ALLAN LEVY RAISING THE BAR FOR VOLUNTEERS

SARINA ROFFÉ

ALLAN LEVY IMPRESSES OTHERS WITH HIS CHARM, OBJECTIVITY, ORGANIZATIONAL SKILLS, AND HIS UNIQUE TALENT FOR UNITING PEOPLE. OVER THE YEARS, HE ORGANIZED PROJECTS, SERVED ON BOARDS, AND ADVISED AND MENTORED FELLOW BUSINESS OWNERS. ALWAYS THE SOFT-SPOKEN VOICE OF REASON, ALLAN HAS VOLUNTEERED HIS SKILLS AT EXCEED NETWORK, YESHIVAH OF FLATBUSH, PROJECT EDUCATION AND UNITED JEWISH APPEAL. HIS COMMITMENT TO HESED (ACTS OF LOVING KINDNESS) AND THE EXAMPLE HE SETS IS SO INSPIRING, IT RAISES THE BAR ON VOLUNTEERISM AND MOTIVATES OTHERS TO GET INVOLVED AND DO MORE.

Allan is even tempered, understated and avoids bringing attention to himself. He doesn’t need or want attention for helping others. He is the type of person you confide in, you trust, and look to for unbiased advice and wisdom. When he speaks, the room seems to stop, as those around him lean in to listen to his sage advice.

Allan believes that building trust is a critical element to success in work and volunteer relationships. “In nonprofit work, if you prove yourself competent and do the work, you can get further faster than in the business world where you need to prove your success. In life, things get done much easier and faster amongst people who trust each other.

“If you sit down at a nonprofit meeting and establish a sense of trust, there is a high likelihood you will find a benefit that is ultimately reflected in other parts of your life, such as your family or your business. A problem will be solved, or you may get a new client or business relationship—all because you established yourself as a person of trust.”

Allan’s drive to do hesed came because of a confluence of factors—his parents Sandy and Joseph Levy; experiences as a young adult, speeches he heard in synagogue, his wife Michele, and his work experience. For Allan and Michele, volunteering is simply part of their family’s lifestyle, and that they hope others will emulate.

As a child, Allan saw his mother, Sandy Levy, spend her time volunteering and found her example to be very inspirational. There were few community organizations she was not involved in. The organizations she was involved in included ORT, United Jewish Appeal, her synagogue and the PTA where her three sons attended yeshivah. She did all this while working full time in the family retail business in New Haven, Connecticut.

Allan’s even nature comes from working closely with his father Joseph Levy. “He didn’t just tell me what to do, he taught me to think,” said Allan. “He helped me work through the logic and come to my own conclusions. It enabled me to grow. I was able to go into organizations and help people by teaching them the same skill, giving them the tools to accomplish their goals.”

The Levys moved to Brooklyn in 1980, just after Allan finished high school. He joined CCY, the community youth group at that time, they produced plays, organized parties and social events. In a short time, he became part of the organization’s committees.

He attended Brooklyn College and worked in wholesale. “I was fortunate to be at a company that allowed me to thrive at a young age.” Because Allan was trusted, he was given responsibility, became a manager and thrived as a team player. At just 25 he was promoted to senior management and helped launch the brand internationally.

Speeches at his synagogue also influenced him. Many synagogues have financial appeals on the holidays. Allan listened to those speeches, often given by more established community members, but sometimes the speeches were given by his peers. He heard their messages and was inspired by how someone his age could be so effective in helping others. This was a major inspiration for him. “I was so impressed. My friends were giving their time to critical organizations. It stuck in my mind,” he said.

According to Allan “In 2000, a friend of mine, who knew I wanted to give back, suggested that I help the Sephardic Angel Fund.” This was a new organization started by Ikey Sutton. The Angel Fund’s mission was to help small community businesses with funding and advice.

“Allan is very humble,” said Ikey Sutton. “He doesn’t look for accolades and he genuinely wants to help. He is sensitive to people’s needs, an excellent listener and has a very charming way of speaking to people. He is also very talented. His business is in the technology space and he has a world of knowledge most people don’t have, which is very useful.”

Married to Michele, Allan saw her commitment to volunteering from the time their sons were in preschool. Michele, who was on the Yeshivah of Flatbush’s Ladies Auxiliary, became its president and then became involved in Sephardic Bikur Holim (SBH). She was so driven that she went back to school and earned an MS in nonprofit management from Columbia University. At SBH, Michele became executive vice president.

Inspired by Michele, Allan became more involved, helping many small business owners get on their feet. He became president in 2006. At Exceed Network many companies needed mentoring to help their businesses grow. The organization focused on guiding business owners to help them succeed. Allan grew within the organization into a position of vetting new client cases. Each case was assigned to a three-person volunteer team by Allan. Sometimes the business ideas were not yet developed enough to put together a team of businessmen who were volunteering their time and had busy schedules,” he said. “I created a process to help them put together a business plan. This way, when they met with the team, the volunteers were able to really help them grow their business. This insured we maximized the volunteers’ time and kept them coming back to help more people.” The organization helped over 200 businesses each year.

Irwin Dayan, past Executive Director of Exceed Network worked with Allan for 16 years. “Allan helped launch and guide many companies. He knows how to follow trends and grow a company. He has an infinite network that he leveraged on behalf of our clients. Allan always added a new twist and value to what we were doing.”

“Allan was not just a board member; he was and still is a natural leader,” said Alan Jemal. “He comes to every meeting and is the first to volunteer to chair projects. He brings the projects to another level because he thinks outside the box. And he is very generous. At Exceed he worked one-on-one with many people, always advising them. He gave office space to a person starting a business. He is an incredible guy.”

An anecdote shared by Allan involved an entrepreneur who had started a business out of his mother’s garage, grew it to over $30 million in revenue and sold it. In another case, Exceed matched a heating repair company and an air conditioning repair company, and they merged. Now the combined companies have a huge HVAC company serving major office and apartment buildings with a fleet of trucks and a large team of employees. “The two companies took our collective advice and grew,” he said. “Working with Exceed Network was hands-on. We saw businesses flourish and watched them thrive,” said Allan.

In 2004, he was recruited to revamp the internal communication system at Yeshivah of Flatbush, where his children attended. Allan’s business is digital marketing, giving him the background needed to bring the school’s processes from analog to digital. Report cards, fundraising and all communication between parents and teachers were moved online.

Over the next 15 years, Allan volunteered on the Yeshivah of Flatbush board, the Board of Education, and was executive vice president. There were many projects he worked on. He led a team to negotiate salaries and build relationships. They rolled out iPads in the classroom, becoming one of the early high schools in the nation to leverage technology for the benefit of the students. They worked directly with Apple and Google.

According to Alan Shamah, fellow board member and treasurer at Yeshivah of Flatbush, “Allan was always willing to dive into projects and committees. He was always effective. If he took on a job, it got done quickly. Most importantly, he was dependable, reliable and trustworthy. Technology was his wheelhouse and it was something most of the board didn’t know enough about. Allan’s knowledge about technology and the opportunities available, his professionalism, and his experience were invaluable in making the yeshivah a leader in using technology.”

Allan currently serves on the Sephardic Leadership Committee at United Jewish Appeal. “There was initially an overlap with Exceed Network, this allowed us to get well known entrepreneurial figures to give talks that packed a room. Working with more than one organization allowed us to cross pollinate contacts and leverage them to the advantage of the community. “

Albert Laboz, co-chair of the Sephardic Leadership Committee with Ray Chalme, said “Allan is an unsung hero; He leads the fundraising effort for our annual synagogue appeal during the High Holidays. And he is amazing at it. He is thoughtful, smart and has great ideas and energy.”

Allan’s advice to young people? “Get involved at a young age and you will have a seat at the table with people who are much more experienced than you, yet share a common goal. As long as you present your findings in a respectful way and have data to support your position, you will be heard. You may have more expertise in a specific area than they do and they will respect that. You will quickly become part of the decision-making process and really make a difference in the life of others.”

He concluded, “I found volunteering to be so fulfilling. The return is so much greater than investment because the work you do is meaningful and can really improve someone’s life.”

A genealogist and historian, Sarina Roffé is the author of Branching Out from Sepharad (Sephardic Heritage Project, 2017), Sarina holds a BA in Journalism, and MA in Jewish Studies and an MBA.