Jews of the Week: Nathan & Jeffrey Swartz

Jeffrey Swartz

Hailing from a town near Chernobyl, Nathan Swartz was one of many Russian immigrants to the US in the early 20th century. In 1918 he started working as a shoemaker in Boston. After more than 30 years of hard work, Swartz saved enough to invest in a small shoe company (initially purchasing just half a share!) By 1955 he bought the company outright, and turned it into a family business with his sons. In 1960, the Swartz family released a new shoe made with their patented injection-molding technology that bound leather without using stitches, creating a perfectly waterproof and durable shoe. One shoe model was called Timberland, and became so incredibly popular worldwide, that the company changed its name to the Timberland Shoe Company. Timberland soon became a household name and expanded to clothing, backpacks, and other products. Today, it is a multi-billion dollar company which was run, until recently, by Jeffrey Swartz, grandson of founder Nathan Swartz. Jeffrey has become renowned for pushing corporate responsibility, green initiatives and worker’s rights. His employees receive 40 hours of pay every year to do charity work, and $3000 stipends to buy hybrid cars. Timberland has planted over one million trees worldwide, is carbon-neutral, and recycles rubber from tires. It has been listed on CNN’s “100 best companies to work for”. Meanwhile, Swartz has become a noted philanthropist and ‘social investor’. He is also a proud Orthodox Jew, waking up at 4 am each morning to study Torah. Timberland continues to be a shoe adored by construction workers and rappers alike. It has even lent its name to hit music producer Timbaland, who was nicknamed after the iconic shoe.

Words of the Week

…A shy person cannot learn, a short-tempered person cannot teach; nor does anyone who does much business grow wise.
– Hillel (Avot 2:5)

Jew of the Week: Ed Mirvish

Honest Ed

Honest Ed Mirvish

Yehuda ‘Edwin’ Mirvish (1914-2007) was born in Virginia to Jewish immigrants from Austria and Lithuania. After going bankrupt, his family moved to Toronto, where Ed’s father initially worked as a door-to-door salesman before opening a small grocery store. The family lived in a space above the store, shared with a Hebrew school. When Mirvish was 15 his father died, forcing Ed to drop out of school in order to manage the store. The business wasn’t doing well, so Mirvish went on to try other store ideas including a dry cleaner and a dress shop. Finally, in 1948 Mirvish opened the famous “Honest Ed’s”, stocked with inexpensive items purchased at bankruptcy sales. The store became an instant hit, and over the years grew to fill an entire block. Mirvish purchased more buildings around the area, but was denied permission to demolish them. So he turned them into low-cost housing for artists, and this community, now known as “Mirvish Village” became Toronto’s art hub. A patron of the arts, Mirvish was also a noted philanthropist, donating 10,000 pounds of Turkey every year, among other things. Mirvish is famous for being a theatre tycoon. He bought the Royal Alexandra Theatre in 1962, saving it from demolition, built the Princess of Wales Theatre, and managed the Canon Theatre (now renamed the Ed Mirvish Theatre). His company, Mirvish Productions, brought many Broadway hits to Toronto, including The Lion King, Mamma Mia! and Hairspray. Beloved by the city, he held a free carnival every year on his birthday, which has been designated ‘Ed Mirvish Day’. He was awarded the Order of Canada, and Commander of the Order of the British Empire.

Words of the Week

The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing. One cannot help but be in awe when he contemplates the mysteries of eternity, of life, of the marvelous structure of reality. It is enough if one tries merely to comprehend a little of this mystery every day. Never lose a holy curiosity.
– Albert Einstein

Jew of the Week: David Copperfield

Most Successful Entertainer in History

‘Magician of the Century’ David Copperfield

David Seth Kotkin was born in New Jersey to a Ukrainian-Jewish father and Israeli mother. At age 10 David started putting on magic shows in his neighbourhood. He was so amazing that by age 12 he was already admitted into the Society of American Magicians, the youngest person ever to do so. At 16, he taught magic at New York University. At 18, he was cast in the musical The Magic Man and there adopted his stage name ‘David Copperfield’ – taken from the Charles Dickens novel. At 21 he starred in his first TV special for ABC. Copperfield went on to make 19 more incredible TV specials, as well as several movies and Broadway performances, winning a total of 21 Emmy Awards during that time (with 38 nominations), and setting 11 Guinness World Records. He has sold over 40 million tickets to his shows, grossing more than $3 billion – making him the most successful solo entertainer of all time. This wealth allowed him to purchase a chain of islands in the Bahamas, known as the Islands of Copperfield Bay, where people can vacation with magical thrills (and where Google founder Sergey Brin got married). He has also built the International Museum and Library of the Conjuring Arts. Though not open to the public, it contains the world’s largest collection of magical texts and artifacts. Since 1982, Copperfield has been running ‘Project Magic’, a charitable organization that helps disabled people regain dexterity through practicing fun magic techniques. The program quickly became popular and now runs in over 1100 hospitals in 30 countries around the world. Copperfield has been knighted by the French government, and the Library of Congress has titled him a ‘Living Legend’. His shows continue to amaze people worldwide.

Words of the Week

The frog said to King David: “I have a mitzvah greater than any of yours, for there is a bird that lives by the swamp and hungers, and I sacrifice my life to feed it.”
– Perek Shira