Joseph Gitler, Founder and Chairman of Leket Israel, Israel’s National Food Bank and largest food rescue network, will be honored for his leadership on Saturday night, November 8, 2014 in New York City at the American Friends of Leket Israel gala dinner benefitting the David A. Cohen Family Leket Meal Rescue Project. Gitler, a former resident of Teaneck, NJ and current resident of Ra’anana, Israel will be in town next month to celebrate Leket Israel’s 10 years of food rescue for Israelis in need. The Alpha Epsilon Pi fraternity, a longtime partner of Leket Israel, will receive the Young Visionary Honoree award at the gala.

Gitler, a graduate of The Moriah School, Yeshiva University, and Fordham University Law School, made aliyah in 2000 with his wife and daughter and soon became disturbed by the increasing poverty he observed in his new country.

“It was painful and shocking to witness so many people struggling just to get by, especially knowing that at the same time vast quantities of food were being wasted,” said Gitler. “Food rescue organizations have existed in the States for decades and I was surprised that there was no one in Israel rescuing food en masse.”

He began by packing his station wagon full of excess meals collected from catering halls late at night after weddings and bar mitzvahs had ended and delivering the food to local nonprofits. As the organization grew, acquiring fresh fruit and vegetables (now the largest source of food donated to Leket) and dairy items became a high priority, as they are often prohibitively expensive for the poor. Today Leket Israel has 50,000 volunteers and 100 employees working together with 180 nonprofit partners across the country to serve 140,000 Israelis in need each week, including disadvantaged children, single mothers, Holocaust survivors, and a growing group of working poor among others. Virtually all the fresh food Leket Israel provides to the needy is excess and would otherwise be destroyed.

For his work in food rescue and feeding the needy Gitler was awarded the 2014 Nefesh B’Nefesh Bonei Zion Prize and shortly thereafter was named to the Jerusalem Post’s list of 50 Most Influential Jews.

“I am humbled to be recognized for working to alleviate hunger and reduce food waste in Israel and I look forward to celebrating with all of Leket’s friends and supporters on Nov. 8. We still have a long way to go but I believe we are headed in the right direction.”

To learn more about Leket Israel or to make reservations to the dinner in NY on Nov. 8 contact Lauren at 201-331-0070 x 1 or via email at [email protected]. Tribute donations in honor of Joseph Gitler can be made through the following link: http://bsimchas.leket.org/en/page/josephgitler.aspx

About Leket Israel

Serving as the country’s National Food Bank and largest food rescue network, Leket Israel, now marking its 10 years of service, works to alleviate the problem of nutritional insecurity among the growing numbers of Israel’s poor. In 2013, with the help of over 50,000 volunteers, Leket Israel rescued over one million hot meals and 21 million lbs. of produce and perishable goods, and supplied over 1.35 million (7,800/school day) volunteer-prepared sandwiches to underprivileged children. Food that would have otherwise gone to waste is redistributed to 180 nonprofit partners caring for the needy, reaching 140,000+ people weekly.