US Jewish philanthropist Mort Mandel dies

Mort Mandel
Mort Mandel

The 98 year old contributed tens of millions of dollars to Israeli educational and cultural institutions.

American Jewish philanthropist Morton Mandel died yesterday in Florida aged 98. He was the founder and chairman of the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Foundation, which donated huge sums to educational and cultural projects in Israel.

These contributions included $25 million for the Bezalel Academy of Art's new campus in downtown Jerusalem, $50 million for the humanities at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, $38 million for projects in Beersheva including the Institute of Social Leadership at Ben Gurion University of the Negev and $7 million for an Innovation Center in Yeruham.

Mort Mandel and his brothers made their money through the Premier Industrial Corporation, which they founded in 1940 to distribute electronics parts for industry.

Jewish Agency chairman Isaac Herzog said, "He left a huge legacy as a lover of Israel, as a Jewish leader, as a philanthropist making change. He will be remembered for his leadership, innovative thinking and his passion for Israel and the Jewish people."

Adv. Yehuda Raveh, a close friend of Morton Mandel, who also represented him in his activities in Israel for 30 years said, "There were three things about him that stood out: great modesty, constant striving for excellence and maybe most important of all - leadership in education, which contributed to the education systems and higher education. So for example, while technology was the top issue for many investors, Mort insisted on investing tens of millions of dollars in the humanities."

Morton Mandel is survived by his wife Barbara, his three children and seven grandchildren.

Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on October 17, 2019

© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2019

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