ADL Names 2014 Board Chair and Co-Vice Chairs for New England Region

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Robert Trestan, ADL Regional Director

(617) 515-4023 / RTrestan@adl.org

September 17, 2014

DAVID M. GROSSMAN TO CHAIR ADL NEW ENGLAND REGION
ADDITIONAL OFFICERS NAMED

(Boston, MA) - September 17, 2014 -- The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) has officially selected David M. Grossman as the new Board Chair and Debbie Shalom and Harvey Wolkoff as Vice Chairs, for its New England Region. Grossman, Shalom and Wolkoff are long-time supporters of ADL and its core mission, bringing legal and business experience to the organization. Grossman, who, at 38-years old, will be the youngest Board Chair in history for ADL’s New England Region, was handed the gavel by his predecessor, Jeffrey S. Robbins, at the ADL New England Regional Board meeting on September 16th. His term will extend through 2016.

“For more than a decade David has distinguished himself as a committed leader in combating anti-Semitism and securing equality for everyone,” said ADL New England Regional Director Robert Trestan. “He is the fourth generation of his family dedicated to serving the community and securing justice and fair treatment for all. We are honored to welcome him as New England Board Chair and are confident that our entire community will benefit from this leadership team.”

“I am thrilled to follow in the footsteps of so many amazing leaders as I become ADL New England Regional Board Chair,” said incoming ADL Regional Board Chair David Grossman. “It is ADL’s dual mission, ‘to fight anti-Semitism and to secure justice and fair treatment for all’ that inspires me, because wherever there is injustice - racism, homophobia, anti-immigrant bias, bullying, or bigotry of any kind – it is our moral imperative to stand with those who are being attacked. Our goal at the ADL is to work for a world in which all children have the opportunity to live where they want to live, do what they want to do with their lives, and be who they want to be, and I look forward to the challenge of the next two years.”

David Grossman is Co-President of Grossman Marketing Group (GMG), having assumed leadership of the family business in 2011 along with his brother, Ben. At GMG, Grossman specializes in marketing execution for professional services firms, sports teams, venture-backed startups and institution-sized non-profit organizations. He is also a frequent lecturer on marketing and family business issues. Grossman has been active in service to ADL, starting as a member of the Young Leadership Board and receiving the Krupp Leadership Award. He grew up at the intersection of philanthropy and politics as the son of former Democratic National Committee Chairman and current Massachusetts Treasurer Steve Grossman. Grossman previously worked in marketing and development in New York City. He holds a BA from Princeton University and lives in Chestnut Hill with his wife Mary Jo Sisk and their 3 children.

“David Grossman has been a powerful leader in ADL’s fight for civil rights for years, and he brings wisdom and energy to his new role as ADL’s new Chairman,” said Jeff Robbins, ADL’s outgoing Regional Board Chair. “And in Harvey Wolkoff and Debbie Shalom the ADL has Vice-Chairs whose work on behalf of ADL and the causes it holds dear has earned them great respect throughout the community.”

Debbie Shalom is a marketing director of Newmarket Properties, Ltd. She is a second generation ADL Regional Board member who serves as Co-Chair of the Development Committee and offers countless hours of her time to ADL’s regional events and programs. Shalom is an active philanthropic member of the Boston community and beyond, also having served as Annual Fund Co-Chair and Co-Chair for the Senior Class Capital Gift for Buckingham Brown & Nichols School, Annual Fund Co-Chair and Co-Chair of the Senior Class Gift at Dana Hall School, Co-Chair for the Silent Auction at the Dana Farber Zakim Center’s annual gala and as Co-Chair of ADL New England’s Development Committee. She has also served as a member of Youthlink Development at the North American Family Institute and is currently Co-Chairman on the newly formed Rochester University Hillel board after her involvement as a Founding Board Member and member of the Development and Rabbi Search Committee. Shalom received her Bachelor of Science from Syracuse University and currently lives in Brookline with her husband Neal and 2 daughters.

Harvey Wolkoff is a Partner at Ropes & Gray, LLP. Wolkoff has advised clients in a variety of complex litigation matters, including consumer class actions and business fraud, securities and ERISA litigation, data privacy matters, and business contract issues for more than 35 years. He joined Ropes & Gray in 1975, rejoined in the fall of 1982, and become Partner in 1984 after a 4 year stint in the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Wolkoff has been honored with various awards, including The Best Lawyers in America for Commercial Litigation, Bet-the-Company Litigation, and Securities (2006-2015), Benchmark Litigation, Litigation Star (2009-2014), Financial Times “U.S. Innovative Lawyer” (2012), Massachusetts Super Lawyers (2004-2013), Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business (2008-2014) and Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly Top Defense Verdict of the Year (2001).As part of his commitment to pro bono work, Wolkoff has represented the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights and the Anti-Defamation League of New England in several court cases. Wolkoff received his Bachelor of Arts from Dartmouth College and Juris Doctor from Columbia University School of Law. He currently lives in Boston with his wife Susan. They have 2 children, also residing in the Boston area.

Pictured left to right are: Vice Chair Harvey Wolkoff of Boston, Board Chair David M. Grossman of Chestnut Hill, and Vice Chair Debbie Shalom of Brookline.

Photo credit: ADL Staff

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The Anti-Defamation League, founded in 1913, is the world’s leading organization fighting anti-Semitism through programs and services that counteract hatred, prejudice and bigotry.