June 30, 2008 / 27 Sivan 5768

Thirteen year-old Benjamin Gantz-Zahler from New York had a most moving experience on his last visit to the State of Israel: All the money he received as bar mitzvah gifts was donated to a kindergarten that his family has supported for many years.

A strong and resilient bond that has lasted for many years connects the Gantz-Zahler family from New York with a compulsory kindergarten on Shmaryahu Levine Street in the Jerusalem neighborhood of Kiryat Yovel. The kindergarten was originally built in the early 80’s by Fred and Manny Gantz via the Jewish Agency’s Israel Education Fund. Since then, for over a period of nearly 25 years the family continues to assist the kindergarten children in every possible manner.  On every visit to Israel, family members bring presents for all the kindergarten children and also contribute to renovating the building, purchasing equipment for the kindergarten and erecting outdoor playground facilities. 

On Sunday, June 29, Ms. Karen Gantz-Zahler, the daughter of Manny and Fred Gantz, arrived together with her husband and son Benjamin. They came equipped with a sack chock full of presents.  It turned out that Benjamin had donated his bar mitzvah money to purchase presents for the kindergarten children, just as the other grandchildren, Rebecca and Ariel, had done before him. The Zahler family presented the children with the presents that they had bought and together they celebrated the end of the school year and the start of the summer vacation.