A Family Commitment

Uzi Halevy, of blessed memory, was an 11th-generation Jerusalemite and Technion alumnus with three loves: family, Israel, and the Technion. Bighearted and younger in spirit than his years — playing basketball his entire life — Uzi encouraged his three children to pursue their passions, expecting little in return. So when he asked them to continue his support for the Technion, “it was a no-brainer,” said his youngest child, Tammy.

She and siblings Amir and Ellie are active on their local American Technion Society (ATS) boards, contribute to fellowships and prizes set up by Uzi and his late wife, Micki (Michal), and are creating their own philanthropic inroads. As such, the sabra who settled in Houston spawned a family of multigenerational ATS supporters.

The children trace their father’s commitment to the education he received at the Technion, where he earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in mechanical and nuclear engineering. “He believed that his Technion education set him up for future success as an engineer,” said elder daughter Ellie, who is involved in nonprofit work in Seattle. “It was important to him to give back, and for us to continue that support.” She and her husband, Larry Kalman, host Technion professors, support initiatives including the Mehoudar Center for Inventors, and recently visited the original Technion campus.

One of the proudest days of Uzi’s life was receiving the honorary fellowship in 2014 for his service to the Technion on the local, national, and international levels. Speaking on behalf of all the honorary recipients, “He looked upward toward heaven and acknowledged his parents,” Ellie recalled. “It was Father’s Day in the U.S., so it was very moving.”

Tammy resides in Washington, D.C., where she is the executive director of a nonprofit initiative, Reimagine Main Street. “The Technion was a source of joy for my dad,” she said. “He was immensely proud of Technion innovation and ingenuity, and his passion was infectious.”

Her involvement began as a way to take up the mantle of her father’s philanthropy. “But now I’m making Technion connections of my own,” she said. Recently, Tammy joined the inaugural cohort of the Rothman Leadership Program, which trains lay leaders to serve as Technion ambassadors. “I can be engaged with things that are important to me — Israel, technology, and my father’s legacy — without being involved in politics.”

Eldest sibling Amir, a doctor and lawyer in Houston, credits his initial support for the Technion to an inspiring event featuring Technion students he attended with his wife, Amy. “Afterwards,” he recalled, “she turned to me and said, ‘I get it now. I understand your father’s passion.’”

Amir, who was born in Haifa, explained the family’s special connection to Israel. “My father lived through the siege of Jerusalem in 1948,” he said. “His father was a civil engineer who built many of the public buildings in Jerusalem. So the State was always important to my parents.”

Uzi was instrumental in growing the ATS-Houston community, as well as in helping promising startups that were born in Technion labs. Amir is confident there will be more breakthrough technologies to come. “Our support for the Technion honors our parents’ memory and keeps us tied to what is important for the future of Israel — training the next generation of thinkers, leaders, and scientists.”

While the siblings support a variety of causes, “the Technion has become a family value for us, not just a charitable donation,” said Amir. Uzi and Micki Halevy, who passed away in 2015 and 2020 respectively, would be as proud of their children as the children are of their parents.