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*To provide some select services, HedgeComm works with strategic partners who specialize in other,
but related areas, including graphic design, website design and media buying.

Contact us to make your next event a success.

MCI Sport, which specializes in promoting friendly matches and soccer training camps for professional clubs and national teams since 1996, has recently brought SAI Digital on board to assist with its Israel-Honduras Citi Field Soccer Match. This Match will take place on Sunday, June 2 and for R.S.V.P., please click here.

On behalf of MCI Sport, SAI Digital will implement a series of full social media, online marketing and community outreaching programs prior to and during the course of the Match.

The Fourth Simon NYC Conference (on May 9), for which SAI Digital is in charge of all social media activities, will be held at Manhattan’s Roosevelt Hotel this year and the speakers include:

• Steve Forbes
  Chairman and Editor-in-Chief,
  Forbes Media

• Lou Gerstner
  Former Chairman and CEO,
  IBM

• Charles I. Plosser
  President and CEO,
  Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia

• Paul Singer ’66
  Founder, Chief Executive Officer,
  and Co-Chief Investment Officer
  Elliott Management Corporation

• Joan Solotar 
  Senior Managing Director, Head of
  the External Relations & Strategy Group, The Blackstone Group

A highlight of the conference will be the “Executive of the Year“ Award to be presented to Lou Gerstner by Edmund A. Hajim ’58, chairman of the University of Rochester Board of Trustees and president of Diker Management LLC; and Joel Seligman, president of the University of Rochester.

Prior to the conference, Joan Solotar, Senior Managing Director of Blackstone & a speaker for this year’s conference was interviewed by CNBC and Fox Business News on the latest developments on investments and the market.

(Photo credit: CNBC)

(Photo credit: Fox Business)

The Fourth Simon NYC Conference (on May 9), for which SAI Digital is in charge of all social media activities, will be held at Manhattan’s Roosevelt Hotel this year and the speakers include:

• Steve Forbes
  Chairman and Editor-in-Chief,
  Forbes Media

• Lou Gerstner
  Former Chairman and CEO,
  IBM

• Charles I. Plosser
  President and CEO,
  Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia

• Paul Singer ’66
  Founder, Chief Executive Officer,
  and Co-Chief Investment Officer
  Elliott Management Corporation

• Joan Solotar 
  Senior Managing Director, Head of
  the External Relations & Strategy Group, The Blackstone Group

A highlight of the conference will be the “Executive of the Year“ Award to be presented to Lou Gerstner by Edmund A. Hajim ’58, chairman of the University of Rochester Board of Trustees and president of Diker Management LLC; and Joel Seligman, president of the University of Rochester.

Prior to the conference, Joan Solotar, Senior Managing Director of Blackstone & a speaker for this year’s conference was interviewed by CNBC and Fox Business News on the latest developments on investments and the market.

(Photo credit: CNBC)

(Photo credit: Fox Business)

The meal was prepared by several of the nation’s most prominent chefs–

Yuhi Fujinaga  (http://www.rockefellercenter.com/shop-and-eat/the-sea-grill/)

Kerry Heffernan (http://www.kerryheffernan.com/)

Chris Jaeckle (http://newyork.grubstreet.com/2012/09/all-onda-chris-cannon-chris-jaeckle.html)

Dale Talde (http://www.anniechun.com/about/chef-talde)

Jacques Torres (https://www.mrchocolate.com/)

(A group picture of some of the chefs)

At “A Taste for Life” Dinner, the Brain Tumor Foundation honored–Chef Floyd Cardoz (North End Grill),  Dr. John G. Golfinos (Chairman of Neurosurgery, NYU), Michael Schreiber, Chairman of BTF and his wife Nancy, for their dedication and ongoing commitment to the Foundation.

Anthony Scaramucci, founder and co-managing partner of SkyBridge Capital & Jeffrey Chodorow, owner of China Grill Management, co-chaired the dinner. Kristine Johnson, CBS anchor, was Master of Ceremonies for the evening.

(Anthony Scaramucci, founder and co-managing partner of SkyBridge Capital, Dinner Chairman)

(Jeffrey Chodorow, owner of China Grill Management, Dinner Co-Chairman)

(Kristine Johnson, CBS anchor, Master of Ceremonies)

Click here to view a photo gallery of the evening;

Here is a piece by Mallory Dash,  a passionate foodie as well as a NYC-based food blogger, on her experience of the dinner

Follow International March of the Living on:

The International March of the Living, an annual Holocaust program, was held on Monday, April 8, 2013, at the site of the Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp. Starting at the entrance of Auschwitz under the iconic sign, ARBEIT MACHT FREI, 10,000+ high school students from around the world along with Holocaust survivors, members of the Israel Defense Forces and people of other faiths, walked the three kilometers to Birkenau in a silent tribute to all victims of the Holocaust. The March serves as a hopeful counterpoint to the experience of hundreds of thousands of Jews forced by the Nazis to cross vast expanses of European terrain under the harshest of conditions—the infamous “death marches”.

For the first time in its 25-year history, the ceremony at Auschwitz was broadcast LIVE, with Greg Masel, Director General, Keren HaYesod/UIA as Master of Ceremonies. The inspiring program included messages fromIsrael’s President, Shimon Peres and Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. The gathering was addressed byRabbi Israel Meir Lau, Chief Rabbi of Tel-Aviv-Yaffo, former Chief Rabbi of Israel, current Chairman of the Yad Vashem Council and a child survivor; Jewish communal leader and philanthropist, Frank Lowy of Australia, a Holocaust survivor whose father perished in Auschwitz-Birkenau and whose family has dedicated a memorial there;Ambassador Ronald S. Lauder, President of the World Jewish Congress; Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff, Benny Gantz, son of a Holocaust survivor. This year marked the first time that an IDF Chief of Staff has led theMarch.

(Featured speakers leading International March of the Living)

Rabbi Lau spoke about the physical and spiritual powers inherent in the fact that the Jewish People now have their own land. Mr. Lowy spoke emotionally about only recently finding out that his father died in 1944 by “fighting for his faith” when he refused to relinquish his tailt and tefilin (prayer items) upon arriving at Auschwitz resulting in his being beaten to death. He charged the young people present to recognize that “honoring your parents while they are alive is the most important thing because mothers and fathers always matter.” Ambassador Lauder, who lit the candle in memory of the 1.5 million children who perished in the Holocaust, called upon the 10,000 assembled youth to ever be vigilant against the threat of anti-Semitism.

(Memorial dedicated by Frank Lowy and his family in tribute to Hugo Lowy who perished at Auschwitz)

Solemn and uplifting musical interludes were performed throughout, emphasizing the themes of prayer, resistance, remembrance and hope, and in honor of the 70^th Anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. A song written by March of the Living alumni entitled, “Requiem of the Warsaw Ghetto,” was featured and renowned Cantor Dudu Fisher andJewish soul-singer Neshama Carlebach performed.

At the close of the program, six torches were lit, each reflecting a theme that paid tribute to the 6,000,000 lives lost:

• to those who risked their lives saving Jews during the Holocaust
• to the survivors who picked up the pieces of their shattered world and began life anew
• to the rabbis, scholars, teachers and students who perished
• to the 1,500,000 innocent Jewish children who were murdered by the Nazis
• to the second generation who never had the privilege of knowing or loving their grandparents
• to the celebration of the establishment of the State of Israel

Participating in the Torch Lighting Memorial Ceremony were Tami Hausner-Raveh, Chair of Israel’s Channel 2 News Broadcast and daughter of Gideon Hausner,  Chief Prosecutor at the Eichmann Trial; Michael-Miki Gilad, Chief Inspector, 06 Unit of the Police and Chief Assistant at the Eichmann Trial (subject of the famous movie “The 81^st Blow”);Lt. General Benny Ganz, IDF Chief of Staff and son of a Holocaust survivor; Mark Siwiec, Chairman of  European Friends of Israel (EFI); Vladimir Sloutsker, President of the Israeli Jewish Congress (IJC), and Ambassador Ronald S. Lauder, President of the World Jewish Congress (WJC), who lit a torch specifically memorializing the 1,100,000 plus victims, mainly Jews, who entered Auschwitz on foot but only left as ashes through chimney stacks.

(Ambassador Ronald Lauder on March of the Living alongside Frank Lowy accompanied by his granddaughter)

Participants in this year’s International March of the Living visited such places as the Gensha Cemetery, Treblinka, Warsaw’s Nozak Synagogue, the newly opened Museum of the History of Polish Jews where they were the first visitors, Krakow’s Ghetto, Majdanek, and Schindler’s Factory, and stopped in Płońsk, Poland, for a special dedication ceremony of the David Ben Gurion Square, in honor of the city’s most famous citizen. The Płońsk project was inspired by Aharon Tamir, March Deputy World Chairman & General Director, Poland and Israel Projects.

The March of the Living touches the lives of Jewish and non-Jewish youth from around the world, taking them on a life-changing journey. During the trip, students are exposed to the richness of Jewish life in pre-war Europe, taught critically important lessons of the Holocaust and are given the opportunity to form a profound connection to the Land and the People of Israel.

(March of the Living student participants at Auschwitz)

The leadership of the International March of the Living include: Dr. Shmuel Rosenman, Chairman and CEO; Shlomo Grofman, Board Vice Chairman; Phyllis Greenberg Heideman, Chair of the International Advisory Board; Dr. David Machlis, Vice Chairman; Eli Rubenstein, Director of Education.

The International March of the Living is an annual program bringing 10,000 +  high school students of many different faiths and backgrounds from around the world for a week of intensive education and touring in Poland in an effort to study the history of the Holocaust and examine the roots of prejudice, intolerance and hate. Instead of learning just from books, the literal facts on the ground become their laboratory. To date over 180,000 students have participated in the program. Jewish students who join the March of the Living, also focus on their rich Jewish heritage with roots in Poland, then travel to Israel where participants honor Israel’s fallen soldiers on Yom Hazikaron—Israel’s Memorial Day, celebrate Israel’s Independence on Yom Ha’Atzmaut and tour the length and breadth of the country.

The International March of the Living, an annual Holocaust program, was held on Monday, April 8, 2013, at the site of the Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp. Starting at the entrance of Auschwitz under the iconic sign, ARBEIT MACHT FREI, 10,000+ high school students from around the world along with Holocaust survivors, members of the Israel Defense Forces and people of other faiths, walked the three kilometers to Birkenau in a silent tribute to all victims of the Holocaust. The March serves as a hopeful counterpoint to the experience of hundreds of thousands of Jews forced by the Nazis to cross vast expanses of European terrain under the harshest of conditions—the infamous “death marches”.

For the first time in its 25-year history, the ceremony at Auschwitz was broadcast LIVE, with Greg Masel, Director General, Keren HaYesod/UIA as Master of Ceremonies. The inspiring program included messages from Israel’s President, Shimon Peres and Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. The gathering was addressed by Rabbi Israel Meir Lau, Chief Rabbi of Tel-Aviv-Yaffo, former Chief Rabbi of Israel, current Chairman of the Yad Vashem Council and a child survivor; Jewish communal leader and philanthropist, Frank Lowy of Australia, a Holocaust survivor whose father perished in Auschwitz-Birkenau and whose family has dedicated a memorial there; Ambassador Ronald S. Lauder, President of the World Jewish Congress; Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff, Benny Gantz, son of a Holocaust survivor. This year marked the first time that an IDF Chief of Staff has led the March.

(Featured speakers leading International March of the Living)

Rabbi Lau spoke about the physical and spiritual powers inherent in the fact that the Jewish People now have their own land. Mr. Lowy spoke emotionally about only recently finding out that his father died in 1944 by “fighting for his faith” when he refused to relinquish his tailt and tefilin (prayer items) upon arriving at Auschwitz resulting in his being beaten to death. He charged the young people present to recognize that “honoring your parents while they are alive is the most important thing because mothers and fathers always matter.” Ambassador Lauder, who lit the candle in memory of the 1.5 million children who perished in the Holocaust, called upon the 10,000 assembled youth to ever be vigilant against the threat of anti-Semitism.

(Memorial dedicated by Frank Lowy and his family in tribute to Hugo Lowy who perished at Auschwitz)

Solemn and uplifting musical interludes were performed throughout, emphasizing the themes of prayer, resistance, remembrance and hope, and in honor of the 70^th Anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. A song written by March of the Living alumni entitled, “Requiem of the Warsaw Ghetto,” was featured and renowned Cantor Dudu Fisher and Jewish soul-singer Neshama Carlebach performed.

At the close of the program, six torches were lit, each reflecting a theme that paid tribute to the 6,000,000 lives lost:

• to those who risked their lives saving Jews during the Holocaust
• to the survivors who picked up the pieces of their shattered world and began life anew
• to the rabbis, scholars, teachers and students who perished
• to the 1,500,000 innocent Jewish children who were murdered by the Nazis
• to the second generation who never had the privilege of knowing or loving their grandparents
• to the celebration of the establishment of the State of Israel

Participating in the Torch Lighting Memorial Ceremony were Tami Hausner-Raveh, Chair of Israel’s Channel 2 News Broadcast and daughter of Gideon Hausner,  Chief Prosecutor at the Eichmann Trial; Michael-Miki Gilad, Chief Inspector, 06 Unit of the Police and Chief Assistant at the Eichmann Trial (subject of the famous movie “The 81^st Blow”); Lt. General Benny Ganz, IDF Chief of Staff and son of a Holocaust survivor; Mark Siwiec, Chairman of  European Friends of Israel (EFI); Vladimir Sloutsker, President of the Israeli Jewish Congress (IJC), and Ambassador Ronald S. Lauder, President of the World Jewish Congress (WJC), who lit a torch specifically memorializing the 1,100,000 plus victims, mainly Jews, who entered Auschwitz on foot but only left as ashes through chimney stacks.

 (Ambassador Ronald Lauder on March of the Living alongside Frank Lowy accompanied by his granddaughter)

Participants in this year’s International March of the Living visited such places as the Gensha Cemetery, Treblinka, Warsaw’s Nozak Synagogue, the newly opened Museum of the History of Polish Jews where they were the first visitors, Krakow’s Ghetto, Majdanek, and Schindler’s Factory, and stopped in Płońsk, Poland, for a special dedication ceremony of the David Ben Gurion Square, in honor of the city’s most famous citizen. The Płońsk project was inspired by Aharon Tamir, March Deputy World Chairman & General Director, Poland and Israel Projects.

The March of the Living touches the lives of Jewish and non-Jewish youth from around the world, taking them on a life-changing journey. During the trip, students are exposed to the richness of Jewish life in pre-war Europe, taught critically important lessons of the Holocaust and are given the opportunity to form a profound connection to the Land and the People of Israel.

 (March of the Living student participants at Auschwitz)

The leadership of the International March of the Living include: Dr. Shmuel Rosenman, Chairman and CEO; Shlomo Grofman, Board Vice Chairman; Phyllis Greenberg Heideman, Chair of the International Advisory Board; Dr. David Machlis, Vice Chairman; Eli Rubenstein, Director of Education.

The International March of the Living is an annual program bringing 10,000 +  high school students of many different faiths and backgrounds from around the world for a week of intensive education and touring in Poland in an effort to study the history of the Holocaust and examine the roots of prejudice, intolerance and hate. Instead of learning just from books, the literal facts on the ground become their laboratory. To date over 180,000 students have participated in the program. Jewish students who join the March of the Living, also focus on their rich Jewish heritage with roots in Poland, then travel to Israel where participants honor Israel’s fallen soldiers on Yom Hazikaron—Israel’s Memorial Day, celebrate Israel’s Independence on Yom Ha’Atzmaut and tour the length and breadth of the country.

Wall Street Journal’s Donor of the Day–Fanya Gottesfeld Heller

By Melanie Grayce West 

Fanya Gottesfeld Heller, who survived the holocaust in part by hiding with her family in a closet-sized space inside a chicken coop, is on a mission to make sure that the story of the Holocaust is told for generations to come.

Thursday marks the 14th annual Fanya Gottesfeld Heller Conference for Educators at New York’s Museum of Jewish Heritage. The aim of the conference is to provide tools to educators so that the history of the Holocaust can be taught through universal themes. Some 300 middle- and high-school teachers will attend this year, and nearly 4,000 have participated in the conference.

“Where I come from, it’s always believed that education has to be perpetuated and continued,” says Mrs. Heller.

Mrs. Heller, 88 years old, is a trustee of the Museum of Jewish Heritage and has supported the conferences held at the museum with some $700,000 in gifts. She participates in the conference every year by telling her personal story. This year’s theme of armed resistance was chosen to mark the 70th anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto uprising, as well as other protests.

The topic and anniversary is important to Mrs. Heller because she wants future generations to know that Jews “did not go like sheep to the slaughter. There was a resistance.”

For decades Mrs. Heller has visited schools—inner-city schools and Ivy League universities alike—to tell her story to thousands of young people between the ages of 12 and 21. She was born in 1924 in Skala, Ukraine. She is a survivor, but was never in a ghetto.

“There was killing on the spot after being humiliated, degraded, beaten. After you’ve lost everything,” she recalls. “You were just put in a pit.”

Mrs. Heller and her family hid with the help of two Christian rescuers. Her memoir, “Love in a World of Sorrow,” is often used as a teaching tool. The book was also the basis of a documentary, “Teenage Witness: The Fanya Heller Story.”

Her visits to schools are intended to “put a face to the suffering,” she says. “I was there…but I am not going to be forever.”

Mrs. Heller says she thinks day and night about her visits with students. Because she was a teenager when the war broke out, teenagers can relate to her story, she says. In the classroom, Mrs. Heller is often asked by students if she believes in God. Students ask her how she can remain so “sweet” even when she has been through so much, she says. The purpose of her visits is to bring love, she says, and almost every visit ends with her giving hugs and receiving kisses from the audience.

The original article was published online by the Wall Street Journal on: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323741004578414951969424728.html and print editions:

A version of this article appeared April 11, 2013, on page A20 in the U.S. edition of The Wall Street Journal, with the headline: History Lessons From a Survivor.

SAI Digital Is Pleased To Deliver Our February Newsletter: 

You can also sign up today through here!

The YIVO Institute for Jewish Research, a preeminent center for the study of East European Jewry and Yiddish, hires SAI to strengthen the institute’s media presence through various influential communication channels.