Danny Siegel is an American Jewish fundraiser,

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...

author An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states: "''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...

, and

lecturer Lecturer is an List of academic ranks, academic rank within many universities, though the meaning of the term varies somewhat from country to country. It generally denotes an academic expert who is hired to teach on a full- or part-time basis. T ...

philanthropy Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the Public good (economics), public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private goo ...

Tzedakah ''Tzedakah'' or ''Ṣedaqah'' ( he, צדקה ) is a Hebrew word meaning "righteousness", but commonly used to signify ''charity''. This concept of "charity" differs from the modern Western understanding of "charity". The latter is typically un ...

, and

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

values.

Biography

Siegel founded the Ziv Tzedakah Fund in 1981 after making several trips to

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

carrying money to be distributed to those in need. Jewish tradition teaches that anyone on a mission of good deeds will be saved from harm, and so, on each trip, Siegel followed this age-old custom and asked friends and relatives for a dollar or two to give away to

upon his arrival in the Holy Land. Once in Israel, Siegel went in search of "the Good People" (he refers to them as "

Mitzvah In its primary meaning, the Hebrew word (; he, מִצְוָה, ''mīṣvā'' , plural ''mīṣvōt'' ; "commandment") refers to a commandment commanded by God to be performed as a religious duty. Jewish law () in large part consists of discus ...

Heroes"), ordinary Israelis who were doing extraordinary work, simply by trying to make the world a better place. Within a short time, he learned of the efforts of such people as Hadassah Levi, who made her life's work the rescue of abandoned babies with

Down syndrome Down syndrome or Down's syndrome, also known as trisomy 21, is a genetic disorder caused by the presence of all or part of a third copy of chromosome 21. It is usually associated with physical growth delays, mild to moderate intellectual dis ...

from hospitals, Myriam Mendilow, who found

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

's poor, elderly residents on the streets of the city and gave them respect and new purpose in her program, Yad L'Kashish (Lifeline for the Old), or

Uri Lupolianski Uri Lupolianski ( he, אורי לופוליאנסקי; born 1951) was mayor of Jerusalem from 2003 to 2008 and founder of Yad Sarah. Biography Born August 29, 1951 in Haifa, Israel, Lupolianski studied at the Yavne School in Haifa and then attende ...

, a young teacher who started Israel's now famous lending program,

Yad Sarah Yad Sarah ( he, יד שרה) is the largest national volunteer organization in Israel. Employing over 6,000 volunteers, with a salaried staff of 150, Yad Sarah serves over 350,000 clients each year. It is best known for its free loans of over 244,0 ...

, in his living room. He has found these "Mitzvah heroes" in countless places around the world, not just Israel. And his challenge to everyone is that he "wants to turn ordinary people into superheroes". Siegel works with over 100 such altruists around the world. He "has a stable of everyday, real-life Mitzvah heroes, young and old, with projects ranging from the ordinary to the unusual". After returning from his first trip, Siegel issued a four-page report to all of his donors in which he described all of the places that he had distributed their Tzedakah money. From that first $955 Siegel collected and gave away, Ziv Tzedakah Fund grew to be an organization that in 2007 completed its 32nd year of operation and distributed more than $14,000,000 primarily to small programs and projects in both Israel and the United States. (In 2006, over $2,000,000 was given away to people in need; and the same for 2007-8). Siegel closed the Fund in December 2008. Siegel influenced thousands of people with his unique tzedakah and mitzvah philosophy. With the closing of Ziv Tzedakah Fund in 2008, Siegel identified several other organizations in his final report to donors. All of these groups operate in a similar manner as Ziv and they include

Hands on Tzedakah Hands On Tzedakah is a 501(c)(3) public charity headquartered in Boca Raton, Florida. Founded in 2003, the organization provides funding for various social service programs in the United States, Israel, and other countries. Activities As of Jun ...

which continues Siegel's long-standing tradition of employing someone in Israel, on the ground, choosing Arnie Draiman as the Director for Israel Projects. Draiman worked for Siegel for over 20 years and continues to work closely with him today); KAVOD, Tzedakah Fund, Inc., To Save A Life Foundation and The Good People Fund. His approach to Tzedakah "offers a no frills, no red tape way to help those in need", according to the San Diego Jewish Journal. Siegel has a

B.S. A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

in Comparative Literature from

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

's School of General Studies, and a Bachelor's and Master's of Hebrew Literature from the Jewish Theological Seminary of America. He is one of three recipients of the prestigious 1993 Covenant Award for Exceptional Jewish Educators.

Literary career

Siegel is the author of 29 books on such topics as practical and personalized giving, healing and humor, and has produced an anthology of 500 selections of

Biblical The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...

and

Talmud The Talmud (; he, , Talmūḏ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the cente ...

ic quotes about living life called ''Where Heaven and Earth Touch''. Siegel is also a poet and several of his published books are poetry. In 2020, the Jewish Publication Society published an anthology of Siegel's writings,
'Radiance: Creative Mitzvah Living, The Selected Prose and Poetry of Danny Siegel''
edited by Rabbi Neal Gold and with a foreword by

Rabbi Joseph Telushkin Joseph Telushkin (born 1948) is an American rabbi, lecturer, and bestselling author of more than 15 books, including volumes about Jewish ethics, Jewish literacy, as well as the book ''Rebbe'', a ''New York Times'' bestseller released in June ...

.''

Published works

Tzedakah, Mitzvahs, Tikkun Olam, and Jewish Values

* ''Angels'', 1980 * ''Gym Shoes and Irises: Personalized Tzedakah'', 1981 * ''Gym Shoes and Irises: Book Two'', 1987, * ''Munbaz II and Other Mitzvah Heroes'', 1988, * ''Family Reunion: Making Peace in the Jewish Community'', 1989, * ''Mitzvahs'', 1990, * ''After the Rain'', 1993, * ''Good People'', 1995, * ''Heroes and Miracle Workers'' 1997, * ''1 + 1 = 3 and 37 Other Mitzvah Principles For a Meaningful Life'' 2000, * ''Danny Siegel’s Bar and Bat Mitzvah Mitzvah Book: A Practical Guide For Changing the World Through Your Simcha'', 2004, * ''Who, Me? Yes, You! — Danny Siegel’s Workbook to Help You Decide Where, When, Why, and How You Can Do Your Best Tikkun Olam'', 2006, * ''Giving Your Money Away, How Much, How to, Where, and To Whom'', 2006,

For Children

* ''The Humongous Pushka in the Sky'', 1993, * ''Tell Me a Mitzvah'' (Children’s stories, Kar‑Ben Copies, Inc.), 1993, * ''Mitzvah Magic: What Kids Can Do to Change the World'' (Kar‑Ben/Lerner), 2002,

Midrash and Halachah

* ''Where Heaven and Earth Touch: An Anthology of Midrash and Halachah''; Book One, 1983; Large Print Edition, 1985, Book Two, 1984, Book Three, 1985 * ''Where Heaven and Earth Touch: Combined Books One‑Three'', 1988, * ''Where Heaven and Earth Touch'': Hardback edition, 1989; Soft cover, 1995 (Jason Aronson publishers), * ''Source Book: Selected Hebrew and Aramaic Sources'', 1985

Poetry

* ''From the Heart'', 2012 * ''Soulstoned'', 1969 * ''And God Braided Eveʹs Hair'', 1976 * ''Between Dust and Dance'' (with prose), 1978 * ''Nine Entered Paradise Alive'', 1980 * ''Unlocked Doors: The Selected Poems of Danny Siegel'' 1969‑1983, 1983 * ''The Lord Is A Whisper at Midnight: Psalms and Prayers'', 1985 * ''The Garden, Where Wolves and Lions Do No Harm to the Sheep and Deer'', 1985 * ''Before Our Very Eyes: Readings for a Journey Through Israel'', 1986 * ''The Meadow Beyond the Meadow'', 1991, * ''Hearing Heart'', 1992,

Healing

* ''Healing: Readings and Meditations'', 1999,

Humor

* ''The Unorthodox Book of Jewish Records and Lists'' (co‑authored with Allan Gould), 1982,

Anthology

* ''Radiance: Creative Mitzvah Living'' (edited by Rabbi Neal Gold), 2020,

References

External links

Official websiteTo Save a LifeKavodThe Good People FundArnie Draiman
{{DEFAULTSORT:Siegel, Danny 20th-century births Living people American humorists American male poets American philanthropists Columbia University School of General Studies alumni Jewish American children's writers Jewish American poets Jewish humorists Year of birth missing (living people) Place of birth missing (living people)