Liza Levy

Last updated
Liza Levy
Born
Cape Town, South Africa
NationalityAmerican
OccupationJewish community activist
Years activeLate 1980s—present
Known forPast president, Jewish Federation of Greater Washington
Co-founder, Jewish Coalition Against Domestic Abuse
Co-founder, Tikkun Olam Women's Foundation
SpouseMichael Levy

Liza Levy is a community activist in Washington, D.C. She is a past president of the Jewish Federation of Greater Washington, co-founder of the Jewish Coalition Against Domestic Abuse, and co-founder of the Tikkun Olam Women's Foundation.

Contents

She has been honored with the Kipnis/Wilson Friedland Award from the Jewish Federations of North America as well as the Jerome J. Dick Young Leadership Award.

Biography

She was born in Cape Town, South Africa, to a Jewish family. [1] She graduated from the University of Cape Town Teachers College with a degree in childhood education. [2] In 1984, she and her husband immigrated to the United States, settling in Washington, D.C. [2] [3]

She taught at the Jewish Community Center of Greater Washington's Early Childhood Department satellite center in Silver Spring, Maryland, later becoming director of the center. [1] [2] She joined the Jewish Federation of Greater Washington in the late 1980s, finding it a venue both to make friends and retain her Jewish identity. [3] In 1998 she became a Federation board member, [2] and served as president of women's philanthropy, chair of planning allocations, and chair of financial resource development. [3] In 2013 she was elected to a two-year term as president. [3]

In 2000 Levy co-founded the Jewish Coalition Against Domestic Abuse, for which she is an executive board member. [2] In 2003 she co-founded the Tikkun Olam Women's Foundation, which invests in programs for women and girls. [1] [4]

She has been a member of the board of the Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School since 2001, and the board of the Adat Shalom Reconstructionist Synagogue from 1999 to 2003. [2]

Honors and awards

In 2012 she was named one of the Women to Watch in the category of Community Leadership by Jewish Women International [5] [6] and received the Kipnis/Wilson Friedland award "for women demonstrating the highest ideals of leadership, philanthropy and volunteerism" from the Jewish Federations of North America. [5] In 1999 she received the Jerome J. Dick Young Leadership Award. [2]

Personal

She and her husband, Michael Levy, have three children. [1] They reside in Potomac, Maryland. [7]

Related Research Articles

Tikkun olam is a concept in Judaism, which refers to various forms of action intended to repair and improve the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Young Judaea</span> Zionist youth movement

Young Judaea is a peer-led Zionist youth movement that runs programs throughout the United States for Jewish youth in grades 2–12. In Hebrew, Young Judaea is called Yehuda Hatzair or is sometimes referred to as Hashachar (השחר), lit. "the dawn". Founded in 1909, it is the oldest Zionist youth movement in the United States.

The Jewish United Fund of Chicago (JUF) is the central philanthropic address of Chicago's Jewish community and one of the largest not-for-profit social welfare institutions in Illinois. JUF provides critical resources that bring food, refuge, health care, education and emergency assistance to 500,000 Chicagoans of all faiths and millions of Jews in Israel and around the world, funding a network of 100+ agencies, schools and initiatives.

Vancouver Talmud Torah (VTT) is a Jewish community day school located in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada serving students from preschool to grade 7.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pablo Eisenberg</span> American scholar and reformer (1932–2022)

Pablo Samuel Eisenberg was an American scholar, social justice advocate, and tennis player. He played in Wimbledon five times, making the quarterfinals once, and won a gold medal at the 1953 Maccabiah Games in Israel. He was a Senior Fellow at Georgetown University's Public Policy Institute. Prior to his role at Georgetown, he served for 23 years as executive director of the Center for Community Change, a progressive community organizing group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gidi Grinstein</span> Israeli entrepreneur

Gidi (Gideon) Grinstein is an Israeli societal entrepreneur. He is the founder of the Reut Group, a non-partisan not-for-profit research, strategy and leadership group. He helped to found TOM: Tikkun Olam Makers, a global nonprofit that aids the disabled, elderly and poor. In December 2017, Forbes named TOM one of fifteen technology companies to watch in 2018. Grinstein is the author of Flexigidity: The Secret of Jewish Adaptability and the Challenge and Opportunity Facing Israel.

Women of Reform Judaism (WRJ), formerly known as the National Federation of Temple Sisterhoods, is the women's affiliate of the Union for Reform Judaism. As the primary women's organization in the Reform Jewish Movement, WRJ represents tens of thousands of women in hundreds of Reform congregations all over North America and worldwide. WRJ cultivates sisterhood by empowering Reform Jewish women to find strength, joy, and connection in their communities. WRJ inspires spiritual growth by enriching contemporary life with Jewish rituals, traditions, culture, and opportunities for lifelong learning. Leading with the principle of Tikkun Olam WRJ mobilizes collective action on a variety of social justice causes to create a more just and compassionate world for people of all backgrounds and identities. Through its YES Fund, WRJ raises funds to support its youth programs, educate congregational leaders, empowering women worldwide and uplifting diverse Jewish communities.

Jewish peoplehood is the conception of the awareness of the underlying unity that makes an individual a part of the Jewish people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arthur Louis Schechter</span> American lawyer (born 1939)

Arthur Louis Schechter is an American attorney, philanthropist, diplomat, socialite and senior partner at Schechter, McElwee, Shaffer, and Harris based in Houston, Texas. He attended public schools and graduated from Lamar High School. Schechter graduated from the University of Texas in Plan II Honors Program with a BA and received a JD degree from the University of Texas Law School in 1964. He also subsequently attended the University of Houston for a master's degree in Political Science and Foreign Affairs. Schechter previously served as the United States Ambassador to the Bahamas. He was confirmed by the U.S. Senate and was appointed by President Bill Clinton on October 29, 1998. After returning Schechter chaired the Harris County Metropolitan Transit Authority. Schechter's main practice was admiralty law, and he represented many maritime unions from around the world, including the National Maritime Union and the International Transport Workers Federation.

Lynn Schusterman is an American billionaire philanthropist. She is the co-founder and chair of Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies, and founder of several other philanthropic initiatives including Schusterman Family Philanthropies – Israel, the ROI Community and Jerusalem Season of Culture.

BINA: The Jewish Movement for Social Change is a Jewish non-profit organization and educational institution that offers pluralistic programs and forums for adults and young adults seeking to explore their Jewish roots. It was founded in 1996, and has centers in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Haifa and Beer Sheva, Israel. BINA means "wisdom" in Hebrew and is an acronym for "A Home for the Creation of Our Nation's Souls", a phrase coined by Hebrew poet Chaim Nachman Bialik.

Jewish Women's Collaborative International Fund (JWCIF) is a non-profit organization that promotes women's rights and gender equality. Its member organizations include Jewish Women's organizations in the United States and Israel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ronny Douek</span> Israeli businessman, social entrepreneur and philanthropist

Ronny Douek is an Israeli businessman, investor, and philanthropist. He has founded multiple social entrepreneurial and non-profit ventures, including Zionism 2000, Sheatufim and Uru, and has served as chairman of the Israel Anti-Drug Authority. Douek lit a torch at formal torch-lighting ceremony on Mount Herzl in Jerusalem on Israel's 60th anniversary.

Mindy Weisel is an American abstract visual artist and author.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anita Friedman</span>

Anita Friedman is the executive director of Jewish Family and Children's Services of San Francisco, the Peninsula, Marin & Sonoma Counties in California, one of the largest family service institutions in America. JFCS operates more than 40 educational and social service programs, among them assisted living for seniors, adoption, refugee resettlement, assistance to the disabled, services for victims of abuse, counseling, and mental health and education services for children and youth. Each year, JFCS serves more than 100,000 individuals. JFCS, founded in 1850, is also the oldest charitable organization west of the Mississippi River.

Susie Gelman is an American activist and philanthropist who serves as the chairwoman of the Israel Policy Forum.

Jewish Women International (JWI) is a Jewish-American social service organization founded in 1897 by American Jewish women associated with B'nai B'rith, an international Jewish social service organization.

Naomi Dickson is the CEO of Jewish Women's Aid who has dedicated her professional life to supporting Jewish women and girls who have experienced domestic abuse and educating the Jewish community to have the tools to highlight, expose, and prevent abuse.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Olam (network)</span> Jewish non-profit organization

Olam is a network of Jewish and Israeli organizations that work in the fields of global service, international development and humanitarian aid. It was launched in 2015 by the Alliance for Global Good, Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies and the Pears Foundation.

Marcia Lipetz was a leader in the nonprofit community of Chicago. She helped set up the Center on Halsted and in the 1980s, was the first full time executive director at the AIDS Foundation of Chicago as well as what was to become the Alphawood Foundation. She served on the board of the Illinois chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Josephs, Susan (Fall 2012). "Liza Levy: Serving as a Voice of Change in Community Organizations". Jewish Woman Magazine.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Liza Levy". Jewish Coalition Against Domestic Abuse. Archived from the original on 22 December 2015. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Minton, Emily (12 June 2013). "Levy to Lead Federation". Washington Jewish Week . Archived from the original on 20 February 2016. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
  4. "How We Began". Tikkun Olam Women's Foundation. Archived from the original on 17 April 2018. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
  5. 1 2 Greenberg, Anne Rose (4 September 2012). "Inspiring Jewish Women Leaders Celebrated As JWI 'Women to Watch' (press release)". Jewish Women International. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
  6. Jacobs, Emily (29 November 2012). "Building a Community of Women". Washington Jewish Week. Archived from the original on 20 February 2016. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
  7. "Levy Family Starts the New Year in Tel Aviv". Tel Aviv-Yafo Foundation. 16 January 2012. Archived from the original on 22 December 2015. Retrieved 19 December 2015.