Joseph Gitler. Photo: Orit Arfa

Joseph Gitler

Founder, Leket

Gitler founded Leket in 2003, shortly after making Aliyah to Israel, following his graduation from Fordham Law School, in New York. Gitler thought it a shame that so much food went to waste, especially considering all those that go hungry each day in Israel. Now, each year, his food bank rescues and repurposes over 770,000 hot meals, 110,000 loaves of bread and over 18 million lbs of produce and perishable goods, for the benefit of the needy. In addition, Leket Israel supplies over 1.35 million volunteer prepared sandwiches annually to underprivileged children at 113 schools in over 30 cities. Food is reclaimed from hundreds of food suppliers and is then redistributed to 190 partner NGOs assisting the poor, invalid-elderly, minorities, children, and at-risk population groups throughout Israel.