Hello and Welcome to my blog. My name is Elaine Levitt and I am a Fund-Raiser for Israel.
I didn’t start out to be a fund-Raiser. Frankly, growing up I wanted to be a Lawyer, and when I married at 21 to a Scientist, I just wanted to be his wife; and to raise healthy children. Yet I found an abiding interest, that dwarfed my petty dreams…
My Life
I was the oldest of five. I was married in September of 1958 just past my 21st Birthday to a highly intelligent, wonderful man. His name was Arnold Levitt.
Later, I found that my husband was often subject to depressive moods brought on by something that he could not name, which increased steadily and proved unresponsive to Electro-Shock Therapy.
The Shock-Therapy combined with his biological pre-disposition for depression proved ultimately fatal. He died in August, 1973 of Cardiomagaly (an enlarged heart). I believe his death was hastened by his depression. His monument stands today in Washington Cemetery. I was devastated by his death but I had to find work. I had two children.
My Journey
After many months searching, I landed a job at The Israel Histadrut Foundation (IHF). The I.H.F. was a fund-raising planned-giving organization headquartered in a Mansion on East 67th Street in New York.
After some years, The Israel Histadrut Foundation announced a position as Associate Director. They allowed all the Secretaries to try out for this position, including me. Nobody knew the job as I did, and so I was promoted. I was no longer a Secretary. I was removed from the Secretary’s Union and I became a minor executive. However, the problem was; would I be able to fund-raise for Israel?
The ‘Israel Histadrut Foundation’ (IHF) was a Fund-Raising Organization for Israel, so I had to sell Israel! However, I had never gone to Israel before; so it was decided by the President, and the Executive Vice President that I would take a trip to Israel. My first trip to Israel was actually two trips Trip # 1 with my group that I helped get ready for the Trip (The Israel Histadrut Foundation) and the 2nd was with the Pioneer Women; the American Women’s Arm of the Histadrut.. I went with both Groups to Israel via El-Al through Isram (The travel agency founded by the President of the IHF, Dr. Sol Stein.) He was my mentor.
My Love For Israel
The Mission to Israel took me to the Hospitals and Clinics of Kupat Holim CLALIT (Kupat Holim Clalit, a Non For Profit Organization was the name of the hospitals of the Histadrut.) All people who worked in Israel for an Employer and those employers who had less than 15 people working for them belonged to HISTADRUT and were insured for Hospitalization, Doctor visits, and Medication.) AMAL was also a Non Profit Organization organization of Histadrut ( Amal was the trade Schools- a Network of Technical High Schools and Colleges) and MISHAN, was another Non-Profit Organization of the Histadrut (A Network of 10 Independent-Living,& Assisted-Living nursing Homes as well as three Orphan Villages that also accepted children in need and disabled children( Ages 7-17).
The Orphan Villages had surrogate parents simulating parenting and for younger children, they lived in special little houses on the alloted land (Otherwise, a simulated home-life) in the Facility and the children would go to the local schools.) The Histadrut had Kibbutzim that were affiliated with their Movement. Kibbutz Ginossar; had the largest Hotel of the Kibbutz Movement and Colleges, such as ORANIM, ,which was the largest and best TEACHING COLLEGE in the North, and was originally a school for ‘Metapolots’ ( Kibbutz Teachers)
These first trips introduced me to the geographical areas of Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Tiberius, and Haifa, and I saw the closeness of Jordan and Egypt to Israel.After I came back from my trip to Israel, I was able to incorporate my actual knowledge of Israel with the IAF’s Will’s and Annuity Programs
American Jewish Organizations like the United Jewish Appeal and Federation, primarily helped Jews in the United States. Whereas, the ‘Israel Histadrut Foundation helped Israel’s non profits exclusively, and through the methodology of Planned-Giving was able to make a Middle-Class person, at the time he was made his/her Will; a Big-Giver!
If a charitable person knows what type charitable Organizations in Israel he/she wants to contribute to; hospital, Nursing-Home, Orphans community, Trade School, etc. and what he/she wants his charitable funds used for, that person can have a great deal of creative fun creating a legacy for Israel that proudly bears his name and his family’s name.
I started in 1973 as a Secretary, and now it was 1995.I had worked from 1973-1995 at the Israel Histadrut Foundation. There was a new President; now. He worked on changing the Charter and the Mission of the Foundation. The old President, Dr. Stein, was retired, and the Executive Vice President, Mr. Smolin was Fired . Change was in the air. I determined then and there to leave and to start in a Charitable Organization of my own in which I would raise funds for the Organizations in Israel that I deemed meritorious, after 23 years of experience and now was 1996; and we started a new Organization; The Israel-America Foundation.
It is September, 2016 and we have have been fund-raising now for the last 20 years in the new Organization. We called it the ISRAEL AMERICA FOUNDATION and we fundraised for nine Israeli Charitable Organization predominantly by means of Planned -Ggiving.
In the pages of my Blog I will delineate the nine Israel America Foundation Charitable Organizations, as well as the 10th, the ISRAEL AMERICA FOUNDATION in the United States Please, feel free to peruse, discover, and donate.
Best Regards,
Elaine Levitt
For Information on The Israel America Foundation and how to donate, request information below: