Alan J. Levy

Alan J. Levy, 80, passed away on October 7, 2020. Born in Chicago, IL, Mr. Levy was reared in Ft. Lauderdale and graduated from Ft. Lauderdale High School in 1958.

Upon graduation from the University of Georgia in 1962 with a BBA in Business Administration, Mr. Levy became involved in the Florida agriculture business as a broker of fresh fruits and vegetables. Over the next twenty years, Levy built Great American Farms into a multi-state, vertically integrated farming, packing and distribution organization serving leading national grocery retailers, food processors and food service distributors in the United States, Canada, the Caribbean and Europe.

During the mid- 1990’s in response to the Caribbean Basin Initiative Bill, Mr. Levy launched production, packing and importation of fresh fruits from the Caribbean and Latin America to the United States and Europe. Following the end of apartheid, Mr. Levy also developed fresh fruit imports from South Africa.

Mr. Levy was also a co-founder and managing director of a cattle and sheep business with operations in Central Florida, Colorado and New Mexico.

Mr. Levy served as a member of the local Board of Advisors of the Landmark Bank (acquired by C&S Bank), The Northern Trust Bank and The Bank Atlantic. Mr. Levy was also a member of the Board of Directors of BBX Capital.

Mr. Levy served as a founding member of the Performing Arts Center Authority for eight years. The authority was responsible for the initial design and building of the Broward Center of the Performing Arts. Levy was a member of the State Board of Education, State Board of Tax Watch, the Broward Workshop, Chairman of the Board of the National Conference for Community and Justice (formerly the National Conference of Christians and Jews).

Mr. Levy followed the directives of his late friend Dave Posnack to help build and support multiple campuses including the JAFCO Jewish Children’s Village, the JAFCO Children’s Ability Center, the JCC and the Hebrew Day School. Mr. Levy served for two decades on the Board of Trustees of the JAFCO Children’s Village, the JAFCO Children’s Foundation and the JAFCO Children’s Ability Center.

Sarah Franco, Director of JAFCO, stated that “Alan’s reputation within the Jewish community and the child welfare community was larger than life. When he walked into a room, everyone took notice. He was a giant in our community. Everyone knew and respected Alan. One of the great accomplishments of my career was gaining the respect of Alan Levy. He cared so deeply about children and people and his compassion was unsurpassed when it came to children with disabilities. He dedicated so much of his time and resources to creating the Children’s Ability Center, the final project of his life. Alan’s legacy in this community will never die. We are all better human beings just for knowing him and he will live forever in my heart.”

Mr. Levy was a founding member and pioneer of the Downtown Jewish Center Chabad in Ft. Lauderdale. He was an ardent supporter and advocate for all the Jewish people. Rabbi Schneur Kaplan stated that “Alan Levy will be dearly missed”.

Mr. Levy was also an ardent supporter of HANDY, a nonprofit serving at –risk youth in South Florida. Along with his wife Marsha, the two were invested in helping youth and families for almost 35 years, providing every opportunity for them to succeed, focusing on the issues of mental health, physical health, abuse, neglect, drugs and crime and education.

Kirk Brown, Chief Executive Officer of Handy, best described Alan’s impact through Britany Copeland, a HANDY youth: “I am breathless at this moment. Mr. Alan was my mentor along with his wife Marsha. He took me under his wings as his own, he will be truly be missed.” Levy is survived by his wife of almost 58 years, Marsha Oster Levy, Son, Eric Levy, Daughter, Hope Levy Evans, Son In law, Tom Evans, Grandchildren, Hannah and Benjamin Mendelsohn, Sister, Pat Kritt , Brother-in-Law, Stephen Oster, nieces and nephews. The family is forever grateful for the end of life care Alan received from Crystal Chester and Tonalee Lawrence. Our deepest gratitude to Dr. Marcelle Abell Rosen, Dr. Michael Cusnir, Dr. Alan Nieder, Dr. Harold Solomon and to Rabbi Schneur Kaplan and Devorah Kaplan.

In lieu of flowers, the Levy family requests donations in Alan’s memory be sent to one of the following: Handy Inc: https://handyinc.org/inlovingmemory/ JAFCO: https://www.jafco.org/levy

Downtown Jewish Center: https: //www. downtownjewish/com/in-memory-of-alan-levy-obm

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