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Beverley and I were both brought
up witnessing giving. For me, as a child, I watched my grandmothers spend
their time raising money for needy people and for their synagogue. For Bev,
it was her father who made giving a priority. No matter how little he had,
giving to UJA and his synagogue was most important to him. Just before his
death, he was concerned because he couldn't remember if he had paid his
UJA pledge.
 My first experience with giving came when I was 20 or 21, shortly after
Bev and I were married. I walked into the office at my first job and I
found a UJA pledge card on my desk. My boss had left it there. I asked
him what to do with it, and he explained that I was more fortunate than
many people, and it is my responsibility to give what I could and to honour
that pledge. He said that I should do my best to increase that amount
every year.
We have followed that
advice since that day. My boss and mentor at the time described giving the
way everyone should understand it. You must pay back. I became involved
with UJA Federation, rising to the rank of Campaign Chair in 1994. Bev and
I knew that we had this commitment and realized that part of what we were
doing was also setting an example for our family. We have three children
and six grandchildren. We want them to be involved in the community, involved
with Israel. We hope that our family has observed our dedication to the
community, and will carry on this tradition and obligation to the best of
their ability.
There are so many heroes in the
Toronto Jewish community and they come from every walk of life - the professionals
at UJA who are the driving force behind the scenes and who encourage volunteers
at every level and the lay leadership, men and women who have set an extraordinary
example for the community. These are people who give every ounce of their
time and energy. These are the people who inspired Bev and I to become involved.
They showed us that we too could take on roles, starting with small steps
and learning along the way, from them, the true meaning of leadership. The
amounts people donate may change, but their principles do not. We often
wondered over the years whether future generations would be as dedicated
to supporting the community. We are happy to say that we are impressed by
what we see, by the young people who have come forward to contribute, not
only financially, but also are giving their time to working hard on the
behalf of our community, Israel and for needy Jews everywhere.
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