JFACT Executive Director Bob Fishman Awarded 2015 Movers & Shakers

 In his role as head of JFACT, Bob Fishman is not just an advocate for Connecticut’s Jewish community; he is also, say his many admirers, an “unsung Jewish hero.”

“For 25 years Bob has been the face of the Jewish community at the capital and around the state with various constituencies,” explains Eric Zachs, president of the Jewish Federation of Greater Hartford. “He has delivered time and time again — from the resettlement of Russian Jews, support of our community infrastructure, recognition of the Holocaust, support of Israel, and now with pressing security needs. More than that, he has formed meaningful bonds and goodwill with governors, legislators and other faith and interest groups. He is unsung. He is a Jewish hero. JFACT is a precious treasure for all Jews of Connecticut.”

Michael Price, the former executive director of Goodspeed Opera House and a past president of JFACT, concurs. “I think that Bob is an authentic leader and moreover, the most important convener or ‘knitter’ for bringing all of the Jews in Connecticut together,” Price says. “He’s really an unsung hero.”

As the head of JFACT, Fishman oversees state and, federal public policy advocacy on behalf of al of Connecticut’s Jewish agencies. He also serves as spokesman to state organizations and interfaith bodies and testifies at state hearings on relevant issues on behalf of all the Connecticut Jewish communities, the elderly, children, immigrants and refugees. Over the years, Fishman succeeded in securing more than $5 million in funds from foundation, state and federal grants for Connecticut Jewish agencies.

Regarded as the “go-to” person for the state’s Jewish communities on matters of public policy, advocacy and more, he has fostered personal relationships with members of Connecticut’s legislature, the governor, as well as the state’s U.S. senators and congressmen. His bridge-building between the Jewish community and state policy makers is appreciated by the heads of the various Jewish Federations around Connecticut.
“Bob is a level-headed, kind, and considerate person,” says Jerry Fischer, executive director of the Jewish Federation of Eastern Connecticut. “He has established excellent relationships with the key people in state government and with all the key people in the Jewish Federations throughout the state. He knows how to bring people together and make the case regarding different issues that are important to the Jewish communities and he knows how to present and interpret Israel to the general community. What’s nice for me personally is that he’s taken the time to come to our Federation’s annual meetings and some of our programs. He pays attention to the smallest of Federations as well as to the largest.”

Fischer’s assessment is echoed by other Connecticut Federation heads.

“Bob Fishman has diligently and devotedly served our statewide Jewish community with his work as a lobbyist and his dedication to major issues of our day,” says Sydney Perry, CEO of the Jewish Federation of Greater New Haven. “It is nice to know that Bob is always ready to assist whenever it is needed.”

In addition, notes Howard Sovronsky, president and CEO of the Jewish Federation of Greater Hartford, “[Bob] has been a moving force in getting resources to our community, on behalf of our community, from various government and legislative sources. He’s somebody that the community relies on to be the face of our community in times of crisis.”

In September 2014, Fishman was honored for his work on behalf of Connecticut’s Jewish community as a recipient of the first annual Henry M. Zachs Spirit of Judaism Awards, presented by the Jewish Federation of Greater Hartford.

A resident of West Hartford, he previously served as executive director of the Connecticut Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC), of the Jewish Federation of Greater Hartford, as commissioner of the Connecticut-Israel Economic Exchange, and as a founding board member of Federation Homes.

“Bob Fishman has become the ‘face’ of the Jewish Community at the Legislature and throughout the State,” says CT State Representative David Baram, who has worked with Fishman for more than 30 years. “He lobbies for our priorities including funding for Jonathan’s Dream, the Hebrew Home and Hospital, and the Neighborhood Assistance Act, Holocaust Education, trade with Israel, against anti-Israel BDS campaigns, and promotes coalition building. Without doubt, Bob is one of the most important movers and shakers in Connecticut.”
http://www.jewishledger.com/2015/12/33422/