Greater Philadelphia ZOA Announces 2016 Gala Honorees, Plus Help Needed for Mailing This Friday
Greater Philadelphia is elated to announce the honorees for our 2016 Annual Gala, as well as opportunities for you – our members, friends and supporters – to help make this our best and most successful Gala yet (please see below for details).
Our 2016 Greater Philadelphia ZOA Gala honorees are:
• Andrew C. McCarthy, best-selling author and contributing editor at National Review, will receive our Ben Hecht Award for Outstanding Journalism and he will be our keynote speaker for the evening.
• Congressman Mike Fitzpatrick, who represents Pennsylvania’s 8th Congressional District, will receive our Friend of Zion Award.
• Amy and Eric Clayman, will receive our Pillars of the Community Award. Amy is president of the Jewish Community Relations Counsel of Southern New Jersey. Eric is immediate past president of Congregation Beth El in Voorhees.
• Rabbi Steven Saks, religious leader of Adas Kodesch Shel Emeth Congregation in Wilmington, will receive our Guardian of Israel Award.
See more on each of them below.
Our Gala will take place on Thursday, September 15, at the Hilton Philadelphia City Avenue, 4200 City Avenue, in Philadelphia.
As always there will be our 90-minute cocktail “hour” featuring a substantial, full buffet dinner consisting of glatt-kosher items from a variety of stations; our streamlined award ceremony featuring inspiring remarks from our honorees on the subjects of Israel, patriotism and Zionism; and a sumptuous dessert buffet. Plus an opportunity to mingle with our honorees and network with like-minded others from throughout the region and beyond.
Tickets will be on sale shortly for this grand event. You can reserve space now in our Gala Tribute Book and Ad Journal to thank and congratulate our honorees and/or promote your business or service. Please see images of our Ad/Notice Form below. Click on each image to enlarge. You can then print them.
There are a number of ways you can participate in making sure that our Gala is a wonderful, celebratory evening and also that it is a financial success to help nourish the many pro-Israel educational, advocacy and outreach activities and initiatives that we hope to offer the community in the coming year.
- You can help us with any of the several mailings we will have over the next month, including our first significant mailing this Friday in the Bala Cynwyd vicinity. For location and time, please contact our office by email ([email protected]) or by phone at 610-660-9466.
- You can help us by placing an ad in our combination Tribute Book and Ad Journal – particularly if you own a business or are a service-provider. You can also invite businesses and service-providers whom you patronize and have a relationship with to help promote their business or service to potential new customers and clients while funding Greater Philadelphia ZOA’s vital work with an ad in our Ad Journal. Some ads include Gala tickets, so that you or they can also attend and enjoy this wonderful event. For the Ad Form, email us ([email protected]) or call us at 610-660-9466. .
- You can volunteer at the Gala itself, helping us set up and distribute literature that afternoon, or helping to register and check-in Gala attendees.
For more details regarding ads and notices, and/or to volunteer at the event, please email us at [email protected] or call our Office at 610-660-9466.
Greater Philadelphia ZOA appreciates each and every volunteer and donation.
More on our honorees:
Andrew C. McCarthy is a much-in-demand commentator and a former chief assistant U.S. Attorney in New York best known for leading the prosecution against “the Blind Sheik” and 11 others for waging a terrorist war against the United States – including the 1993 World Trade Center bombing and a plot to bomb New York City landmarks. He is a senior fellow at National Review Institute who writes frequently about Israel.
U.S. Rep. Mike Fitzpatrick was first elected to Congress in 2004. He was re-elected in 2010 and has term-limited himself. A lifelong resident of Bucks County, before being elected to Congress, he served on the Bucks County Board of Commissioners for 10 years. While in Congress, he has been a staunch supporter of Israel.
The Claymans reside in Cherry Hill and have two sons, Garrett and Joshua. Both sons attended Kellman-Brown Academy where Amy was a trustee and served as treasurer. Amy is the principal of Financial Fluency, LLC a boutique firm which provides outsourced accounting and CFO advisory services. She serves on both the Executive Board and Finance Committee for the Jewish Federation of Southern New Jersey. Eric is a partner in the law firm of Jenkins & Clayman assisting debtors in bankruptcy cases. Amy’s parents, Bill and Barbara Hoffman, are longtime supporters and members of ZOA. Eric’s mother, Natalie, remembers her father, Max Kanfer, attending ZOA meetings in the 1950’s. The family are members of Congregation Beth El in Voorhees.
Rabbi Steven Saks heads the Delaware Association of Rabbis and Cantor’s as well as the Vaad HaKashrut of Delaware. Before his current pulpit, he was the religious leader of Adath Zion Congregation in Philadelphia. He serves on the board of the Albert Einstein Academy, has done two stints with Volunteers for Israel and has participated in the Jewish Big Brother/Sister League as a Big Brother. He holds a black belt in Jiu Jitsu.
Sad News From Greater Philadelphia ZOA
We regret to have to inform you of the deaths of two members of the Greater Philadelphia ZOA Family:
Lewis B. Dashe, a longtime member of our Board, former president of the Mid-Atlantic Region and honorary national president, passed away yesterday.
Steven Dzubow, the husband of former Vice President Roberta Dzubow, passed away on Monday.
The obituary for Lew is below. Below the obituary are links to two videos: One of Lew’s acceptance speech when we presented him with our Meritorious Service Medal at our 2012 Gala, and the other is of an interview we did with Lew as a preview for a documentary film that we still hope to do.
May their memory each be for a blessing, and may their loved ones be comforted along with the mourners of Zion and Jerusalem.
ZOA Mourns Passing of Lew Dashe, One of its Longest Serving and Distinguished Leaders
Lewis B. Dashevsky (a k a Dashe), 96, of Philadelphia, the honorary national president of the Zionist Organization of America, a retired Certified Public Accountant, and the former owner of Lewis B. Dashe & Co., P.C., died on June 28, 2016.
Mr. Dashevsky was an accountant and management consultant before starting his own business. He retired in 1981 to devote his life to his true passions: Israel, Zionism and the welfare of the Jewish People.
Mr. Dashevsky first went to Israel in 1955 when he was engaged by the accounting firm Kesselman & Kesselman for a special management consulting assignment and system installations in the Jewish State a mere seven years after it had been re-established. He lived in Israel for five months as part of that assignment. Since then, he visited Israel more than 30 times.
Most of Mr. Dashevsky’s pro-Israel advocacy activities took place under the auspices of the Zionist Organization of America. He served as a member of the National ZOA and Greater Philadelphia ZOA boards of directors, and was the president of ZOA’s Mid-Atlantic Region for more than 20 years. Over the years he had also served on ZOA’s National Executive Committee and its National Administrative Board.
Greater Philadelphia ZOA presented him with its Meritorious Service Medal at the organization’s annual Gala in 2012.
He had also been a past president of the Philadelphia Branch of the American Zionist Movement.
Mr. Dashevsky was a founder of a group known by the acronym ACT FAST (Action Committee To Fight Anti-Semitism Today) that was active in the 1970s and 80s, and he was instrumental in the formation of the internationalization of the Jordan is Palestine Committee – an organization that included delegates from five nations, and was its Mid-Atlantic chairman.
He had also served as a member of the board of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Philadelphia, and served on the National and Overseas Allocation Committee of the forerunner of what today is the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia. He also had been active with the Wallenberg Committee and the Coordinating Committee on Vital Jewish Issues.
Mr. Dashevsky was a graduate of Temple University and had also taken classes at the University of Pennsylvania. During World War II, he worked in the inspection division of the naval aircraft factory at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard, and was retained as an instructor at their aviation inspection school. In 1944 he attended the army finance school at Fort Harrison in Indiana. After his stint in Israel, he began his own firm, located in the Western Savings Bank Building. He had been a longtime member of the Pennsylvania Institute of Certified Public Accountants and kept up his membership in that organization for decades after he had retired from active practice.
A man of many talents, hobbies and interests, between 1944-45 Mr. Dashevsky copyrighted 21 original songs. In 1947 he wrote a musical with 27 songs called “Things Was Made That Way (in the Key of Black)” that he had also copyrighted. He had also played guitar and had studied at the Barnes Foundation. An avid coin collector and stamp collector, he received the 50-year medal from the American Numismatic Society.
Mr. Dashevsky was a longtime member of the Congregations of Shaare Shamayim.
Born Sept 5, 1919 to Michael and Jennie Dashevsky. Mr. Dashevsky was also predeceased by his wife, the former Gloria Alexenberg. He is survived by his daughter, Jodi Dashe (Gad Ifrah); a grandson, Jacob Ifrah; and many nieces and nephews and great nieces and nephews.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a47YEwBl_yM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fWkGqxMhhrg
Watch Ryan Bellerose’s Presentation to Greater Philadelphia ZOA
Greater Philadelphia ZOA was proud to present “An Evening With Ryan Bellerose” featuring the Canadian Indian indigenous-rights activist who has taken up the cause of the Jewish People’s rights to the Land of Israel as the indigenous people.
The event took place on June 20, 2016 at Congregation Mikveh Israel, the synagogue of the American Revolution.
You can watch Bellerose’s presentation plus the Q & A here: https://youtu.be/MmetryWIw-o
Rabbi Albert Gabbai, religious leader of Mikveh Israel and a member of the Greater Philadelphia ZOA Board, opened the event with a welcome. He was followed by Hillel Zaremba, director of community relations for the Israel Consulate for the Mid-Atlantic, who brought greetings from the State of Israel. Greater Philadelphia ZOA Executive Director Steve Feldman spoke about Philadelphia ZOA and the work the organization does and why supporting our organization is vital. Greater Philadelphia ZOA Co-President Kevin Ross introduced Bellerose, who spoke for about an hour. There was then a 20-minute question-and-answer session. Greater Philadelphia ZOA presented Bellerose with a book about former Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir as a token of our appreciation.
The event was sponsored by Greater Philadelphia ZOA Board Members Gene Shusman and Henry Frank.
We are looking forward to having another event with Ryan Bellerose in the Fall.
Greater Philadelphia ZOA Hosts Indigenous Rights Activist Ryan Bellerose
Greater Philadelphia ZOA was proud to present “An Evening With Ryan Bellerose” featuring the Canadian indigenous-rights activist who has taken up the cause of the Jewish People’s rights to the Land of Israel as the indigenous people.
The event took place on June 20, 2016 at Congregation Mikveh Israel, the synagogue of the American Revolution.
Watch two video clips of Bellerose’s presentation on our Youtube channel.
Clip 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIlPY5RlhWw
Clip 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YDBcHkK2zec
Rabbi Albert Gabbai, religious leader of Mikveh Israel and a member of the Greater Philadelphia ZOA Board, opened the event with a welcome. He was followed by Hillel Zaremba, director of community relations for the Israel Consulate for the Mid-Atlantic, who brought greetings from the State of Israel. Greater Philadelphia ZOA Executive Director Steve Feldman spoke about Philadelphia ZOA and the work the organization does and why supporting our organization is vital. Greater Philadelphia ZOA Co-President Kevin Ross introduced Bellerose, who spoke for about an hour. There was then a 20-minute question-and-answer session. Greater Philadelphia ZOA presented Bellerose with a book about former Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir as a token of our appreciation.
The event was sponsored by Greater Philadelphia ZOA Board Members Gene Shusman and Henry Frank.
In the photos below, Bellerose addresses our significant audience who came from as far away as Delaware and Bucks County.
Ryan (third from left in group photo) with Steve Feldman, Gene Shusman and Kevin Ross.
Video of the event including Ryan’s full presentation will be uploaded to Youtube shortly and available on our Web site.
Who is Ryan Bellerose?
See an article about him here: http://njjewishnews.com/article/31221/indigenous-activist-embraces-zionist-cause#.V2GA0jUsCM-
See a brief video with Ryan here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ijWFPJ99C6o
There is a longer interview with Ryan here: https://youtu.be/GzN36bbFTeE
Can’t make it to the event?
You can still support it with
a donation or sponsorship.
Ticket/donation/sponsorship link:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/an-evening-with-ryan-bellerose-tickets-25869563561
Greater Philadelphia ZOA is looking for someone to videotape this event, and we still need volunteers.
Please call 610-660-9466 if you can record the event or volunteer. Thank you!
Sponsors include
Gene Shusman and Henry Frank — thank you!