ALEXANDER GOREN

GOREN--Alexander. The family of Alexander (Alex) Goren grieves for the loss of our beloved husband, father, grandfather, uncle, and friend. Alex Goren died of natural causes in his sleep on February 23, 2021. He was 81. Born in Bucharest, Romania, in 1940, he was the oldest son of Avram Goldstein-Goren and Stella Cukier. At the age of four, Alex and his family fled Romania stowed in the hold of a Red Cross ship carrying orphans to Turkey, arriving in Palestine in 1944. The family relocated to Milan, Italy in 1947. A great lover of travel and adventure, Alex moved to the United States to attend Tilton School. He continued his studies in the US, receiving a B.A. in economics from Harvard University in 1961 and an M.B.A. from Columbia University's Graduate School of Business in 1963. He finished the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School in 1979. Alex's business career included work on both sides of the Atlantic and Israel. He started at Caboto S.p.A., a merchant bank in Montreal, Canada. In 1966, he returned to Milan where he worked with his father in textile trading. In 1969, he moved to London, England to work for Keyser Ullman, a merchant bank. In 1973, he moved to Tel-Aviv, Israel to manage and expand the family-owned Mediterranean Car Agency, which distributed FIAT and related automotive brands. In 1984, he moved to New York City, to establish a private investment firm, Goren Brothers, with his brother James. Throughout his life, Alex was involved in many charitable activities in Israel and the US. Over a period of 50 years, he was as an ardent supporter of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU), serving as chairman of its board of governors from 2013 to 2019. During his chairmanship, he actively participated in the attainment of major milestones, including the largest philanthropic gift in the history of the State of Israel, the establishment of the Advanced Technology Park and the launch of the university's north campus. Prior to his role as chairman, Alex also served as president of BGUs American Associates, and worked on behalf of the Cukier, Goldstein-Goren Foundation to establish scholarships and several BGU centers and departments focused on Jewish thought and biotechnology engineering. In May 2015, BGU recognized his many years of service by awarding him an honorary doctorate. Alex also served on the board of New York City Outward Bound (since 1990), Harvard Hillel (1997-2011) and the board of overseers of New York University's Faculty of Arts and Science (since 2006). Alex was a lifelong bibliophile who amassed a near complete collection of Alberto Tallone Editore volumes that he donated to The Rare Book and Manuscript Library at Columbia University. Alex leaves in sorrow a loving family who will miss so much about him, not the least of which was his incomparable cooking. A real mensch, Alex touched and was loved by so many people who adored his warmth, wry humor, generosity of self, and direct approach. He inspired many, leading by the example of his actions and the high moral and ethical standards they reflected. He is survived by his wife, Brooke, his siblings, Viviana, Micaela and James with their respective families, his three children, Andrea, Selina and Brett, their respective spouses, Bettina, Ari and Josh, and his seven grandchildren, Dax, Lilu, Akiva, Elior, Amaris, Jacoby and Maddy. Gifts in his honor can be made to: www.aabgu.org/donate-in- memory or to www.nycout wardbound.org/donate. May his memory be for a blessing.