pantheon of top AIPAC activists through-
out its modern history, there is nobody
who commands greater respect, admira-
tion or affection from those within the
organization, as well as on The Hill, than
Ed Levy Jr."

Personal Life
Always on the go, Ed acts half his age.
He beats the sunrise every morning and
works out for 45 minutes before making
breakfast and going to work.
He was married for 46 years to Julie
Honigman, who died in 2001. They raised

Ed Levy Jr. shakes hands with then-Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak in 2001.

which became the largest, most-efficient
stone crushing quarry in the Mideast
until the deposit was worked out, Ed Jr.
said.
One of his first visits to Israel was in
1951, when his father sent him to Israel
to shepherd the arrival of power shovels
and trucks for the quarry and to train
sabras (native Israelis) to operate and
maintain the equipment.
"They're great at killing their Arab
enemies, but they're also great at killing
machinery:' the father said to his son.
Ed's father became a member of the
newly formed AIPAC in the 1950s; Ed Jr.
joined sometime in the 1960s.
After the 1973 war, when the Arabs
were buying every weapon they could
and Israel needed help raising the $10
billion to replace what it lost in the last
war, AIPAC asked Ed to use the experi-
ence he gained from his father in talking

to politicians while advocating for good
road legislation to advocate on behalf of
AIPAC.
"I was seeing senators in western
states who didn't have any Jewish activ-
ism going on to speak of:' he said. "I was
the first pro-Jewish activist to meet Jesse
Helms in his office."
After knowing Helms, a U.S. senator
from North Carolina, for a while,Levy
introduced him to an AIPAC colleague
from Mobile, Ala. "I like you, and I'll
continue to visit:' he told Helms, "but
I thought maybe you ought to meet an
AIPACer who doesn't talk funny."
Ed Jr. was national AIPAC president
from 1988 to 1990. "There are precious
few senior members of Congress who
don't know Ed Levy Jr., and they respect
and admire Ed:' said David Victor, imme-
diate past national president of AIPAC.
"It is no exaggeration to say that in the

three daughters: Ellen Levy, an English
literature professor at the Pratt Institute
in New York City where her husband,
'Gregg Horowitz, chairs the Department of
Social Science and Cultural Studies; Carol
Levy, president of Pilot Light Foundation,
a nonprofit organization that raises
money for Africa; and Barbie Levy, who
died in 1985.
"Dad was busy, but he wanted to
spend time with us:' Ellen said. "On
Sundays, we'd go driving around central

Dedicated on page 21

Please join us as we celebrate
the 20th anniversary of Yad Ezra,
the kosher food pantry,
feeding vulnerable families

Margot and
Jerry
Halperin

Honorees

Monday, October 11, 2010
Congregation Shaarey Zedek

Strolling Supper 6:00 pm
Short Program to follow
Couvert $180 per adult

Penny and Harold Blumenstein
Beverly and Arthur Liss
Jane and D. Larry Sherman

Dinner Co-Chairpersons

Ken Bernard

President

Yad Ezra

Feeding the Jewish Hungry

David Victor, David's father, Steve Victor, U.S. Rep. Dave Camp, R-Mildand, and Ed
Levy Jr. in 1998

Michigan allows an income tax credit for individuals equal to 50% of the amount of the cash
contribution (subject to certain limitations) to organizations such as Yad Ezra that provide food or
shelter to the indigent. The fair market value of the dinner for tax purposes is $60 per person. For
information or reservations, call (248) 548-3663 or email lea@yadezra.org

September 23 • 2010 19