Three Couples Join in $1.5 Million Gift to Prepare Visionary Leaders for Israel
For one of the three couples behind a recent $1.5 million gift to Shalem, the decision to partner with the college was a long time coming—as long as twenty years. “We moved to Israel two decades ago out of a desire to help build the Jewish state,” said the wife of the pair, who wished to remain anonymous. “But we were always acutely aware of how much easier we had it than the country’s founders. Ever since, we’ve looked for ways to make a truly meaningful contribution to Israeli society.”
When, several years back, they attended a Shalem event, they believed they’d at last found a way. “We support research at one of Israel’s top universities” her husband noted, “but we see Shalem as filling a hole in the country’s academic landscape. It’s the only place dedicated to preparing broad-based thinkers for Israel.” Happily, two other couples who participated in the program—friends Kimby and Lawrence Berger of Potomac, Maryland, and Stacey and Amir Goldman of Merion, Pennsylvania—shared their enthusiasm. To leverage their generosity into even bigger impact, they decided to pool their resources through a joint gift this past fall. Designed to fund scholarships for the college’s growing student body, as well as to identify and nurture promising new educators to join the college faculty, the gift “enables Shalem to continue to attract a growing student body of the best and to attract master teachers to inspire and guide them,” said Shalem President Russ Roberts.
For Amir and Stacey Goldman—who, like the two other couples, are active in Israeli philanthropy—supporting Shalem took on an added dimension after October 7th. “Shalem is a young institution, and Stacey and I were excited by the chance to help it grow its influence,” Amir stated. “The fact that the majority of Shalem students served and are still serving in the reserves since the war broke out also allows us to give back to a generation that has given so much to our country,” he concludes.
Stacey agreed, adding that she was struck by the sense of klal yisrael that Shalem students embody. “They are incredibly committed to the Jewish people, both in Israel and around the world. And it was equally heartwarming to see how committed Shalem’s faculty are to their students, too.”
Kimby and Lawrence Berger
Indeed, the quality of Shalem faculty was something all three couples mentioned as key to their support. While noting “the palpable empathy” faculty had for students moving between military and civilian life, Kimby Berger also emphasized their belief in open and collaborative inquiry. “When we learned in the college’s seminars,” she recalls, “there was a sense that the lecturers were learning as much as we were. At Shalem, education really is a two-way conversation, and that’s exactly what Lawrence and I believe it should be.”
In fact, Kimby—who, like both her husband and Amir Goldman, holds a bachelor’s from the University of Pennsylvania, while Stacey holds one from Columbia University—was so impressed by Chair of the David and Judith Lobel Core Curriculum Dr. Ido Hevroni’s course on teaching The Odyssey in wartime, she and her husband connected Hevroni with a friend who helps U.S. Navy Seals manage PTSD. “We feel a tremendous sense of pride in what Israel has built,” she said, “and we recognize that Israel has so much hard-earned wisdom to offer other interested countries.”
Like the Goldmans and the gift’s third couple, who wish to remain anonymous, the Bergers saw partnership with Shalem as a means to grant an extraordinary generation of young Israelis both the intellectual grounding and skills they need to lead the country.
“After October 7th,” said Kimby, “almost all our giving in Israel focuses on preparing leaders who have the wisdom and character to steer their country through the challenges ahead.” Amir echoed her determination, expressing his hope that other concerned Jewish philanthropists will double down on their support for Israel. “A huge piece of the Jewish future will be happening in Israel,” he said, “and Shalem is ensuring that Israel has the best men and women to chart its course.”
