Jonathan Touboul
Israel Bonds International, Executive Director for French-speaking countries.

Israel Bonds has been present in France since 1955 and our mission remains constant — to strengthen the State of Israel through investments and dedication to strengthen our Jewish homeland.

This edition of KOL will give you an overview of the activities and achievements of the French office and the opportunity to introduce you to the team I have the honor of leading. I have been working for Israel Bonds since August 2016, after a career in investment banking and a strong commitment to community work. Indeed, the members of the team have shown great dedication, and this is an opportunity for me to thank them for the help they provide on a daily basis. I salute their motivation, which has remained intact in the face of the many challenges we have encountered.

Meir Bensimhon

Meir Bensimhon joined us in March 2017 after a brilliant career in finance and entrepreneurship. His analytical mind and ability to execute enabled the development of profitable business relationships and important lay leaders. Meir is currently off work and facing significant personal challenges. We wish him a full recovery and look forward to seeing him again soon.

Rachel Pirnay joined us in 2018 to handle accounting, reporting and administrative follow-up. Rachel comes from auditing, and although working part-time, she has also taken over processing tasks since the retirement of Lisette Bengio, who worked for our organization for twenty-two years. It's important to mention here that we miss Lisette on a daily basis; she was a great source of inspiration to us all and her dedication was second to none.

Eliazbeth Cohen and Lisette Bengio

Last but not least, Elizabeth Cohen joined the team at the end of 2019 after nearly twenty years working as a real estate lawyer. She was also coaching and founded her own business club. Like all of us, she was looking more for a mission than just any job. Elizabeth has been a great addition to the team, possessing senior contacts that helped to recruit lay leaders and running our incredible Women’s Division with brio.

We salute our International Director, Arnon Perlman, who is in charge of all the regions in which we are authorized to sell Israel Bonds outside North America. Arnon joined Israel Bonds in 2018 and has spearheaded our migration into the twenty-first century by developing our online buying platform.

And finally, we must salute the contributions of our lay leaders, and above all the dynamism of our Women's Division, whose co-presidents Catherine Lacrosnière and Isabelle Amsallem. They found the international aspect of the Israel Bonds network unique, and under Elizabeth's encouragement, Isabelle has made it possible to hold some remarkable events.

We have also had the good fortune, thanks to a great deal of hard work, to be recognized by all segments of the community as an essential and tangible link with the State of Israel. In addition, from the earliest age, schools and community centers join our Mazel Tov Bonds initiatives.

Some of these players speak for themselves in this issue of KOL, and a number of partnerships are in the pipeline. We'll be sure to keep you posted in future issues of KOL — stay tuned!