New UJA Chairman Outlines Objectives

Martin Stein, the newly elected national chairman of the United Jewish Appeal, called Monday for the creation of a “united Jewish agenda and a united Jewish front” to meet the many challenges facing the Jewish people.

He told reporters at a news conference at UJA headquarters here that he believes that the UJA is “the one organization” that can help unite the differing groups in the Jewish community.

The 49-year-old Stein, a native of Milwaukee, succeeded Alex Grass as national chairman last month. Stein has in the past served as president of the Milwaukee Jewish Federation and has been a UJA national vice president.

A pharmacist by training, he began with one pharmacy in 1961 and built it into a chain of 19 pharmacies — Stein Drugs. He sold most of the pharmacies in 1979 and founded Stein Health Services, which is now a major mid-West optical and medical company.

OBJECTIVES ARE MULTIPLE

Stein told reporters that his objectives are five-fold: “to significantly enhance the whole UJA campaign process by developing a partnership” with the communities; to increase major gift contributions and help all Jews to contribute to their capacity; to develop and nurture a new and young leadership; to continue and complete Project Renewal; and to “become an advocate for all Jews in distress countries” such as the Soviet Union, Syria and Ethiopia.

Regarding the last objective, Stein said that in the next few weeks he is scheduled to visit the Soviet Union and Ethiopia. Stein is a former chairman of the special UJA task force for Operation Moses, an effort that mobilized a campaign raising over $60 million is less than four months for the resettlement of Ethiopian Jews in Israel in 1985.