26 | JANUARY 19 • 2023 

OUR COMMUNITY

B

orn in Detroit, a descendent of 
Eastern European immigrants, Dr. 
Max Robins was raised to appre-
ciate his Jewish background and value his 
secular education. His hero was his Zaydie. 
Robins’ maternal grandfather 
left Ukraine in the 1890s for 
the United States, crossing the 
ocean with little information 
and a dream of opportunity. 
Robins, a pediatrician in 
East Lansing, remembered 
his family supporting Jewish 
National Fund-USA throughout his child-
hood and, as an adult, he regularly bought 
trees in Israel as small gifts for bar mitzvahs 
and celebrations. It was only after he retired 
from medicine, however, that he found 
himself drawn to more deeply support 
Jewish causes.
In 2015, Robins visited Israel on Jewish 
National Fund-USA
’s President’s Mission, 
touring several sites, including a new med-
ical center in the Central Arava. Seeing 
the Negev for the first time, he noticed 
the lack of ambulatory medical services 
and was moved to help, funding an emer-

gency rescue vehicle for the Central Arava 
Command & Control Center. Thereafter, 
Robins continued to give to Jewish National 
Fund-USA projects in the Negev, particu-
larly to the Halutza communities.
Bordering Egypt and Gaza in the 
Northwest Negev, Halutza was founded by 
a group of families evacuated to the area 
during Israel’s disengagement from Gaza. 
Their hard work, along with philanthropic 
investments from Jewish National Fund-
USA made possible thanks to generous 
partners (donors) like Robins, has turned 
empty desert into a thriving agricultural 
community of 500+ families.
Living in Halutza is not without risk. Due 
to its close proximity to Gaza, when a siren 
goes off, residents have 15 seconds to make 
it to a bomb shelter. Despite the danger, 
Halutza is one of the fastest-growing com-
munities in the Negev today.
Yedidya Harush is Halutza’s liaison with 
Jewish National Fund-USA. When the need 
arose for a new daycare center, he reached 
out to his close friend in Michigan. “Max 
loves Israel,
” Harush said. “
And he very 
much cares about children.
” 

As a pediatrician, Robins connected to 
the project on a personal level. The Max 
Robins Daycare Center, now under con-
struction, will be a 7,000-square-foot facility 
with three classrooms, a kitchen, a music 
room and more. Most importantly, the cen-
ter is bomb-proof, providing a shelter-in-
place option in an emergency. 
Robins has regularly supported safety 
infrastructure in Halutza. Recognizing that 
a well-trained group of local first respond-
ers is critical in a community under con-
stant threat, he funded a six-month volun-
teer firefighter training program as well as 
emergency support vehicles and equipment. 
“Max is 99.9% heart, and the rest is just 
his body,
” Harush said. “He really is just so 
incredible.
” 
In 2018, Robins was presented with the 
Tree of Life award in Naples, Florida. This is 
the highest honor given by Jewish National 
Fund-USA; it recognizes his outstanding 
dedication to Israel. His generosity, with its 
focus on critical care and community infra-
structure, has made an enormous difference 
in the Negev region, figuratively and literal-
ly changing the surrounding landscape. 
After a lifetime of healing children, he 
continues to provide safety and security to 
the community’s most vulnerable through 
his philanthropy. 

The Halutza 
community of 
B’nei Netzarim

ROBERT KERZNER

Dr. Max 
Robins

Detroit pediatrician supports safety 
infrastructure for children in Halutza, Israel.

Building a 
Safe Haven 
in the Desert

CAMI FUSSEY SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS

