Featured Speaker – Mosheh Oinounou

Mosheh Oinounou is an award-winning journalist who has 20 years of experience as a reporter and executive producer at CBS, Fox News, Bloomberg TV, Condé Nast Entertainment and CNBC. He’s covered elections, wars, natural disasters and produced interviews with dozens of world leaders, including five American presidents. He was the executive producer of the CBS Evening News and also launched the network’s 24-hour streaming news channel.

Mosheh Oinounou

Mosheh is the founder of Mo News, a social-first news organization that breaks down headlines and provides non-partisan analysis on Instagram as well as a daily podcast and newsletter.

Since 2020, Mosheh has been covering global news for his community – from the latest in politics, business, international news and pop culture. Mo News now reaches more than 1 million consumers a week and has been honored with multiple awards. Mo News was recently featured in The New York Times, The Washington Post, and Forbes Magazine.

In 2019 he also founded Mo Digital consulting firm where he advises companies and brands on digital content strategy, brand messaging and communications.

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Spark Award Honoree – Bob Silver

To honor the spirit of community impact, which is at the heart of our new organization, the Center for Jewish Philanthropy of Greater Phoenix (CJP) created a new award. The CJP Spark Award shines the light on those whose voice, support, influence, passion and contributions have made a significant impact on the Jewish community of Greater Phoenix.

The CJP Spark celebrates and recognizes extraordinary individuals and leaders who give, advocate and volunteer for positive change in our community. They are the trailblazers who go above and beyond for our community and have demonstrated outstanding commitment through financial support, or through encouragement and motivation of others, to take leadership roles toward philanthropy and community involvement. They regularly step up to meet community needs and exemplify the common bonds that connect us.

We are honored to bestow this year’s CJP Spark award to Bob Silver for his extraordinary philanthropic support to our community.

Bob Silver

Bob Silver was born and raised in Phoenix. His parents, Warren and Judy Silver, were active in the Phoenix Jewish Community from the day they arrived. This is where he learned the importance of being part of the community and working to make it better. He and his wife, Sara, owned a software consulting business, Silverware, and are the proud parents of two sons, Adam and Jeffrey. Despite the demands of family life and owning and running a business, Bob always found time to give back to and support his community.

Bob became active in the Valley of the Sun Jewish Community Center in the late 90’s. He was part of the team of volunteers and staff that planned and organized the reopening of the JCC on the Ina Levine Community Campus. He served as Board Chair when the JCC reopened in the new

building. Bob co-chaired the 2006 JCC Maccabi Games, which saw over 2000 Jewish Youth come to Phoenix for 5 days of friendly competition.

In 2007, Bob was asked to be on a Governance Task Force for the Jewish Federation. That began his efforts to expand the reach and impact that the Federation has on Jewish lives here in Phoenix and around the world. He served as Chair of the first Community Planning Commission which opened up funding to more organizations locally and in Israel. In 2010, Bob became Board Chair of Federation during the financial crisis. He, along with a group of dedicated community leaders, worked to restructure the Federation, Campus and JCC into the streamlined Jewish Community Association. Bob served as the JCA’s first Board Chair from its inception in 2011 until 2015.

In 2021 The Jewish Community Foundation and the Jewish Federation of Greater Phoenix integrated into a single organization, the Center for Jewish Philanthropy of Greater Phoenix, to enhance their combined strengths and resources to better serve our diverse Jewish community in the Valley. Based on his deep understanding of both organizations and his past experience, once again, Bob was asked to lead and navigate the integration and formation of the new entity as CJP’s first Board chair.

For his outstanding leadership, commitment, passion and service to our community, Bob has received the JCC’s Irv Shuman Award, The Federation’s Medal of Honor and now, the Center for Jewish Philanthropy’s Spark Award.

The Spark Award celebrates and recognizes extraordinary individuals and leaders who give, advocate and volunteer for positive change in our community. They are the trailblazers who go above and beyond for our community – whose voice, support, influence, passion and contributions have made a significant impact on the Jewish community of Greater Phoenix.

Bob exemplifies all these qualities. He is a role model for others to follow – working tirelessly and selflessly to make our community a better place for all.

Lee Amada and Sy Clark Young Leadership Awards

CJP’s Young leadership Awards are presented to individuals who are 45 years of age or younger and who have a minimum of three years devoted to some phase of volunteer community service within or outside Jewish Community. Honorees have demonstrated a willingness to serve, an understanding of the purpose of Jewish communal work and the potential to assume leadership roles in the community.

The Lee Amada and Sy Clark Young Leadership awards are presented to outstanding young leaders who have shown their dedication and passion for Jewish causes and who have given their time and energy to make an impact.

This year, CJP is proud to recognize BethEl Nager as the recipient of the Lee Amada award and Harrison Abramowitz as the recipient of the Sy Clark Award.

Both BethEl and Harrison have been actively involved with CJP and other organizations in our community. They both embody a new generation of young leaders who are stepping up and

assuming positions of leadership in established organizations or launching new initiatives to reach their peers in novel ways.TO REGISTER FOR AFTERGLOW, CLICK HERE!

Beth El Nager

BethEl Joy Nager is a dynamic and dedicated professional with a passion for service within the Jewish community. BethEl grew up in Scottsdale, Arizona and was a proud member of Temple Chai. Additionally, she served as president of both National Conference of Synagogue Youth (NCSY) and her school’s Jewish Student Union.

BethEl Nager

BethEl earned her Bachelor’s of Arts in Elementary Education from Arizona State University. Subsequently, she attended the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law, proudly earning her Juris Doctorate in 2022. BethEl currently practices corporate, intellectual property, and data privacy law at Weiss Brown, PLLC. Post-law school, BethEl immersed herself in everything Jewish. She found her home at the Center for Jewish Philanthropy, choosing to go deep. She is involved with Business Professionals, Women in Philanthropy, the Ben Gurion Society, and the Leadership Advancement Series. Most notably, BethEl serves as the committee chair of NowGen.

As a firm believer in the power of kehilla, she is devoted to fostering relationships amongst young professionals through compassionate leadership. As a reflection of this great honor, BethEl is dedicated to pave the way for a vibrant future through an unwavering dedication to meaningful connections within the Jewish world.

Harrison Abramowitz

Until four years ago, Harrison was a lifetime New Yorker. Born in Manhattan, raised in Stamford CT and an alum of Syracuse University, the northeast was all he knew. Then COVID hit and brought him to Scottsdale, where he now proudly calls home. The grandson of Holocaust survivors, he has always had a strong sense of a Jewish identity.

Growing up he attended Bi-Cultural Day School in Stamford, was an active member of BBYO in high school, where he served on the Connecticut Valley regional board. In college he was on executive board of the AEPi fraternity at Syracuse University. When living in Manhattan post college, he was a 2018 graduate of Anti-Defamation League’s (ADL) Glass Leadership Institute program focusing on combating antisemitism.

Harrison Abramowitz

Since arriving in the Valley at the end of 2020, Harrison has jumped fully into the Jewish community. In 2022, he went on the CJP/Steve Hilton led Men’s Mission, which has created many lasting relationships with both mentors and peers who are in this room today. Additionally, he is excited to be one of the newest additions to the CJP board locally. On the national front, Harrison is part of the Jewish Federation of North America’s (JFNA) Young Leadership Cabinet (a five-year program with over 400 participants). He serves as one of the co-chairs for the Real Estate Division of the group. Lastly, he is an active member of Jewish National Fund (JNF) and was the co-chair of their annual futures signature event “Night in the Negav.”

In his free time, he is an active runner, golfer and loves to travel. Most recently he travelled to Azerbaijan with JFNA’s Cabinet program on their annual international mission trip.

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Belle Latchman Community Service Award – Jewish Free Loan

The Belle Latchman Community Service Award is presented in recognition of an outstanding current contribution to the enhancement of the quality of life in the Greater Phoenix area by a local non-profit Jewish agency, organization, institution, or committee.

This year, Jewish Free Loan (JFL) was selected as the honoree for their Emergency Loan Program (ELP), designed to assist Jewish Arizonans experiencing financial hardship and emergency situations.

JFL

Under the ELP umbrella, JFL operates interest-free financial assistance programs designed to assist Jewish individuals and families experiencing financial hardship. Included in the ELP are the following programs:

  • Economic Crisis Response Program offers interest-free loans of up to $1,800 per household to pay for rent, late fees, utilities, transportation expenses, car insurance, time-sensitive medical/dental procedures, and other emergency needs.
  • Eviction Prevention Loan Program (EPLP) provides an interest-free loan up to $5,000 per household to pay for rent and late charges when it will end eviction proceedings, bring the borrower current in their housing agreement, and stabilize their housing for the foreseeable future.
  • Food/Gas Cards help to subsidize already strained household budgets and allow for the purchase of items that cannot be obtained with Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits (food stamps). JFL also works with partner organizations in the Jewish community to provide food cards for inclusion in food boxes offered to people in need during the High Holidays and Passover.
  • JFL Care Bags are filled with household goods and toiletries and are provided to borrowers on fixed or very low incomes to help meet their basic hygiene needs.

Since establishing the ELP umbrella in June 2019, JFL has provided more than $300,000 in interest-free loans and more than $25,000 in food and gas gift cards to Jewish households experiencing emergency situations and financial crisis.

About Lee Amada

Lee Amada was born about 1910 in Australia. In 1940, she was 30 years old and lived in Newark, New Jersey, with her husband, Leo. In 1961, she and her husband Leo, a pharmacist, moved to Phoenix.

She was a life-long philanthropist. She was passionate about bringing philanthropy and women’s leadership together as evidenced by her roles in both local and national chapters of Hadassah both

in New Jersey where she spent the earlier years of her life and then in Phoenix. Also, during her life in Phoenix, Amada was an active participant in the United Jewish Welfare Fund; conducted leadership workshops for Junior Civic Leaders and was a member of Beth El Congregation.

About Seymour Clark

Seymour Clark was born in Brooklyn and moved to Phoenix in 1951. He was a past president of Lewkowitz B’nai B’rith and a member of Beth El, Friends of Hillel, Jewish War Veterans and the Kivel Home. He was active in the Phoenix Jewish Federation, was a leader and commissioner for the Boy Scouts and received the Shofar Award. He was also active in Phoenix Little theater and the Jewish Community Center theater group. Clark died in a car accident at age 45 in July 1971.

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