Control the narrative

Harry Gross - FIDF Gala 2026 Honoree

Builder, Benefactor, and Bridge-Builder of the Jewish People

Born in Israel and arriving in Brooklyn in 1967, the year of the Six-Day War, Harry belongs to a generation whose personal story runs alongside the modern story of the Jewish people: a childhood in the Land of Israel, an adulthood forged in the immigrant striving of New York. From those beginnings he built G-Holdings LLC, the real estate firm he leads as Chairman and CEO, into an enterprise defined as much by its patience and integrity as by its scale. For Gross, development has never been merely the assembly of capital and concrete; it is the creation of places where families take root and communities endure, an ethic that mirrors the Torah's vision of building as an act of continuity across generations.

That same ethic animates his decades of service to Israel. As a National Board Member of the Friends of the Israel Defense Forces, Harry has made the welfare of Israel's soldiers a personal cause, giving not only his resources but his time, counsel, and presence. At one FIDF gala alone, he pledged $1.08 million, support that helps fund scholarships for combat veterans, assistance for soldiers in need, and care for Lone Soldiers who serve far from their families. Speaking before the FIDF community, Harry returned to the themes that define him: the unity of the Jewish people, service to the community, and a giving mindset rooted in the conviction that every Jew bears responsibility for every other, the principle of kol Yisrael arevim zeh lazeh. His philanthropy is inseparable from the values of family, faith, and Torah that shaped his life and that he has sought to transmit to those who come after him.

It was a genuine honor for YESODI to meet with Harry and to benefit from his advice and strategic perspective. Our conversation centered on how YESODI can bring to light the extraordinary contributions of the Jewish entrepreneurial community to the world and to humanity, contributions that too often go unseen. Harry observed that YESODI has the potential to be a game changer in how the Jewish people are perceived on the world stage, by showcasing what he has witnessed firsthand: that he and so many of his colleagues in real estate and across other industries are tremendous givers, devoting not only significant investment but enormous amounts of time to the IDF and to causes spanning industries, countries, and continents.

For YESODI, the meeting marks a potentially transformative relationship. Whether as an investor, a connector to a remarkable network of builders and philanthropists, or a guiding voice in shaping our mission, Harry embodies precisely the story YESODI exists to tell: that Jewish enterprise, at its best, is inseparable from Jewish generosity, and that the builders of our community are also among its most devoted guardians. The Jewish people have Israel as their physical home. Now the Jewish people have YESODI as their digital home.