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October 10, 2008
Despite economy, sales strong
The Israel Bonds offices in Winnipeg and Calgary do not have executive directors.
RHONDA SPIVAK
Israel Bonds offices in both Winnipeg and Calgary currently do not have executive directors. Although "the situation is not ideal," Yona Gazit, national vice-president and chief executive officer of Israel Bonds, has said that, "sales are going on and are clients are being served."
Ariel Karabelnicoff, executive director of the Bonds office in Winnipeg, left his position at the end of August of this year, only a few weeks before the traditional Rosh Hashanah appeal for bond purchases.
Karabelnicoff worked for Israel Bonds for two years and, under his term at his position, the total value of bond purchases in the city climbed significantly, reaching $3.5 million.
In a telephone interview, Gazit said, "We, of course, appreciate Ariel's service and wish him the best of luck in his new position. It's our intention to look for a replacement for him. In the meantime, we [have] ensured that there [was] someone to administer the annual Rosh Hashanah campaign.
"Our clients can reach us through our 1-800 number or through our website and service will be given," continued Gazit, who also indicated that the organization has not decided whether it will be hiring a part-time or full-time employee for its Winnipeg office. He noted that, prior to Karabelnicoff being hired, the Israel Bonds office was staffed for many years with a person who worked on a part-time basis.
At the time of the writing of this article, no posting or advertisement for the position with Bonds had been placed. When contacted, Ted Goldberg, national sales director, for Israel Bonds, said, "For all intents and purposes, I am the contact person in Bonds for clients from Winnipeg. Messages people are leaving are getting to me and I am following up and doing the necessary business."
Gazit noted that, although Israel Bonds also does not have a staff person or offices in Regina or Edmonton, "clients are doing business with us and being served."
"Currently, there is a part-time administrator in our offices in Calgary," said Gazit. "We have not had a director in Calgary since our former director retired about a year ago."
Phyllis D'aguiar, who is administering the Bonds office in Calgary, said the former executive director, Aaron Eichler, had been there "for nearly 30 years, before he retired."
She said, "I know there has been one or maybe two postings for the position in the Jewish Free Press in Calgary but I don't know if the post has been advertised in other cities."
When asked whether Bonds would be filling the position in Calgary, Goldberg said, "I sure hope so."
According to Gazit, Israel Bonds briefly considered merging the Calgary and Winnipeg offices, "but we decided against it, as we didn't think our clients could effectively be served."
Gazit added, "Although in the United States quite a few offices of Israel Bonds have merged or closed, it is not on our agenda to do this in Winnipeg."
The recent financial crisis in the United States has so far not had any dramatic impact on the sales of Israel Bonds in Canada.
Ilan Levitan, marketing director of Israel Bonds in Toronto, said, "So far, it has been business as usual. We haven't seen any significant drop off or significant increase in sales. This seems to be a normal year for us."
He noted that, in April of 2008, the international credit ratings firm Moody's Investors Services again upgraded Israel's bond rating, raising it from A2 to A1.
Goldberg said, "This excellent news is especially welcome because the Israel Bonds organization was given prominent credit for this achievement.... Cost-effectiveness and dependability have been emphasized by Moody's."
The upgrade reflected Israel's proven resiliency in the face of repeated economic and political shocks and the ongoing financial and political support from the United States and elsewhere in the Jewish Diaspora.
Rhonda Spivak is a Winnipeg freelance writer who spends several months a year in Israel.
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