Ronnen Harary and his university friends founded the toy and entertainment company Spin Master in 1994, launching with Earth Buddies and later the wildly successful Air Hogs toys. Today, it’s their Paw Patrol characters and Gund stuffed animals that are globally famous. And for the last two weeks, since the Oct. 7 Hamas massacre in southern Israel, Harary has been on the ground in Israel distributing 25,000 toys for Israeli kids and their families who have been affected by the war with Hamas.
And that’s not all. His personal charity is buying new beds for the Hadassah hospital in Jerusalem to boost capacity ahead of expected casualties. Meanwhile, the Canadian philanthropist has also personally driven boxes of socks and supplies to army bases all over Israel, and his charity is helping a Canadian-led operation sending a food truck to feed soldiers before they embark on what’s expected to be an unprecedented ground assault on the Gaza Strip against Hamas, including to rescue hostages.
Today, The CJN Daily is kicking off a week of stories about what we’re calling “The Helpers”: Canadian s stepping up to help Israel during these difficult times. Host Ellin Bessner speaks to Harary and to Franck Azoulay, a former Montrealer who now runs Harary’s personal charity and is himself serving with the IDF.
What we talked about
- Read how Harary’s company sends gifts to children in conflict zones, through The Toy Movement, including Israel, in The CJN
- Learn more about the Canadian initiative to send a food truck from the Canaanite restaurant in Kfar Adumim, the West Bank, to feed Israeli soldiers at their bases—and donate to the crowdfunding campaign.
- Read how Spin Master was founded in a garage, in The CJN
Credits
The CJN Daily is written and hosted by Ellin Bessner (@ebessner on Twitter). Zachary Kauffman is the producer. Michael Fraiman is the executive producer.Our theme music is by Dov Beck-Levine. Our title sponsor is Metropia. We’re a member of The CJN Podcast Network. To subscribe to this podcast, please watch this video. Donate to The CJN and receive a charitable tax receipt by clicking here.