Amit Magazine Summer 2006.qxd

DevelopmentNews
After School Programs
SPRUNG Into Action
Joe Sprung travels to Israel three or
four times a year. On one of his trips,
his West Hampton Beach neighbor,
National Vice President Esther Goldman,
asked if he would have time to visit AMIT
schools. In response to her request, Joe
went to AMIT Frisch Beit Hayeled in
Jerusalem where he distributed 1000
teddy bears as was reported on page two
of The Jerusalem Post in 2003. “While I
was there,” said Mr. Sprung, “I saw children
who needed help, and I was happy to
provide it.” Beit Hayeled, a residential
child haven, is a place where the students
need all the warmth and love they can get
due to difficult circumstances at home. It
became quickly apparent that Joe Sprung
has a tremendous soft spot in his heart
when it comes to children.
During another trip to Israel in
December 2005, Mr. Sprung became
even more familiar with the AMIT network.
Meyer Koplow, chair of the newly
formed AMIT Business Advisory Council,
accompanied Joe on a visit to the AMIT
Religious Technological High School in
Jerusalem. “I was very impressed with
Meyer’s commitment to AMIT and his
humility in giving tzedakah,” he said.
Since his early childhood in
Brooklyn, Mr. Sprung has been passionate
about Israel. He is the son of
Holocaust survivors from Poland and
was brought up in an observant home.
During high school, he became active in
Youth for Israel and began raising
money using his love of sports to sup-
Photo credit: Joe Malcolm
ABOVE AVERAGE JOE
Distributing bears to
children of Beit Hayeled
port his cause. As he matured and
achieved success in financing start-up
businesses, Joe’s drive for philanthropy
developed as well. In 2002 he founded
Bears-4-Kids. Its purpose is to distribute
teddy bears to children facing cancer
and other life threatening illnesses
in order to put “a smile on their faces
and a friend at their side.”
It is therefore not surprising that following
his introduction to AMIT, helping
the children of Sderot was a challenge
this dynamic philanthropist was willing
to undertake. The children of Sderot
live under traumatic conditions. When
an alarm warns of a Kassam rocket, they
have only 22 seconds to run to the nearest
shelter before it hits.
Due to the trying circumstances faced
by the vulnerable children of Sderot, Joe
Sprung decided to fund an after-school
program. For several hours after the
school day ends, students will have the
opportunity to do homework or engage in
a variety of activities, such as computers
or sports. Some students will receive
their only hot meal of the day. But most
importantly, they will be given a safe
haven where they will be kept off the
streets during the critical afternoon
hours when there is no one at home to
care for them. A caring AMIT staff will
help them feel less defenseless. Seeing
children endure hardship makes Joe
Sprung feel profoundly grateful for his
own three beautiful children. They must
think their dad is a teddy bear of a guy.
There are a number of opportunities available to
fund after school programs throughout the AMIT
Network. For further information, please call
1-800-989-AMIT or 212-477-4720. You can also
donate to AMIT by visiting our award-winning
website at www.amitchildren.org.
uWxa, .he ,Whnt 31