Adam Milstein’s Journey to Jewish Leadership

The man who would become one of America’s most influential Jewish philanthropists began life in Haifa, where his parents—recent immigrants to the newly established State of Israel—worked to build new lives while their young son absorbed lessons about Jewish resilience and responsibility that would shape his future mission. Adam Milstein’s story spans seven decades and two continents, tracing an arc from Israeli soldier to California real estate mogul to strategic philanthropist whose network of organizations now forms crucial infrastructure for Jewish community security in America.

Born in 1952 to Eva and Hillel Milstein, Adam grew up in Israel still finding its footing as a nation. His father had arrived from Argentina in 1947 to serve in Israel’s Navy during the War of Independence, while his mother came from Mexico in 1949, both part of the waves of Jewish immigrants seeking to build lives in the newly established Jewish homeland. For Adam, these family stories of displacement, adaptation, and survival provided an early education in both Jewish history and the ongoing nature of Jewish vulnerability.

Childhood in a Young Nation

Growing up in Haifa during the 1950s and 1960s meant living with constant awareness of Israel’s strategic challenges. The young state was surrounded by hostile neighbors, economically struggling, and still absorbing immigrants from across the globe. For the Milstein family, like many Israeli families of that era, daily life required balancing optimism about Jewish sovereignty with a realistic assessment of external threats.

Adam was the eldest of three siblings, with brother Joshua born in 1957 and sister Dalit in 1959. His father Hillel worked as a building framer and real estate developer, while his mother Eva was a homemaker who focused on raising the children. The family lived in Kiryat Yam and Kiryat Motzkin in the Haifa bay area, modest communities that reflected the pioneering spirit of early Israeli society.

Education was prioritized in the Milstein household, as it was throughout Israeli society. Adam showed early aptitude for mathematics and analytical thinking, subjects that provided both intellectual challenge and practical career prospects in a nation focused on rapid development and technological advancement. These skills would later prove crucial in his business success and philanthropic strategy.

Military Service and the Defining War

Like all Israeli youth, Adam faced mandatory military service upon finishing high school. His timing proved particularly consequential: he joined the Israel Defense Forces in 1971 and served during the 1973 Yom Kippur War, when Egypt and Syria launched surprise attacks that caught Israel unprepared and came closer than any previous conflict to threatening the nation’s survival.

At age 19, Milstein “did not expect to fight one of Israel’s most historic wars,” according to biographical accounts from The Yeshiva World. “The 1973 Yom Kippur War left a lifelong impact on Milstein. He decided that if it were God’s will for him to survive, he would devote his life’s work to uniting and strengthening the State of Israel and the Jewish people worldwide.”

The war began on October 6, 1973—Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar—when most Israelis were in synagogues observing the Day of Atonement. Milstein served with distinction during the conflict, crossing the Suez Canal with Division 143, commanded by Ariel Sharon, which changed the fate of the war.

As he later reflected on this experience in a Jerusalem Post interview: “When I served in the IDF in the Yom Kippur war I crossed the Suez Canal with the brigade of Ariel Sharon. Our lives were in imminent danger. It toughened me; I learned not to be afraid of our enemies.”

The war’s aftermath—which included significant Israeli casualties and a period of national soul-searching about intelligence failures and strategic assumptions—reinforced lessons about the need for constant vigilance and strategic thinking about Jewish security. These lessons would later inform his approach to Jewish philanthropy in America.

Education and Early Career

After completing his military service, Milstein pursued studies at the Technion—Israel Institute of Technology—Israel’s premier technical university. He graduated cum laude in 1978 with a bachelor’s degree in business and economics. The rigorous analytical training he received there would later prove invaluable in both business and philanthropy, providing him with systematic approaches to problem-solving that distinguished his methods from more emotionally-driven approaches.

While attending university, Milstein also worked alongside his father to expand the family’s real estate construction and development business. This early exposure to real estate investment and development provided practical experience that would later prove valuable in his American business career.

At age 22, in 1974, he married Gila Elgrably in his hometown of Haifa. The couple built a life together in Israel for seven years, during which time they had their first two daughters. Like many young Israeli families of that era, they balanced pride in Israeli independence with concerns about economic opportunities and security challenges.

The Decision to Emigrate

By the late 1970s, economic opportunities in Israel remained limited, while American universities and businesses offered unprecedented access to advanced education and career development. The decision to leave Israel was not made lightly for someone whose identity was shaped by family stories of displacement and whose young adulthood was defined by military service defending Jewish sovereignty.

In 1981, Adam and Gila, along with their two young daughters, arrived in Los Angeles. As one biographical account notes: “The plan was to stay in America for two years, but since then 40 years have passed in which he has become one of the busiest and most significant philanthropists in the Jewish community.”

Los Angeles in the early 1980s offered extraordinary opportunities for ambitious immigrants willing to work hard and think strategically. The region’s booming economy, particularly in real estate and technology, provided multiple pathways for entrepreneurial success. For Milstein, who combined technical training with systematic thinking and a strong work ethic, the environment proved ideal for rapid advancement.

Building American Success

While pursuing his MBA at the University of Southern California, Milstein studied American business practices with the same intensity he had previously applied to engineering studies. He was particularly drawn to real estate investment, which combined analytical evaluation of market conditions with strategic planning for long-term value creation.

“An already successful businessman, investor, and a real estate developer, Adam went on to earn an MBA from the University of Southern California (USC Marshall). An ambitious young man, Adam became a managing partner at Hager Pacific Properties, a private commercial real estate firm in Southern California,” according to biographical accounts.

In 1986, Milstein joined Liberty West, a related entity to Hager Pacific Properties. Over the next 14 years, he rose through the ranks to become president of the subsidiary and eventually a managing partner for Hager Pacific Properties in 2011. Today, the firm manages nearly 100 residential, commercial, and industrial properties in the United States with a combined value of over $1 billion.

His systematic approach to real estate investment, which emphasized comprehensive market analysis and strategic thinking, quickly distinguished him from competitors. The success of this methodology provided both significant financial returns and valuable experience in managing complex projects with multiple stakeholders.

The Philanthropic Transformation

Throughout the 1990s, as his business success grew, Milstein began experiencing what he describes as a gradual awakening to Jewish community needs and his potential role in addressing them. The catalyst for his transition from successful businessman to dedicated philanthropist came around 2000, when he attended funerals for Newton Becker and Shimon Erem, two prominent supporters of Jewish causes.

“Like them, I want to be remembered for my contribution to the State of Israel and the Jewish people and make a difference in my lifetime,” he explained in a Jerusalem Post interview.

This personal revelation coincided with external events that heightened his concerns about Jewish security, including the Second Intifada and what he perceived as biased media coverage that blamed Israel for Palestinian violence. His unique perspective as both an Israeli veteran and American businessman provided him with insights into both the nature of threats facing Jews and the resources needed to address them effectively.

As he explained his philanthropic motivation to the Jerusalem Post: “Twenty years ago, after many accomplishments as a real estate investor, I was debating whether to diversify by entering a different kind of business or become more active in philanthropy. I was looking for more challenge and satisfaction. My mission was not to continue just making more money. I wanted to do something that would give me more satisfaction — using my knowledge, resources, and experience. I chose philanthropy because I wanted to make an impact in my lifetime, make a difference, and feel good about it.”

Founding the Foundation

In 2000, Adam and Gila formalized their philanthropic commitment by establishing the Adam and Gila Milstein Family Foundation with a mission to strengthen American values, support the U.S.-Israel alliance, and combat hatred and bigotry in all forms. What began as traditional charitable giving would evolve into an innovative approach that applies business principles to maximize charitable impact.

The foundation’s three core principles—”Active Philanthropy,” “Strategic Force-Multiplication,” and “Philanthropic Synergy”—reflect this business-minded approach. As he explained to the Jerusalem Post: “I don’t only give money to dozens of organizations who do good work in their fields, but I also invest my time, experience, vision and personal connections to support them and launch new initiatives to fill the existing gaps.”

This systematic approach meant that Milstein began dedicating increasing time to studying Jewish community challenges, meeting with organizational leaders, and developing strategic frameworks for addressing interconnected problems. The foundation’s work currently occupies approximately 80% of his time.

Building Jewish Organizations

Perhaps Milstein’s most significant institutional achievement has been co-founding the Israeli-American Council (IAC) in 2006. As he explained in a Jerusalem Post interview: “In 2006, Milstein, together with others, founded the Israeli-American Council (IAC) with the aim of connecting the Israeli-American community to fight antisemitism, among other things.”

The IAC became the fastest-growing Jewish organization in America during Milstein’s tenure as national chairman from 2015 to 2019. The organization addressed a gap in Jewish community organization by specifically engaging Israeli-Americans who often felt disconnected from traditional American Jewish institutions while remaining deeply committed to Israel’s welfare.

In 2017, he co-founded the Impact Forum in Los Angeles, which brings together Jewish philanthropists across generational and political lines to collectively support organizations working toward shared goals, according to a conversation with the Association of French Organization Users and Immigrants.

Personal Philosophy and Recognition

Now residing in Encino, California, with his wife Gila, Milstein maintains the disciplined approach that characterized his business success while dedicating most of his time to philanthropic activities. “While I have a successful business career, it’s my philanthropic work that drives me daily,” he wrote in a Jerusalem Post article. “When we focus on what we care about, we find a deeper sense of purpose and fulfillment.”

His philanthropic work has earned international recognition. In 2016, The Jerusalem Post selected him as one of the world’s 50 most influential Jews. He was included in the Algemeiner Journal’s list of top 100 people influencing Jewish life that same year. In 2017, Richtopia named him one of the 200 Most Influential Do-Gooders alongside Elon Musk, Barack Obama, and Oprah Winfrey.

As he summarized his approach to philanthropy: “I am doing the best I can in this fight. When people do nothing, they become frustrated and talk about what is wrong with everything. But despite the challenges, I continue to contribute to the best of my abilities, and I sleep well at night.”

From his childhood in Haifa through military service in the Yom Kippur War to building business success in Los Angeles and ultimately dedicating his life to Jewish philanthropy, Adam Milstein’s journey illustrates how individual experiences can be channeled toward community benefit while demonstrating the ongoing relevance of Jewish values and obligations across different contexts and generations.