TIKKUN OLAM Archives - Howard Blas

Original Article Published On the JNS

There is essentially no limit to Sylvan Adams’ commitment to biking, tikkun olam (the Jewish concept of repairing the world) and portraying his beloved country of Israel in a positive light. The Canadian-Israeli businessman and philanthropist, who made aliyah from Montreal along with his wife in 2015, has devoted himself to serving as a self-appointed “ambassador-at-large for the State of Israel.”

From Rwanda to Afghanistan, Adams uses his charm and philanthropy to show off Israel’s and Judaism’s finest qualities.

Adams aims to show the world what he calls the “normal Israel” and “the beautiful reality of the country to gigantic audiences around the world.” At a great financial cost, hundreds of millions of people are exposed to Israel in this light.

In 2018, Adams brought the first three stages of the Giro d’Italia, one of bicycle racing’s three Grand Tours, to Israel. It was the first time the famed race had taken place outside of Europe. More than 1 million Israelis lined the roads and cheered on riders for the three days of racing, and over a billion biking fans around the world viewed the event on TV, Adams notes.

In 2019, when Tel Aviv hosted the Eurovision Song Contest, Adams was the money and brains behind bringing legendary singer Madonna to make an appearance. More than 280 million people around the world saw Madonna—and Israel—on TV.

This summer, Adams was responsible for bringing three of soccer’s biggest stars to Tel Aviv for the Trophée des Champions, the annual match between the champions of France’s top league and the winners of the Coupe de France, in 2022 Paris Saint-Germain and FC Nantes, respectively.

Lionel Messi, Neymar and Sergio Ramos all scored for the Paris side in the sellout match at Bloomfield Stadium, which was viewed by 400 million fans, in addition to the hundreds of millions of social media followers of the game’s stars, who all posted from Tel Aviv.

The soccer event took place one week after Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center (commonly referred to as Ichilov Hospital) inaugurated the Sylvan Adams Emergency Hospital, made possible by a $28 million gift from Adams. The 8,000-square-meter (86,000-square-foot), three-floor facility is the largest ER in the world.

Adams has also supported the creation of the Sylvan Adams Children’s Hospital at Wolfson Medical Center in Holon. The facility is the home of Save a Child’s Heart (SACH), a non-profit organization Adams also supports that has provided care to more than 5,400 children from 62 countries in Africa, the Middle East, Asia, Europe and South America. The NGO has also performed life-saving surgery for Israeli and Palestinian children.

“SACH shows the true heart of Israel, fulfilling the Jewish imperative of tikkun olam around the world,” Adams says.

To date, he is the only Israeli member of the Giving Pledge, the organization started by Warren Buffet and Bill and Melinda Gates in which billionaires and near-billionaires commit to giving away the majority of their wealth to philanthropic causes.

When Adams is not busy improving the world, the 63-year-old can be seen on his bike—around Israel and around the world. And he has found numerous ways to combine biking, charitable giving and Israel hasbara (public diplomacy).

The devoted biker won the World Masters Championship in Manchester, U.K., in 2017 and is co-owner of Israel-Premier Tech, Israel’s top cycling team that was formerly named Israel Start-Up Nation, and of its development team, Israel Cycling Academy. Israel-Premier Tech competes in the Union Cycliste Internationale’s World Tour, including the Tour de France, known for the 2.5 billion TV viewers and 15 million live spectators who line the streets and roads of France to experience the 23-day cycling event, and the Giro d’Italia, the second-biggest bicycle race in the world. Adam’s team features Chris Froome, a four-time Tour de France winner.

While Israel Premier-Tech was competing in the Tour de Rwanda, Adams observes how integral bikes are for Rwandans. “Everybody rides bikes with baskets stuffed to the brim. We decided to take on a social mission and adapt the bikes. We provide bikes, helmets, shoes and Israeli cycling clothing. We also provide coaching from Israel and mechanics. Their enthusiasm and appreciation is infectious.”

Adams has also committed to promoting professional biking in Rwanda. “We fund the women’s team in Bugesera [district].” He is quick to add, “Our work is based on the Jewish value of tikkun olam—our Jewish culture stresses the importance of tikkun olam—all they need is a chance.”

Over the past year, Adams has helped resettle more than 400 refugees from Afghanistan. Perhaps not surprisingly, this group includes some of the country’s top female cyclists.

Adams shared the behind-the-scenes rescue story with JNS in a recent Zoom interview. “Out of the blue, I got a call from a cycling reporter who works in Afghanistan. People were being killed and tortured for the sin of riding a bike. Is there anything you can do?”

Adams went to work. “I started making inquiries.” He contacted IsraAID.

When he learned that it would be possible to locate and assist all the members of the female national cycling team, Adams recalls resolving, “I got this—let’s try to save them. We need to act quickly.”

To date, more than 400 refugees have been rescued and resettled, in three waves.

The rescue mission, which began in 2021, continues to have a biking connection. The last group of female riders to escape the Taliban arrived in Switzerland for the Oct. 22 UCI Afghanistan Women’s National Championship after receiving special visas.

Marjan, the former captain of the Afghan national team, recounts, “I am a human being. I am a woman and I am a cyclist. To bike, I risked my life. I was a victim and shot at just because I rode my bike. I thought I would die but I got back to my bike, but when the Taliban came back, I thought they would shoot me again. I escaped, found a new home, and now I am on my way to my first race in freedom! We are racing to show the world that Afghan women never give up. We are strong.”

Adams came out to greet the team. “I felt obligated. To save one life is to save the world. To see them race is uplifting. When I heard about the plight of the Afghan cyclists stranded in Afghanistan, a place where these women would be persecuted or possibly killed merely for riding their bikes, I felt an obligation to try to help. To be able to offer this help as a Jew, and as the owner of an Israeli team, felt even more meaningful, a sign of true shared responsibility. Indeed, the Talmud tells us that even a single life saved uplifts our world, and we saved 400 worlds.”

Mahraz, 16, left her entire family behind but expressed happiness here: “We are racing to show the whole world that Afghan girls never give up. They are strong.”

“It is all about our Jewish value of tikkun olam.”

Original article published in the JNS

Max Levitt recalls being heartbroken at the sight of usable equipment being thrown away, saying “it really bothered me. It stuck in my head.”

When Max Levitt was a student at Syracuse University, he had a unique window into the world of sports equipment. As equipment manager for the school’s football team, he regularly witnessed perfectly good cleats, footballs and other gear being thrown into the dumpster.

“My first job was to prep the locker room and go through the inventory,” he said. “I had to throw away 300 useable footballs.”

Levitt recalled being heartbroken at the sight of usable equipment being thrown away, saying “it really bothered me. It stuck in my head.”

He learned that university sports departments negotiate contracts with partner companies that include receiving the newest gear each year. And so, he had an idea—collecting and redistributing sports equipment to those who don’t have the proper equipment.

There is a particular need for sports equipment, as the gap in accessing sports programs and equipment for people without financial resources has widened in recent years. This wasn’t the case when Levitt, 33, was growing up in the 1980s. “Back then, everyone participated in youth sports through the public recreation department. We had coaches and equipment, and sampled various sports.

“But over the last few decades,” he explained, “we have seen the privatization of sports and a ‘pay to play’ model. Some people pay as much as $30,000 or $40,000 a year for off-season training, pitching coaches and more.”

This has impacted public sports programs, said Levitt. “Public recreation is now more about facility management. For low-income families, there is no place to go for youth sports. As a result, participation rates for sports have gone down in low-income communities.”

Levitt said he was always a big sports fan and participant growing up. “I spent every second of my free time playing sports, organized or not organized—at the JCC [Jewish Community Center] and at my eight years at Camp Modin in Maine.

Howard Salzberg, director of Camp Modin, remembers Levitt as a camper many years ago: “I remember him as a mature, kind kid who was athletic and loved to do all the activities, particularly sports.”

The program has expanded to Baltimore and Philadelphia with collection boxes in various locations, including sports fields, and bar and bat mitzvahs venues. Credit: Courtesy.

‘It is a simple model’

Levitt emphasized that playing sports has benefits beyond the physical. “Sports shaped me as a person,” he said. It also provided structure, and helped him and his friends stay out of trouble in those hours when school was out and parents were still at work, he added. “As a kid with lots of energy and not always the best behaved, sports served as an important outlet.”

He considered himself and his friends to be fortunate; they grew up in relative affluence with good role models. He also grew up in a home where Jewish values were emphasized. “Tikkun olam [‘social justice’] was woven in. We always had donation bags in our house growing up—for clothes, books and furniture—but nothing for sports equipment.”

As he began learning of the lack of equipment of low participation rates in sports for children of lower-income families—and as he looked around his own home and the home of friends, and realized how much unused sports equipment was sitting in closets, garages and attics—a light bulb went off. “We have food banks where people can get the food they need. It is a simple model. But there is nothing like this for sports,” he observed.

And so, in 2013, Levitt started “Leveling the Playing Field” in Washington, D.C. The program has expanded to Baltimore and Philadelphia with collection boxes in various locations, including sports fields, and bar and bat mitzvahs venues. Since then, he has regularly heard from people and organizations looking to bring the program to their cities. The program is funded through support from private donors, foundations and corporations.

Kids have the opportunity to donate equipment and volunteer for the organization. Credit: Courtesy.

“We focus on the equipment barrier,” he stressed.

In fact, “Leveling the Playing Field” may be in a unique position to address certain societal issues that have become more apparent during these past two years of the coronavirus pandemic. “Coming out of the pandemic, we have seen the significant impact on mental health, behavior and social/emotional learning. They were always there, but these problems have been exacerbated, especially in lower socio-economic communities,” explained Levitt. “Private sports programs have quickly returned, but not for people in these communities.”

Levitt said his organization is in a position to help children who were “set back during the pandemic.” Reflecting on his own experience growing up, he noted: “We have to get these young kids playing sports; they have the energy. The more free and unstructured time they have … that is no good.”

“I like to say that we are a food bank for sports equipment,” he said, noting that they don’t provide gear for individuals, but rather to entire programs, which receive equipment for free. “We have shelves full of gear in our warehouses.”

The program also benefits kids from more affluent homes, who have the opportunity to donate equipment and volunteer for the organization. He said parents have told him their children benefit from both giving and receiving.

The program is funded through support from private donors, foundations and corporations. Credit: Courtesy.

‘I collected so many pieces of equipment’

Thirteen-year-old Jeremy Dwoskin of Frederick, Md., who celebrated his bar mitzvah in March, knows the benefits firsthand. He said he chose the program for his bar mitzvah project because he wanted to help others get the chance to play sports, just as he has always been able to.

“That’s because sports are my passion; I can’t imagine my life without sports,” he said. “My goal is for everyone to get the opportunity to have fun while playing sports, even if their families can’t afford it.”

He reported that his experience with the program “was great.”

“After we began advertising on social media, it only took a day for people to start donating equipment. Although many people donated to the cause, I soon realized that it really only takes one person to make a huge difference. I collected so many pieces of equipment for just about every sport, as well as a check donation.”

“I am so glad I am able to help make a difference,” said Dwoskin. “I hope all of these donations help others get on the field, court, rink, court, etc., and help others get the chance they deserve.”