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Milton GrallaRich man
Country:
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Content:
- A Rich Man
- Connection to "HAM.A."
- Trip to Russia
- The Development of Events
- Construction of "GAN-H.A.M.A."
- Supporting Jewish Education
- A Distinguished Journalist
- A Successful Career
- About His Parents
- The Origin of the Gralla Family
A Rich Man
Milton Gralla: A BiographyMeeting at the Conference
I was invited to the conference of journalists from CIS countries "Jewish Press. Paths of Development and Improvement" by Natalya Zubkova, the initiator and organizer of the Moscow forum. During a seminar session, or as it was called, a "master class," an unknown American shared his experience with journalists from Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, and Israel. The seminar took the form of a lively conversation, accompanied by laughter and remarks from the audience, as well as anecdotes from journalistic practice, which any experienced correspondent is rich in. During the break, I approached the seminar leader and, wanting to introduce myself, handed him my business card. The American's reaction turned out to be unexpectedly emotional. "Oh, the magazine 'Aleph'! I have known Gilliel Zaltsman for a long time!" After a few seconds, it turned out that I was talking to Milton Gralla, the one whose name, along with his wife Shirley's name, is immortalized on the facade of the Jewish children's educational center "GAN-H.A.M.A." We agreed to meet, and the next day we had a long conversation with the president of the Milton and Shirley Gralla Foundation, a well-known journalist with sixty years of experience, a publisher, and a patron, about the fate of a boy from a poor immigrant family, about the benefits of education, about kindness and happiness...
Connection to "HAM.A."
Mr. Gralla, I am aware of your charitable activities in the USA, Israel, Russia, and the CIS countries. But how did your fate bring you together with the organization "HAM.A."?
Thirty years ago, I visited Russia for the first time. Upon returning to the USA, I met Gilliel Zaltsman. I remember being simply amazed by Zaltsman's dedication, his efforts to revive Yiddishkeit in a country that had been behind the "Iron Curtain" for many decades. That is why I decided to help him, as I was confident that these funds would be used effectively.
Trip to Russia
Please tell me more about your first trip to our country.
In that distant year of 1972, I visited Moscow, Leningrad, and Kiev. I wanted to get an idea of how Jews live, so I visited Jewish families. Repression and the prohibition of studying their people's tradition and history resulted in the assimilation of Soviet Jews. However, they did not lose interest in their roots. By the way, I always enjoyed studying foreign languages, and the first words I learned in Russian were "brother" and "sister."
The Development of Events
And how did things unfold from there?
Years passed, and my brother and I became owners of a publishing house that brought a stable income. In 1983, we decided to sell our publishing business as we were offered a very decent sum for it, a small fortune at the time. Since then, I have used these funds to develop Jewish education and revive Jewish life in the USA, Israel, and the former USSR. In the late 80s, when perestroika was in full swing, Gilliel Zaltsman and I came to the Soviet Union. As part of the "Revival" mission, we met people who were forced to work in semi-underground conditions at that time. But even then, my heart rejoiced that Jewish communities were being formed even in such conditions, and Jews eagerly sought knowledge that they could not obtain during the years of totalitarianism. I realized that there was a real opportunity through the organization "HAM.A." to help them strengthen and develop their activities. A few years ago, Gilliel Zaltsman told me about the problems of Jewish orphans and children from low-income families. This led to the project of creating a home where Jewish children could develop spiritually and physically, where they could feel an atmosphere of love and care, and be raised in Jewish tradition.
Construction of "GAN-H.A.M.A."
But the construction of the center in Moscow requires enormous funds!
Yes, that's true. We decided to help Zaltsman and his colleagues, but there was an element of intrigue in this assistance. My wife Shirley and I decided to allocate the same amount of money for the construction of the children's educational center as "HAM.A." would collect from other sponsors. We believed that in this way, Mr. Zaltsman and his colleagues would gain valuable experience that would be useful in their future work. And we were right! The result exceeded all our expectations. Soon, "HAM.A." was able to build and organize the work of "GAN-H.A.M.A.," and we had the happy opportunity to come to the opening of the children's center with our grandson, who could see with his own eyes how Jewish life was being revived in Russia. The opening ceremony of "GAN-H.A.M.A." was attended by representatives of the Committee of the Moscow City Government for Education, and it was particularly pleasing.
Supporting Jewish Education
Mr. Gralla, why do you support the development of Jewish education in Russia and the former Soviet Union, while most Jewish philanthropists direct their funds to Israel?
I believe that we should help Jewish communities, our brothers and sisters, precisely here because, in my deep conviction, a Jew has the right to be a Jew wherever he or she wants.
A Distinguished Journalist
Your rich journalistic experience is worthy of respect and admiration. Tell me about your first steps in journalism.
When I was 11 years old, my school teacher suggested that I write about our school for the local newspaper. Why she chose me, it is hard to say now. Perhaps I did well in literature homework and wrote without errors. Naturally, at that time, I had no journalistic experience, and I gained it by printing reports about our school. I tried to diversify my articles, conducted interviews with classmates and teachers. My materials were willingly published. I remember being amazed that my first publications attracted attention. Even then, I understood the power that lies in mass media, how carefully one must handle words, and how thoroughly one must check facts. When the time came to choose a profession, I already knew what I wanted to do.
A Successful Career
And how did your career develop further?
After finishing school, I enrolled in college, where I studied humanities, art, foreign languages, and collaborated with the university newspaper. After graduating from college, I started working as a reporter for New York newspapers. And it so happened that my younger brother also wanted to become a journalist. At that time, he had just graduated from university, while I was already married and understood that a reporter's salary was not enough for a family man. At first, my brother and I started publishing in business publications, and then we had the idea for a new publication, which was needed at the time. Other publishers did not want to organize such a publication, so we decided to take the initiative ourselves. That's how a new publishing house appeared, which, at the beginning, had only two employees - the Gralla brothers, Milton and Larry. Not everything went smoothly; we had to fight for our existence. But they say that America is a land of great opportunities for a reason. We achieved success with our first magazine, and gradually, our business began to expand. The American dream came true, and when we sold our business after 28 years, we already had about thirty publications and several hundred employees. We became multimillionaires, but what delighted us most was that our parents could see what we had achieved.
About His Parents
I was born into an immigrant family. My parents came to the States with no means, hoping for a better life. They were from a small town in the Lomza Governorate of Poland. My father worked as a baker's assistant in Lomza, and in America, he initially worked in a bakery and later opened his own. Like all Jewish parents, he wanted his children to receive a good education and profession. Initially, my brother and I helped our parents in the bakery, but when we grew up, they sent us to study. I never learned how to bake bread, but I can professionally evaluate the quality of baked goods.
The Origin of the Gralla Family
Your surname, Gralla, is quite rare. What do you know about its origins?
The Gralla family lived in Poland for several hundred years. It was an ordinary Ashkenazi Jewish family that observed tradition. Interestingly, I respect Jewish customs, but I can't say I'm strictly orthodox. However, my children are married to Jews, and my grandchildren are being raised in Jewish tradition. Returning to the history of my surname, I conducted a special study that showed that the surname Gralla comes from Barcelona. Most interestingly, when I was in Barcelona, I found descendants of the Gralla family there. They are a noble Catholic family. And here's another curious fact. The mayor of Barcelona built a castle in the 16th century, which was called "Casa Gralla" ("Gralla Castle"). Gralla's descendants live in Barcelona and on the island of Majorca. I realized that those Grallas who left for Poland preserved their Jewishness.
This was our conversation with the legendary Milton Gralla, who not only reveres the history of his own family but also the history and revival of Judaism in other countries. He is not only a journalist and a successful businessman, not only the first philanthropist to begin supporting the revival of Jewish life in Russia and the CIS, not only one of the most generous American Jews. Milton's merit lies also in the fact that he, by his example, inspired Russian Jewish businessmen to invest in the development of Jewish education, culture, and traditions.