Betsy and Michael Green first traveled to Israel in 1972 as part of a Milwaukee Jewish Federation mission and, according to Michael Green, they went with “the best two busloads of mentors one could imagine.”
Some of the mentors on those buses were Esther Leah Ritz, Esther Cohen, Ruth Shapiro, Edie and Ollie Adelman, Eddie Elkon, Harry Samson, Gerry and Alice Colburn, Ruth and Bill Orenstein, Natalie and Matty Katz and Rosalie and Gerry Kahn, the Greens said.
And those travel companions influenced them because “they were really into their Judaism, the federation and the State of Israel, and they were just the way we wanted to be,” said Betsy Green in a telephone interview with The Chronicle.
As a tribute to their success in that goal, Betsy and Michael Green will be honored with the Builders of Israel Award by the State of Israel Bonds at its annual tribute dinner and 55th anniversary celebration, on Wednesday, June 14 at The Pfister Hotel.
Betsy Green has served as president of the Milwaukee Jewish Federation, as well as general chair of its annual campaign, chair of the Jewish Community Foundation, president and campaign chair of the federation’s Women’s Division and currently, chair of its Financial Resource Development Committee. She has been the recipient of the federation’s Young Leadership Award and the Esther Cohen Women’s Community Service Award.
She was also a member of the National United Jewish Appeal Women’s Division Board, the board of directors of the Council of Jewish Federations and a board member of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee.
In the past, she has served as president of Jewish Family Services and on a variety of community agency boards. She currently serves on the campaign cabinet of Israel Bonds and was co-chair of the statewide Israel Bonds High Holy Day Campaign.
Michael Green has also served the Milwaukee Jewish Federation as general campaign chair and received its Ben Nickoll Young Leadership Award in 1974.
For several years, he was the volunteer publisher of The Wisconsin Jewish Chronicle and now serves on the Chronicle’s Advisory Committee.
He has served as Midwest regional chair of the UJA and national vice chairman and as a member of the UJA’s National Executive Committee.
From 1990-1994, he was chair of the Midwest region for Operation Exodus, which raised more than $920 million to bring Soviet Jews to Israel.
He currently chairs the Web Site Committee of the Milwaukee Jewish Historical Society, a federation program. The site recently received an award from Governor Jim Doyle for outstanding historical content.
He has served the Israel Bonds organization as a member of the campaign cabinet, reaching out to Milwaukee’s corporate leadership.
In addition, both Betsy and Michael Green are entrepreneurs. She is president of Enterprise Magazines, Inc., a publisher of business magazines and handbooks. He is currently a commercial real estate broker. And both are members of the Israel Bonds President’s Club, which recognizes top-level investors.
Israel Bonds general chairman Moshe Katz said, “It’s always a pleasure to honor pillars in our community and this year is absolutely no exception. Betsy and Michael’s dedication to Israel, both the people and the state, is a joy to behold.”
Bonnie Malofsky Jacobson, State of Israel Bonds executive director, agreed. “Betsy and Michael are a remarkable couple. They were chosen to be this year’s Israel Bonds honorees because, like the title of the award they will receive, they are builders of Israel.
“We look to them for guidance and inspiration and admire them for the quality of their actions and the integrity of their intent. Betsy and Michael pursue humanitarian goals with enthusiasm and knowledge of the tasks at hand. Their devotion to Israel and to the Jewish people is unyielding and motivates all of us to become more active on Israel’s behalf,” she said.
The Development Corporation for Israel/State of Israel Bonds began in 1951 to implement Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion’s decision to float a bond issue to bolster the fledgling economy of Israel. That year, sales totaled 52.6 million dollars.
Since then, the sale of Israel bonds has become a global enterprise raising more than 25 billion dollars. Funds raised are used by the government of Israel to help support projects in key economic sectors such as industry, energy, transportation, water resources, and immigrant absorption, among others.
Bret Stephens, a member of The Wall Street Journal editorial board and regular panelist on The Journal Editorial Report, a weekly political talk show carried nationally on PBS, will be the guest speaker.
Stephens previously served as editor-in-chief of The Jerusalem Post, a position he assumed at age 28. Last year he was named to the Forum of Young Global Leaders, an affiliate of the World Economic Forum where he is a media fellow.
Couvert is $90. There will be a reception at 5 p.m. and dinner at 6 p.m. Dietary laws observed. For more information or reservations, due by June 1, call 414-351-1777 or 1-800-253-2779.
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