By Carl Zebrowski
Editor

When Robby Wax took over as president of the Jewish Federation of the Lehigh Valley in 2022, he hardly expected the world to turn upside down—again. 

The Jewish community was just beginning to rebound from the anxiety and isolation of Covid, finally gathering in person and picking up momentum. Then, on October 7, 2023, Hamas attacked Israel. The Jewish homeland was at war, Israeli hostages were taken to Gaza, Israeli women were raped and beaten, antisemitism soon spiked all over the world, and Jews in the Lehigh Valley and elsewhere were feeling especially vulnerable.

Robby was a great fit to be the leader at this time. The senior vice president and general counsel for St. Luke’s University Health Network is close friends with his Federation predecessor, Gary Fromer, who had just led the organization through the pandemic and could provide critical guidance. Robby is a well-spoken, well-written, well-respected former winner of the Federation’s George Feldman Achievement Award for Young Leadership who knew how to get things done and to stand up for a cause. 

But how can you really be prepared for a moment like October 7 and what followed? Being intimately familiar with the community and its people didn’t hurt. Wax, the son of Stan z”l and Vicki Wax, grew up here and witnessed his parents’ deep involvement in the Jewish agencies and organizations—a couple of highlights: Stan was a former Federation president and Vicki was corecipient, along with Robby, of the Daniel Pomerantz Award for Campaign Leadership. Robby spent much of his youth bouncing between the Jewish Day School (through fifth grade), Sunday school and Hebrew high school at Congregation Keneseth Israel, the JCC and its basketball courts, and Pinemere Camp in the Poconos. 

Along the way, he was deeply influenced by Jeanette Eichenwald, the wise community educator famous for her grasp of Jewish history and her ability to make it understandable to any audience. “Anybody who has had the privilege of being her student at any stage of life is truly blessed,” Robby said. “She taught me as a teenager and provided incredible lessons that remain with me today. Her classes covered the history of the Holocaust and America’s role in that era, as well as lessons on how, as a young person, you are obligated to stand up to hate and bigotry towards all people, not just toward Jews.”

After high school, Robby left for Emory University in Atlanta. While in his senior year there, he met his wife, Laurie. They started dating after he moved to Philadelphia to attend Temple Law School. 

After graduating from Temple, he joined the Dechert law firm in the city, where he worked for several years. He moved to Allentown in 2002 to raise his children closer to his parents. Robby received a job offer from St. Luke’s University Health Network in 2004. He wouldn’t have to travel any longer, and he could spend more time with his two sons, then 4-year-old Ben and newborn Danny. 

Pinemere also came calling. “I loved my time as a youth at Pinemere Camp, and I was engaged to handle some pro bono legal work there,” he said. “That led to me joining the board.”

It was an iffy stretch for the camp. “Pinemere in those days was really struggling financially,” he said. “It took seven or eight years, but the camp morphed from a position of weakness to a position of incredible strength.” Robby gave his friend Marty Black of Allentown much of the credit for the turnaround. The camp also started drawing more families from the Lehigh Valley. Today Pinemere is the preferred overnight camp for the region. “Of all the Jewish organizations that I’ve been involved in,” Robby said, “it’s certainly one of the most successful turnaround stories.” 

Robby’s other leadership roles in the Jewish community have included vice president of administration for the Jewish Day School from 2004 to 2009; chair of the board of Temple Beth El from 2010 to 2012; and member of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee national council from 2018 to 2022.

That’s about when Fromer recruited him to lead the Jewish Federation. “If you know Gary, he doesn’t really suggest ideas. Gary tells you what you’re going to do,” Robby laughed. 

Then came the Hamas attacks. “The focus on Israel is always important,” he said, “but the focus on Israel became our primary focus on October 7, and to see our community come together in the face of a horrible, horrible atrocity inspired me.” 

Outside the Jewish community, the coming together wasn’t always so prevalent. “The reaction from some members of the non-Jewish community was shocking,” he said. “Probably the proudest moments for me during the year that followed was the way that our community rallied around me, rallied around each other, showed up to city council meetings, helped get our message out about what was really happening.” The result was the defeat of resolutions in each of the three Lehigh Valley cities to condemn Israel’s actions in Gaza.

During Robby’s tenure, Laurie has also been intimately involved in the Federation as president of Women’s Philanthropy. “Laurie’s involvement certainly made my job easier,” he said. “Women’s Philanthropy drives the success of Federation, and she’s been an exceptional president and built a talented team around her.” 

Now the time has come for a new president to take over. “When I think about passing the torch to the next president,” he said, “I’m pleased to report that Federation is in great shape. That’s a testament to all the presidents who came before me. It’s a testament to our current board. It’s a testament to Jeri (Zimmerman, the Federation’s executive director) and the rest of the staff. Jeri makes the president’s job easy, because she’s so amazing.”

As you’d guess from knowing Robby, or from reading to this point, he’ll continue to volunteer in the community. And he wants everyone to know they should do the same. He now gains inspiration from his sons, who are active leaders in their communities after watching their parents’ and grandparents’ involvement.

“It’s a value to the person volunteering because you’re constantly learning, you’re meeting really bright people,” he said. “You’re getting that great feeling of helping the community.”

“It’s also a great way to be a role model for your children. A lesson for people out there, especially parents who have their time pulled in so many different directions: You are the models for the next generation. Your kids are watching you. If you want your children to be leaders, be one yourself.