Hyman Jebb Levy, OBM
Founder (1926-2019)
Hyman Jebb Levy was born in 1926 to loving parents Louis and Bella Levy of Rochester, New York. He was one of four children with one brother and two sisters. The family emigrated from a city called Monastir in Macedonia in the former Yugoslavia Republic. They were Sephardic Jews whose ancestors had been expelled from Spain; therefore the language used in the home was Ladino. During his childhood, his friends picked for him the nickname “Jebb” and it has stuck ever since. As a young man during World War Two, Jebb Levy served for three years in the Navy on the USS Haynsworth. He survived Japanese suicide plane attacks that had slammed into the ship; others of the crew were not so lucky. After the war, Jebb, like many G.I.’s moved to California to start a new life and career. Soon after, upon the insistence of his parents, he joined Sephardic Temple Tiferet Israel. which at that time was still on Santa Barbara Avenue. Little did they know, that one day their son would be honored in 1988 by receiving the prestigious Sephardic Heritage Award from Sephardic Temple Tifereth Israel.
With his brother Matt, Jebb would find his niche producing high quality ladies apparel. His company Loubella Extendables was named after his parents Louis and Bella. The clothing line was a success and an established part of the fashion of the day. The company would stay in operation for forty-five years.
Jebb’s parents by their own actions taught him the importance of giving Tzedakah and communal service. For this reason Jebb created the Hyman Jebb Levy Foundation in 1974 for the primary purpose of promoting Jewish education and to help the needy. The Foundation was immediately put to use to build the Talmud Torah and Levy Library at Sephardic Temple Tifereth Israel. The foundation supports the Sephardic Educational Center in Jerusalem by giving over one hundred scholarships for their summer program. LASHA, Maimonidies Academy, Gimmel, and a variety of programs in Los Angeles and abroad are also supported by the foundation. In 1997, the foundation made an investment in the Sephardic children of Los Angeles by establishing a Jewish youth group called Sephardic Tradition And Recreation or better known as S.T.A.R. Due to this support, S.T.A.R. has become the premiere Sephardic youth organization in Los Angeles providing educational and social opportunities for children and teenagers.
Hyman Jebb Levy OBM and his beautiful wife Donna OBM, were active supporters of Jewish education. Together, they made their presence felt in the community and are dedicated members of Sephardic Temple Tifereth Israel. Jebb’s parents worked hard to instill within their children the sacred traditions of the Jewish people, the love of their Sephardic heritage, and the moral and ethic values of Tzedakah, righteous charitable giving. Jebb’s own actions stand as testimony to the wisdom and grace of his parent’s teachings that gives a person a sense of fulfillment and accomplishment. It is a lesson to us all on the value of motivating our children to do acts of kindness.
His contributions to Jewish life worldwide are still on going, especially through the S.T.A.R. program. May his memory be a blessing. Amen
Mr. Larry Clumeck
Board Member
Larry Clumeck is a founding member of Clumeck Stern Schenkelberg & Getzoff and has been engaged in public accounting since 1975.
Larry ‘s 25 plus years of experience include specialization in the areas of estate planning, estate and gift taxation, individual and business tax planning. His expertise includes accounting, auditing, consulting services and business management for a widely diversified group of commercial, service, nonprofit and individual clients. Larry is also experienced in litigation support services, including expert witness testimony, court accounting, business valuations, cash availability analysis and tax analysis regarding structuring of property settlements. Larry is fluent in French.
Larry received his Bachelor of Science degree from California State University, Los Angeles in 1979. He received his Masters of Science degree in Taxation from Golden Gate University in 1989.
Currently a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the California Society of Certified Public Accountants, he is a former member of the Taxation Committee and the Financial Planning Committee of the Los Angeles Chapter of the California Society of Certified Public Accountants and the Taxation Committee of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.
Larry has been a frequent speaker and lecturer on such topics as estate planning, federal estate and gift taxation, and business planning before a variety of professional groups and professional continuing education courses.
He is very active in the community and enjoys working with various charitable and religious institutions. He is currently the president of the Los Angeles Sephardic Home for the Aged and former president of the Sephardic Temple Tifereth Israel.
Mr. Reeve Chudd
Board Member
Reeve Chudd. a Los Angeles native, is a retired trusts and exempt organization attorney now living in Carmel, Indiana. He represented Mr. Hyman Jebb Levy in the creation of S.T.A.R, and has served on its Board since its inception. He received his BS in Accounting, BA in English and MS in Accounting from the University of Pennsylvania, and his law degree from University of Southern California. He practiced law in Beverly Hills for over four decades before retiring.
Sephardic Tradition & Recreation
337 S. Robertson Blvd #204
Beverly Hills, CA 90211
310-855-3656
info@lastar.org
Events
Our Founder
B’H This website and all of the activities of STAR is also dedicated in loving memory of it’s founder, Mr. Hyman Jebb Levy, of blessed memory. His vision and love for the community made everything that STAR has done in the past and will be doing in the future, possible. Yehi Zichro Baruch.