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Ramah Darom
6400 Powers Ferry Road, Suite 215
Atlanta, GA 30339
August 22, 2018
To the friends and supporters of Ramah Darom,
I'm thrilled to announce that after a year-long and arduous search, we have found a remarkable successor to Fred Levick who, as you know, is retiring this fall after 18 years with Ramah Darom.
Please welcome Walter (Wally) Levitt, who will become Ramah Darom's new Chief Executive Officer later this year.
Wally has had a distinguished career as a senior executive in the private sector in both the US and Canada. Most recently he was Chief Marketing Officer for Comedy Central, based in New York City. Prior to that he held executive roles in Canadian companies including Canwest and Alliance Atlantis, in both Toronto and Montreal.
However, Wally's real passion is Ramah. All three of his kids have attended Ramah camps and Israel programs, and he and his wife Beth Gamulka, who we will also be welcoming to our community, have been active with several Ramah programs. He is committed to our mission and, we believe, has an ideal background to lead and transition Ramah Darom into the next stage of its development. For more details, please read the message from Wally below.
We are excited to have Wally join us as CEO later this year, when he moves to Atlanta from Toronto. Please join me in welcoming him to the Ramah Darom family. What a way to start the New Year. I could not think of a better gift.
L'Shana Tova to all,
President, Board of Directors
Ramah Darom
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A MESSAGE FROM OUR NEW CEO
I'm writing from Toronto (where, believe it or not, it's 91 degrees today) to share my excitement for the journey ahead at Ramah Darom.
Like many of you, I have a deep affection for Ramah and the transformative Jewish experiences it provides for children, teenagers, families and adults. I've seen the impact first hand: for the last fifteen years Ramah has been the central Jewish organization for my family. Our three kids (Jonah, 20; Ben, 18; and Talia, 16) have spent their summers at various Ramah camps (Canada, Rockies and Northern California) and have each spent a high school semester in Israel with Tichon Ramah Yerushalayim. My wife Beth has been camp doctor at Ramah Canada (I've spent many weeks at camp in the important role of "doctor's husband"!) and she has participated in the Ramah bike ride three times. I was part of the incredible Ramah Poland trip last summer, and we've spent Passovers as a family at Ramah California - although our original intent was to come to Ramah Darom, but it was sold out.
Needless to say, when the opportunity arose to join Ramah Darom I jumped at it. After a long career in the private sector (yes, I've had the chance to work with Jon Stewart, Trevor Noah, Amy Schumer and others - happy to share those stories in person), I can't imagine anything more fulfilling than focusing my energy around growing an organization that's so close to my heart. Ramah Darom is unique in the Ramah family - I saw it with my own eyes attending Camp Yofi just a couple of weeks ago - and I recognize that there's so much to learn. In my first few months, I look forward to visiting our many communities and meeting campers, staff, parents, donors and supporters to better understand all the ways Ramah Darom has been part of your lives, and to hear your perspectives about where we should be focusing in the years ahead.
Ramah Darom is indebted to the legendary Fred Levick. He has left an indelible mark on the organization and it's genuinely imposs
ible to fill his shoes. I've already warned Fred that he will need to stay by his phone at all times as I may have a question or two (or a hundred). I've also had the chance to get to know Geoff, Eliana, Sharon, Anthony, Todd and others on the Ramah Darom team and have been so impressed by their passion, talent and commitment.
I'm grateful to Howard and the Board for giving me this amazing opportunity. I can't wait to make the move to Atlanta later this year; thanks in advance for welcoming this Canadian to the south. And I promise to do my best to leave all my "ehs" and "aboots" north of the border.
Wishing you and your family a happy and healthy new year. L'Shana Tova, and I look forward to meeting you all very soon.
Wally
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Wally and his family in Toronto with their dog Latte (who doesn't like to sit still)
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