Take Action Against Antisemitism Forum with Met Council, ADL, JewBelong, Winthrop Capital Partners and Miami Marlins

Archie Gottesman is the co-founder of JewBelong.org, a groundbreaking organization and web-based platform originally focused on rebranding Judaism to make it more warm, relevant and welcoming for all, no matter where they are on their Jewish journey! Since May of 2021, JewBelong has also been raising awareness about the evils of antisemitism through their billboard and digital campaigns. JewBelong’s bright pink billboards, with messaging like Let’s be clear: Hamas is your problem too and I need to be able to tell my children I did not stay silent have been in over 27 states, and are laser focused on getting out of the Jewish echo chamber and speaking plainly in memorable sound bites to the 98% of Americans who are not Jewish. Archie resides in New York City.

Ari Ackerman is a successful serial entrepreneur, strategic investor and proud philanthropist. His entrepreneurial history includes being the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Bunk1.com, the enormously popular technology company that allows parents to see online pictures and send emails/Bunk Notes to kids at summer camp. In March of 2017, he had a successful sale and exit of Bunk1 to Private Equity firm Aquiline Capital Partners.

Prior to Bunk1, his career has included product management with Procter & Gamble and 4 years on Capitol Hill for a member of Congress. Ari has been fortunate enough to have been featured in dozens of media outlets including ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, CNBC, the Today Show, the New York Times, Crain’s, and the Wall Street Journal.

Ari grew up in New York City and received his undergraduate degree from Duke University and an MBA with honors from Northwestern University (Kellogg). His philanthropic endeavors included serving on multiple boards such as the JCRC, Hillel, UJA, JFNA and he was recently the NYL Cabinet Co-chair for the Jewish Federations of North America. Notably, Ari has been honored by AIPAC, the JCRC was recently awarded the Beyond Duke Service and Leadership award from Duke University.

Ari has also recently launched Schmooze Talks- in which he interviews remarkable Jewish leaders about their Judaism. Importantly for Baseball and sports fans, he is also a partner and board member in the Derek Jeter led group that purchased the Miami Marlins in October of 2017.

David G. Greenfield is the Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director of Met Council. He is an accomplished legislator, popular law professor, and noted media personality with broad experience in government and not-for-profit organizations. As CEO and Executive Director, David has expanded Met Council’s mission and services to help over 305,000 New Yorkers in need through a multitude of direct services and policy advocacy.

In his eight years in the New York City Council, David authored nearly thirty pieces of legislation that were signed into law by Mayors Michael Bloomberg and Bill de Blasio. David passed historic legislation mandating affordable housing, reforming the landmarks preservation process, and providing free security guards for over 100,000 private school children.
David chaired the New York City Council’s influential Committee on Land Use from 2014 through 2017, overseeing the Department of City Planning, the Landmarks Preservation Commission, and the Department of Information Technology and Telecommunications. In that role, David was instrumental in developing and implementing a new affordable housing plan for New York and rezoning four neighborhoods, including East Midtown Manhattan. He was also a member of the City Council Speaker’s leadership team and the Council’s budget negotiation
team, which is responsible for determining the city’s more than $85 billion budget with the Mayor’s Office.
Prior to serving on the City Council, David was Executive Vice President of the Sephardic Community Federation, working closely with public officials at every level of government to improve the lives of all New Yorkers. He was also the founding Director and Counsel of TEACH NYS, advocating on behalf of parents of New York State’s 500,000 Catholic, Jewish, and independent schoolchildren. His work led to legislation providing for $600 million in tax credits to parents of all school-age children. David is a graduate of the Georgetown University Law Center in Washington, D.C. and Touro
College in New York City, where he graduated summa cum laude and was valedictorian. David has received numerous commendations and recognition for his work as a civic and non-profit leader. Most recently, he was listed in the Power 100 list of most powerful New Yorkers, Power 100 list of most influential non-profit leaders, and Power 100 list of Brooklyn’s most powerful
leaders. He was also recognized by City & State as among the top ten most influential residents of Brooklyn. David also teaches the next generation of lawyers as Adjunct Professor of Law at Brooklyn Law School. He is a proud lifelong resident of Brooklyn, where he happily lives with his wife and children.

Mr. Ashner has served as the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Winthrop Capital Partners, L.P., a vertically integrated property management firm, since 1996. Mr. Ashner has acquired over $12 billion of real estate, including 85,000 apartment units, 50 million square feet of office, retail, and industrial assets and more than 10,000 hotel rooms.

Mr. Ashner served as Director and Chief Executive Officer of Shelbourne Properties a group of three publically traded real estate investment trusts, from 2002 until their liquidation in 2004. In addition, he was the Chairman and CEO of Newkirk Realty Trust, a NYSE-listed real estate investment trust, from its formation through its merger with Lexington Realty Trust in January 2007. Thereafter, he served as Executive Chairman of Lexington Realty Trust following its merger with Newkirk Realty Trust from 2007 through 2008. Prior to 1996, Mr. Ashner was President and Chief Executive Officer of National Property Investors.

Mr. Ashner currently serves on the Board of Trustees of the NorthWell Health System, and the Advisory Board of the Cornell University Program in Real Estate. Mr. Ashner is a trustee and co-founder of Beit Ruth a therapeutic boarding school for 60 “at risk” young women in Israel.

Mr. Ashner holds an AB from Cornell University and a JD from the University of Miami. He resides in Cove Neck, New York.

Scott Richman serves as the Director for ADL’s largest regional office covering New York and New Jersey. He oversees the work of the region, which includes incident response, anti-bias education, legislative initiatives, educational programs, fundraising and leadership development – all designed to fight antisemitism and combat hate in all its forms. This is reflected in his weekly national podcast called “From the Frontlines.” He is an experienced advocate dedicated to developing community partnerships and initiatives that provide justice, equality and fair treatment for all. Richman comes to ADL from the American Jewish Committee (AJC) where he served as Regional Director for Westchester (NY) and Fairfield (CT) Counties. In that role, he was responsible for directing the day-to-day
operations of this top regional office dedicated to advocacy on key issues impacting the American Jewish community. 

He came to AJC as an experienced Jewish professional, having served for 10 years at the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC) aiding the rebirth of Jewish life in the Former Soviet Union, and three years as the founding Director of Dor Chadash, a non-profit startup which engaged young professionals in the New York area.

Richman was a practicing attorney and investment banker before becoming a Jewish professional. He worked at a firm specializing in international law and in public finance at Merrill Lynch. He received his undergraduate degree in finance from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School, and he earned his law degree from Brooklyn Law School. Scott subsequently completed an executive certificate program at Columbia University’s Business School in nonprofit management. 

Scott is married with two grown children and lives in Westchester County.

Asher is a passionate advocate for the Jewish community, and has dedicated himself to the security and continuity of Jewish life in response to the recent surge in Antisemitism. As the founder and Executive Director of the Jewish Defense Fund (JDF), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, he channels his commitment into actionable programs designed to address and mitigate the effects of rising Antisemitic sentiments. The JDF, rooted in Asher's personal history as the grandchild of a Holocaust survivor, aims to foster a safer future for the Jewish community worldwide, embodying his aspiration for it to leave a lasting impact across generations. Asher’s great grandfather was a spiritual and ethical leader of Eastern European Jewry and of what is now one of the largest Jewish educational institutions in the world. Asher carries this inspiration forward.

In addition to his philanthropic endeavors, Asher’s career in the financial sector spans over 25 years on Wall Street as an independent trader and fund manager. As co-founder and CEO of Tress Capital, among the first venture capital / private equity firms focused on the cannabis sector, Asher made significant contributions to the normalization and institutionalization of this sector. Under his leadership, Tress Capital has made strategic full-cycle investments in groundbreaking companies, marking notable successes in the industry. Asher carries a unique blend of financial acumen and a deep-seated commitment to his community that positions him as a distinguished leader both in business and charitable activities.

Brian Cohen is a partner and co-founder of Lachtman Cohen and Belowich P.C., a full-service business and real estate law firm with offices in White Plains, New York City, and Greenwich. Brian was recently named to The Best Lawyers in America for Commercial Litigation. He was also named a “Super Lawyer” in the 2013-2023 New York Metro editions of Super Lawyers Magazine. In 2012, Brian was selected by the Connecticut Law Tribune as one of its “New Leaders in the Law” and by the Fairfield County Business Journal as one of Fairfield County’s “40 Under 40.”

Brian has been interviewed about legal issues by the national, legal, and local press, including Fox 5 News, ABC News, New York Post, The New York Times, New York Law Journal, and Connecticut Law Tribune.

Brian is a Co-Chair of the New York State Bar Association’s Task Force on Combating Antisemitism and Anti-Asian Hate and a Member of NYSBA’s House of Delegates. He is also a Vice President, and a member of the Executive Committee, of the Westchester County Bar Association.

In addition, Brian is a Member of the Board of UJA-Federation of NY’s Westchester Business and Professional Division and a Member of the Board of Trustees (and a former Vice President) of Temple Sholom in Greenwich, CT. In 2017, Brian was an honoree at Temple Sholom’s Annual Celebration, where he received the Keter Shem Tov Award. In 2012, he was a recipient of the Westchester Jewish Council’s Julian Y. Bernstein Distinguished Service Award. Brian is also the author of an award-winning novel, “The Life O’Reilly.”

Brian received his Bachelor of Accountancy from The George Washington University and his Juris Doctor from St. John’s University School of Law, where he was a member of the St. John’s Law Review.

Brian and his wife Dayna live in Westchester County and have two daughters, both of whom are graduates of The Leffell School (formerly Solomon Schechter School of Westchester).
In his spare time, Brian enjoys spending time with his family, sports, music, exercising and traveling.

Gavriel is the Managing Partner at Arkhouse. Arkhouse focuses on M&A strategies to unlock value dislocations created by the mispricing of assets across public and private markets. Arkhouse’s team of professionals consists of real estate and public equity specialists who have closed $25+ billion of real estate transactions and have an 18-year shareholder activism track record.Mr. Kahane is responsible for strategic direction and overseeing the firm’s operations. Prior to Arkhouse, Mr. Kahane worked as the Director of Operations and Finance for the Sapir Organization. During his tenure, Mr. Kahane helped manage over $3.6 billion in financing, acquisitions, dispositions, and leasing of more than 2.5 million square feet of commercial office space. Mr. Kahane joined Sapir after serving as a Vice President at Meridian Capital Group, where he structured and placed large CMBS and balance sheet loans. Mr. Kahane previously worked as an investment banking associate at Chardan Capital Markets and began his career in New York real estate at Africa Israel USA where he learned the fundamentals of real estate investment, construction, and development. During those pivotal and turbulent years for U.S. real estate, Mr. Kahane developed a prudent investment approach that continually informs his market-sensitive investment discipline. He holds a B.A. in Economics from Yeshiva University in New York.

Alexander J. Szikla previously served on Meridian Capital's Healthcare Group helping raise approximately $3 billion in debt and equity placements in addition to working on select advisory and sales engagements for owners, operators and developers of skilled nursing facilities, assisted/independent living facilities, hospitals, dialysis centers, etc. Prior to joining Meridian, Alex served as the Head of Acquisitions at Newcastle Realty Services working alongside the firm’s President to spearhead growth and broaden the firm’s national footprint through expansion into the multifamily and student housing sectors. Alex also co-founded the Plato Student Platform which provides construction and asset management services while overseeing the portfolio's student housing investments. During his tenure, Alex was solely responsible for sourcing, analyzing and closing approximately $50 million of acquisitions while working hand in hand with asset managers and property managers to actively improve properties and add value by increasing bed counts, bolstering amenities and streamlining operations. Alex began his career at FBR Capital Markets & Co. in their Investment Banking Division where he participating in over $5 billion of transaction volume including IPOs and M&A engagements across the Real Estate, Healthcare and Equity-Linked Capital Markets Groups. He holds a degree in Finance and International Management from the Desautels Faculty of Management at McGill University and a Masters of Science in Real Estate Development at New York University. Alex has served on the UJA’s Real Estate Executives (REX) NEXT committee, serves as the Affinity Groups chair at the Jewish National Fund – USA’s Futures Board

Ari Davis is a Partner in Tannenbaum Helpern's Real Estate and Construction Law practice. He concentrates in enabling commercial real estate transactions, including sales and acquisitions, joint ventures, leasing and financing. Ari has counseled a diverse set of clients, from family-owned businesses and single member limited liability companies to Fortune 500 companies. He negotiates retail and office leases and subleases on behalf of landlords and tenants for spaces ranging from small offices to entire industrial buildings. Ari frequently works with developer clients that sell and purchase multifamily developments, shopping centers and office buildings throughout the U.S., and he represents lenders and borrowers in various loan structures.

Some of Ari’s work has included the following:
-representing a developer that acquired a controlling interest in a joint venture with a church, which was formed to acquire and develop the church property and multifamily units above it and
-representing a car dealership client on a construction loan that it obtained from its national franchisor

Prior to joining the firm, Ari was an associate in the Real Estate, Development and Land Use Group of Chiesa, Shahinian and Giantomasi PC (formerly known as Wolff & Samson PC), one of the largest and most respected New Jersey law firms.

Outside of work, Ari enjoys spending quality time with his family and is an ever-suffering Cleveland sports fan.

David Bratslavsky is Managing Partner of IMB Wealth Technology, which offers on-demand CTO services through a flexible subscription model, empowering startups and businesses with top-tier technical leadership without the overhead costs. David was previously the Executive Director of the US-Israel Business Council, which helped Israelis startups access the US market. David is also an active real estate and graduated The George Washington University.

Elran Tsabag is the Director of Corporate Solutions for Dale Carnegie & Associates’ New York Center of Excellence, the pioneer training and development company’s global flagship. At the heart of Elran’s approach is the belief that we can harness our inherent talents to engage in dynamic, fulfilling, and aspirational work. As a partner to companies and leaders across industries, he is entrusted with curating unique learning transformations that unlock hidden potential and drive measurable growth.

A serial entrepreneur, he has mentored startup founders and coached enterprise executives in turning their businesses into impactful movements for niche communities. Prior to joining Dale Carnegie, Elran co-founded and successfully exited Activated Concepts, a boutique change management consultancy where he developed proprietary innovative tools for companies cultivating change resilience as a competitive advantage in navigating through rapid growth. An earlier career in foreign policy instilled in him invaluable communication and engagement skills as an advisor to elected officials and leaders in the U.S. and Israel. Through his circuitous career, Elran has cultivated a keen ability to identify gaps and growth opportunities in people, systems, and companies in virtually any context… and a contagious superpower of curiosity.

He lives in New Jersey with his partner and their dog, Milo.

Jack is Managing Director at Greysteel where he specializes in capital markets (investment sales, equity placement, and structured finance) for multifamily assets across Dallas Fort-Worth, the greater state of Texas, and the Southwest. It this role, he’s been instrumental in the transfer of capital from the Northeast to the Southwest. Jack’s been featured in Forbes, Texas Real Estate Business Magazine, and D-CEO Magazine.

Jack attended The University of Texas at Austin and The University of Texas School of Law. Prior to Greysteel, he was an attorney at a national law firm where he practiced litigation and real estate law.

Lenny Traps is a partner in Sullivan & Cromwell’s Litigation Group. He litigates a wide range of complex commercial matters across federal and state courts and in arbitration, and maintains an active pro bono practice. Lenny has been named as a “Future Star” and to the “40 & Under List” by Benchmark Litigation. He is a graduate of Columbia Law School and New York University, and clerked for Judge Dennis Jacobs on the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals.

Shaya Lesches is Co-founder and Director of Young Jewish Professionals (YJP), a nonprofit dedicated to creating and promoting targeted business and educational opportunities that accelerate the career success of New York City’s Jewish business community. The organization, founded in 2008, has fostered unparalleled peer-to-peer learning and professional leadership platforms across the NYC business scene. YJP has succeeded in creating a world-class community connecting the nation’s top business leaders with aspiring young professionals through YJP’s innovative network.

An entrepreneur at heart, Shaya also founded Australian Kosher Winery in his native Australia. In 2018, Shaya established the YJP Center for Leadership, the world’s first Jewish Business Leadership Center located in the heart of Manhattan’s Union Square.

Shaya is also a founding member of the Rambam Foundation, a not-for-profit organization in connecting the world’s top Jewish business leaders, physicians and investors to accelerate innovation in healthcare delivery through cross functional collaborations.

Rabbi Lesches currently serves as a Trustee of the West Side Jewish Center in Manhattan. He currently resides in Manhattan with his wife and six children.

Solomon Birnbaum serves as President & Co-Founder of Towerline Group (formerly Fbre Capital). He is responsible for the firm’s clients, financing relationships, strategy, standards, business development and execution. The firm's focus is on all commercial real estate property types at every stage (land, construction, bridge & permanent). Additionally, the firm has expanded its mandate to the public real estate debt markets for opportunistic investment opportunities and private credit markets for preferred equity and mezzanine financing.

Mr. Birnbaum began his career at J.P. Morgan, where he worked on two teams: the balance sheet lending arm of the Corporate and Investment Bank focused on large construction loans, and separately managed $5bn of commercial real estate repo facility exposure to REITs & private equity backed real estate debt funds.

After J.P. Morgan, Mr. Birnbaum joined Dwight Capital, one of the fastest-growing multifamily lenders in the United States. At Dwight Capital, Mr. Birnbaum originated ground-up construction, bridge and permanent loans for multifamily and healthcare properties nationwide.

Mr. Birnbaum earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Finance from NYU Stern School of Business.

Charity work:
-Founding Board Member of IDF Widows & Orphans - American Chapter
-Board member CAMERA - Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting & Analysis
-Young Leadership Board Jewish Institute for National Security of America
-Young Leadership Board Shaare Zedek Medical Center Jerusalem
-Young Leadership Board Brownstone
-Founder of Realize Israel NYU

Steve Ellis is a director in Kroll’s Growth Team, based in Miami. Steve is responsible for managing strategic relationships with financial institutions, sponsors, law firms, executive teams, and the broader ecosystem across Kroll’s solutions.

Prior to this role, Steve served as a director for business development in Kroll’s Issuer Services practice. He has over 15 years of experience in capital markets, both public and private, as well as alternative markets.

Before joining Kroll, Steve was Senior Vice President, Regional Director at AST|DF King, where he oversaw regional business development across the enterprise. He worked with issuers and advisors worldwide on a wide range of transactional situations of varying complexities while also formulating solutions across groups within AST|DF King.

Steve was named a 2017 winner of The M&A Advisor Emerging Leaders Award and 2023 winner of YJP’s 40 Under 40 in Legal & Finance for his accomplishments in business and service to the community.

Steve is actively involved in various philanthropies, which are primarily focused on community-building.