpson… Writer-at-large for The New York Times, she is the author of Chasing Hillary, Amy Chozick… Actress best known for her role as Quinn Perkins in the ABC political drama series “Scandal,” Katie Lowes… Hungarian politician who once served as a member of the European Parliament, Csanád Szegedi… Founder of Henry PR, Bryan Leib… Community ambassador of Tablet magazine and host of its “Unorthodox” podcast, Stephanie Taylor Butnick… VP at J.P. Morgan Private Bank, Baruch Yehudah Shemtov… Partner at Winning Tuesday, Jared Sichel… Associate director for combating antisemitism at AJC Global, Alyssa Weiner Sandler… Co-founder of Leman Mercer, Kyle Price…
