A Uniter at the Helm
| January 4, 2017Eric Goldstein’s selection as head of the largest Jewish philanthropy in the world surprised some, but early returns indicate he’s the man for the job
Eric Goldstein started his life as a Wall Street lawyer, but found himself more moved by helping people than personal gain. His surprise selection as the head of the largest Jewish philanthropy in the world surprised a few, but early returns indicate he’s the man for the job. For the chareidi community, he might just be the leader who ushers Flatbush and Boro Park through Federation’s doors
I
n a Manhattan brownstone just east of Riverside Park, there is a charming little shtiebel where my father is rav, the kind of place with an old-fashioned kiddush and banter as well-worn as the tiles. When the skilled baal korei, an accountant named Pinky, is away for Shabbos, he makes it his responsibility to find a substitute. Pinky tells me about a local teenager he calls upon.
“He’s a great kid, always happy to help — and he can really lein!”
When Adin Goldstein reads from the Torah, his parents come to the shtiebel too, his mother listening proudly from behind the heavy drapes that separate the ezras nashim from the main shul. And his father?
“If you want to know who Ricky Goldstein is,” a shtiebel old-timer tells me as he sprays kichel crumbs on the thick table cloth and knocks back small cups of Chivas, “forget his fancy job and speeches. Come watch him, see his face, when his son is leining; then you’ll ‘get’ him.”
NOT JUST PERSONAL AMBITION
In the shtiebel they see a proud father, but the wider Jewish world knows Eric Goldstein as the CEO of UJA-Federation of New York. It’s a position that calls for fund-raising abilities, diplomatic finesse, genuine heart, and an ability to deal with every kind of Jew on the planet.
Our interview is scheduled for eleven o’clock am. At precisely 11:02 the door to his office opens and he welcomes me.
The first thing that strikes you about Ricky Goldstein is his boyishness, more of the cool high-school gym teacher, less prominent bureaucrat.
He wasn’t supposed to be doing any of those things.
His father is a lawyer, his mother a judge.
“The only question was what type of law. I remember how my brother had lousy handwriting as a child, and my mother asked, ‘How are they going to read your answers on the bar exam if you don’t write nicely?’ ”
The current leader of UJA-Federation of New York — the most generous and active local Jewish charity in the world, with an annual budget of over $200 million — remembers being a bit of an activist while in school, the Yeshiva of Central Queens. “But in terms of worldview, sensing the needs of the wider Jewish community beyond my little world, I have to credit Rabbi Louis Bernstein, at Young Israel of Windsor Park. Our rabbi wasn’t flashy, he preferred substance to style, but he made a very big impact on us.” Rabbi Bernstein, a three-term president of the Rabbinical Council of America, was known for reaching across Jewish lines while remaining true to Orthodox principles.
Like so many others who went on to leadership roles in the Jewish community, Goldstein recalls the events of 1967 as formative. “This tiny country captured our imagination, our hearts and minds. I became much more aware of how connected we are to each other.”
Eric followed the script, graduating yeshivah and entering Columbia College, then Cornell Law School.
The plan was that he would join his parents’ law firm, Goldstein and Goldstein, but high marks and a successful internship saw an offer come his way from the prestigious law firm of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison.
He worked on Wall Street, and as a young single living on Manhattan’s Upper West Side, he found a calling. “It’s a neighborhood filled with older people, often living on their own. I heard about a UJA-supported agency called Dorot which addresses the needs of seniors, food and company. I got involved with Dorot and had my first taste of real community involvement: We didn’t only bring the warm meals to the elderly, but we went shopping and connected with them. We created a curriculum, books to read with them and discuss. I found that I enjoyed not just the mitzvah, but the administrative end as well, helping to make it happen.”
Along with the chesed and kindness, a bond was developing between a young, single, Jewish lawyer and the historic organization.
The Federation has been around for a long time. First created in 1917 as the Federation for the Support of Jewish Philanthropic Societies of New York City, it eventually merged with the United Jewish Appeal. In 1986, the umbrella organization of UJA-Federation of New York was formed.
The connection between the young lawyer and UJA-Federation would only deepen.
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