Nassau Herald names Israel Chesed Center's Marc Moshe Bodner, Jeff Eisenberg as 'People of the Year'

That unity just basically helped us pivot from just being a packing center to more of a community center, where we tried to get people engaged.”

Jeff Eisenberg, co-founder, Israel Chesed Center

This article appears on the cover of the Nassau Herald published on Dec. 26. The printed newspaper is available now throughout the Five Towns.

In the wake of the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attacks on Israel, two local entrepreneurs turned personal pain into purposeful support, creating a lifeline for Israeli soldiers, displaced families and a community seeking to make a difference.

Marc Moshe Bodner, 54, and Jeff Eisenberg, 58, transformed a former bank building, at 1315 Peninsula Blvd. in Hewlett, into the Israel Chesed Center, a dynamic hub of humanitarian aid and community engagement.

The center emerged from the immediate crisis and a critical need for supplies. Bodner and Eisenberg quickly mobilized to support the Israel Defense Forces and the civilians affected by the conflict. What began as a donation collection effort rapidly evolved into a comprehensive community center that has engaged hundreds of volunteers and shipped tons of critical supplies to Israel.

For their efforts, the Herald is proud to name Bodner and Eisenberg its 2024 People of the Year.

“People’s heads were spinning,” Eisenberg recalled. “People didn’t know where to send money first — what was real, what was needed. But people just wanted to do something.”

In the initial weeks of the war support efforts, the pair, who are good friends, collected and shipped essential supplies independently. Eisenberg gathered 62 pallets of medical gear and clothing for families. Bodner manned a warehouse on Mill Road in Lawrence, where people from the Five Towns and surrounding areas dropped off gear, non-perishable food, baby formula and other critical items for the Israeli people. Bodner bounced around to facilities where he could store donated supplies that he planned to send to Israel.

The two joined forces weeks later, when Bodner offered warehouse space to Eisenberg, to help him with storage and shipping. Then Eisenberg secured the Peninsula Boulevard building at the end of 2023, and the pair moved in, naming it the Israel Chesed Center. Chesed means kindness in Hebrew.

“Two is always better than one,” Eisenberg said. “That unity just basically helped us pivot from just being a packing center to more of a community center, where we tried to get people engaged.”

Bodner, an attorney with extensive managerial experience, took charge of logistics, managing intake, storage, and shipment of donations. Eisenberg, who built a successful pest control company, Pest Away, which he sold to a Fortune 500 company in 2019, brought entrepreneurial know-how to the endeavor. He focused on the long-term goals of the center.

“We complement each other very well,” Eisenberg said. “My strengths are his weaknesses, and vice versa.”

The center quickly became more than a mere collection point. It was transformed into a community gathering space where people could actively support Israel’s war effort. Visitors of all ages have taken part in activities ranging from filling care packages for soldiers to organizing bake sales, bar and bat mitzvahs, comedy shows, concerts, discussions with IDF members, conversational Hebrew classes and poker nights.

Sara Matathias, an East Rockaway resident and a member of Chabad of Hewlett, described the center as “a sanctuary of support, aid and solidarity” that has inspired widespread philanthropy. Matathias, like many others, approached Bodner and Eisenberg about hosting an event at the center, to bring people in and fill them in on what was happening in Israel.

“Jeff and Moshe embraced my ideas with open arms and entrusted me to bring my vision to life,” Matathias wrote in an email.

The pair also hosted a large Oct. 7 remembrance event this year, at which hundreds of people filled seats in the center’s parking lot. Israeli aid organization leaders spoke, and the attendees watched videos from Israel and offered prayers for the people there.

For Bodner, the mission is personal. As the father of Israel Defense Forces soldier Ike Bodner, he has been thorough in coordinating targeted aid. “We don’t want people spending money and sending things needlessly,” he said.

Their approach has been strategic and practical. Initially collecting personal hygiene products, underwear and base layers of clothing, they quickly adapted to changing needs. In October the center sought sponsors to provide $1,000 per soldier for tactical gear and medical supplies like tourniquets.

Naomi Lippman, head of the Hebrew Academy of the Five Towns and Rockaway High School, offered emailed praise of the center’s role in engaging students.

“Mr. Bodner and Mr. Eisenberg have continued to coordinate inspiring programs in which our students have participated,” Lippman wrote, “including uplifting fundraising events, sorting and packing Purim costumes for children of displaced families, and letter-writing campaigns to soldiers.”

The center has also worked with students from the Hewlett-Woodmere school district, Shulamith School for Girls, in Woodmere, and Stella K. Abraham High School for Girls, in Hewlett, among others.

Fay Feder, a local business owner and leader of an underground grassroots organization that supports Israel, described Bodner and Eisenberg’s creation as “one of the most beautiful things that came out of this massive tragedy.”

“We came together to pray, to work, to advocate on behalf of our hostages and the Jewish people all over the world,” Feder wrote in an email. “And we did that because of Moshe and Jeff. The community owes them a debt of gratitude for this magical place.”

The Israel Chesed Center offers more than material support for Israel. It provides a space for education, remembrance and connection, Bodner said. It displays photos of hostages and fallen soldiers, offering visitors an opportunity to learn and to pay respects.

“This is a great local place to come get educated,” Bodner said. “We have videos of the atrocities. Kids certainly shouldn’t watch. Adults, if they want to sleep, shouldn’t watch. But we have people who can talk openly and non-judgmentally.”

Adi Carucci, a volunteer from Hewlett and the leader of Israelis for Israel, another aid organization, noted in an email that in a time of rising antisemitism, the Chesed Center became “a place we could go to feel at home and to feel connected.”

For Bodner and Eisenberg, the motivation is simple yet profound. As Eisenberg put it, “It’s more than just satisfaction — we’re literally saving lives.”

Through their efforts, the pair have transformed individual compassion into collective action, offering hope as well as tangible assistance to those most in need.

“It’s just a good place to come and feel that you’re part of it,” Bodner said.