Israelis*In*America

Zerubavel “Zev” and Chava Haifetz:
Israeli Organizations Within the Jewish American Community

“There’s something stored in us, the good part of us, that feels always Israeli. We live in America and feel Israel.”

Zev and Chava Haifetz have bee active in many Jewish American organzations and helped to establish Israeli sub-units within in order to encourage the participation of Israeli Americans. Each served as president of the Israeli section of B'nai Brith and both have presided over, and actively participated in, local and national chapters of groups like Hadassah and AIPAC.

Zev led an early mission of young Israeli soldiers just discharged after the War of Independence to the U.S. to inspire support for the new state. He studied engineering at the Technion and later the University of Utah.

Chava, a teacher and native of Tel-Aviv, started her career in education while in the paratroopers. Since arriving in Los Angeles, she has been active in the field of Jewish education, including the University of Judaism.

Philanthropy

Zev: In 1948 I selected a group of five girls and four boys, soldiers with Israeli army, to travel to United States and tell the American people about our experience. I have clippings from newspapers telling my story which I told fifty years ago and was just right fresh from the battlefield.

It was the War of Independence and when the war was over the students of the Technion [Israeli Institute of Technology], they were the first ones discharged from the army to go back to study. As a matter of fact, two years ago, we had a class reunion. It was fifty years after our graduation. And they spoke about what this group contributed to the state of Israel in technology, and medicine.

[I arrived in the US a second time in] May 1962. I had relatives that lived in Salt Lake City. They came to visit us in Israel as soon as the first flight was allowed after the war, and they talked me into coming and staying with them to attend the University of Utah.

I just gave myself one year to get a master’s degree and go back. And I left Salt Lake City in a 1941 Chevrolet that I bought for $200 and I was planning to drive first to Los Angeles and then to New York and taking a boat back to Israel. I met here (L.A.) some friends and they talked me into staying in the United States at least one year to get some American know-how –– and that was the mistake, I got stuck here.

I got a job for American Electronics and within one year I became the chief engineer. I was planning to go back when my visa expired. So the owner of the company went to the immigration office and they granted me a permanent visa. This was very important for them to offer and so I couldn’t refuse their offer and I stayed.

Finally, after working for them, I got an offer from a company called Paradigm, which became a big company; it had just started and I was the chief engineer. I decided to start working for myself and I retired just recently.

Chava: I came here in 1962. My intention was for two years because I had an aunt here (Los Angeles) that wanted me very much to be with her. Then I met him (Zev) and got married and one thing led to another. We always wanted to go back. Whenever his mother said when are you coming back he always said “soon, soon.” Nobody dared to emigrate at that time. It was something so negative.

Zev: Israel is very important to us. When I came to Los Angeles, I found there were so many students here from Israel and they’re not organized. So in my apartment, we founded the first Israeli student organization in Los Angeles.

Chava: I think we’re always feeling first that we are Israelis. But America is also very important for us. I want to have a strong America and when it comes to election time, I vote for somebody that would be good for Israel, because I know America will last forever. Every day, every hour we listen to the news … what goes on here, there.

What about the second generation? For example, do your children have a strong Israeli connection and identity?

Zev: Our children are ready to immigrate to Israel. We used to go every year to Israel with the children.

Chava: They have wonderful memories of Israel, but they are Americans. They have the touch of Israel, but they are more Americans than Israelis. They are at any moment ready to go, but they are Americans. The next generation, for sure will be Americans.

What would you like to pass on to your grandchildren?

Chava: The love that we have for Israel, but I doubt that they will have it unless they… you see our children grew up going every year to see the grandparents, and slowly this generation is gone. And they will have the love for Israel because it’s family, you know… but, their children for sure not.

Do you think they'll have a Jewish identity?

Chava: I hope very much, I think this yes, because they both went to Hebrew school and they went to Hebrew High, they went to Jewish camp. Friday night when they grew up, we always allowed them to invite whoever they wanted Friday night and sometimes we had a big table, I cannot believe I served it, we had sixteen or ten children so they , their friends who got the Jewish education here in the house. Jewish identity yes, and they will pass it to their children. Absolutely… And they love Israelis, they have Israeli friends also, but they are not Israelis.

What do you each see as your ‘place’ here in America?

Zev: We are American citizens.

Chava: Yes, we carry a love for America. Even American politics –– we are very, very involved… we read the paper everyday, we hear the news, we’re very involved, even in local election. Everything, in the city… I think also the Israelis have good influence for the Jewish community. And we influence the Jewish people.

Zev: There are many who are very involved [with Israel] … and there are others that don’t want to know, so they don’t know.

Chava: Some are so liberal, they are blind… it’s as if they come from outer space.

The Shalom unit is the Israeli lodge… tell me a little bit about this, both Hadassah and B’nai Brith have Israeli lodges or sub-units? When did these start and why?

Zev: I found out that we could do much more as Israelis, having an Israeli lodge. And you can see that we do things. We contribute to AIPAC (American Israel Public Affairs Committee) and to all kinds of Israeli and Jewish organizations.

Chava: the Shalom influence Israeli groups and also other Jewish groups. To bring more Israelis. He was the president in eighty-one. I was the first woman president in ninety-one. Also I was two years president of the chapter of Hadassah.

When was it established?

Chava: Ten or eleven twelve years ago.

Why? Was there a feeling that Hadassah didn’t attract enough Israelis?

Chava: They wanted to… Israelis are different than the other people, they’re stubborn, not so flexible, they have their own minds, you know. We can be one or two in a group, but first of all you want to find your friends, and if you are with your friends you feel at home.

Do both of these groups work well within the larger groups?

Zev: No

Chava: We do what we want…

Zev: We have problems, the Israelis have their ways… the organization at one point wanted to kick us out absolutely. [laughs] And I went and made peace…

Chava: We stick together, we like to talk our own language.

Zev: We mix better than most of the Israelis. We have more non-Israeli friends than the average.

Chava: You know we’re many years here, there’s part American in us. We are more years here than in Israel. But still we feel we are Israelis.

I hope that every Jewish person has two rooms in the heart – one Israel and one American, because somehow, it is not our country, we are guests here.

You’ve been involved in AIPAC as well?

Zev: We traveled to the convention in Washington, we attended in the past.
AIPAC, stands for American Israel Public Affairs Committee and they provide information to US government people, Senate also, what they should know about Israel.

Chava: To know the truth on why they should support Israel. And I think this is number one.

Zev: And we meet personally with senators, also some congressman. Talk to them about what they intend to do for Israel and why, and to do the right thing.

Is the younger generation getting involved in these organizations?

Zev: There needs to be a continuation of the organization B’nai Brith, we have already twenty-five past presidents and its hard to find somebody to take over now. We ran out of people that are capable and want to do it.

Chava: The younger generation is not involved.

Zev: In the last several years, I didn’t want it to fold, I’m normally chairman of the nominating committee (of the Shalom unit.)

What do you think is going to happen especially with the Israeli sub-organizations like the Shalom unit and the one in Hadassah – will it continue?

Chava: But slowly the older get tired. And we don’t get new blood and this is in all organizations. So, I don’t know what it will be in ten years. I don’t talk about the long future…

So B’nai Brith is very major organization its had a lot of effect on American government and public figures, and you just mentioned that you had met with governor, which governor was this?

Zev: Pete Wilson. And he was pro-Israel, voting for Israel.

Would you tell me a little bit about AIPAC–– how is it different from B’nai Brith and what is the role that you play in it?

Zev: Well, AIPAC doesn’t fight anti-semitism and doesn’t have regular meetings …

Chava: AIPAC is to influence or to show the real picture of Israeli life and why Americans should support because it stems from the same principals. It talks about democracy, it's the only one in the Middle East. To open the eyes of the American people…yeah.

How can the connection to Israel be sustained by the Israeli community in America?

Zev: She is pessimistic, I am optimistic that there will be new organizations, some will fade away and new ones will come.

Since the time that you came to the U.S. has the ethnic composition of the Israeli community here changed?–– the professional and working composition, the religious composition and so forth…?

Zev: Well when I first came here before she arrived here, there were some students.

Chava: None of them went back. None of them went back to Israel. Later came a group that simply wanted some little apartment with some money and wanted to start new life.

Do you have any other thoughts you would like to share, particularly about the organizations or your feelings about the next generation of Israeli-Americans?

Chava: I’m thinking where will they come from? They’re too busy with their own life and they can get together without…

Zev: You cannot deny that there will be some percentage of Jews for Israel and Zionists that will continue to contribute their money and their time.

Chava: The world changes, it is a different education that they get. We got so much love to the country, for the flower, for the mountains, for the songs --they are different, Hear the songs and hear the cultural difference.

Zev: Our thought is always "Israel."

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