Shlomo Rechnitz

Shlomo Rechnitz

Shlomo Rechnitz

Shlomo Rechnitz
Born (1971-07-29) July 29, 1971
Los Angeles, California
Nationality American
Occupation Owner of TwinMed LLC and Brius Healthcare Services
Known for Business and philanthropy

Shlomo Yehuda Rechnitz (born 1971, Los Angeles) is an American businessman and philanthropist. He is the founder of TwinMed, LLC and owner of Brius Healthcare Services, the largest nursing home provider in the State of California.[1][2][3]

Early life and education

Shlomo Rechnitz was born on July 29, 1971 in Los Angeles, California.[4] For high school, he attended the Mesivta of Long Beach in New York and then went to the Mir Yeshiva in Israel.[5]

Career

In 2006, Rechnitz bought his first nursing home in Gardena, California.[6] In 1998, Rechnitz incorporated TwinMed, LLC in Los Angeles with his twin brother, Steve Rechnitz.[7] TwinMed distributes medical supplies and solutions throughout the United States to nursing homes and hospitals. They are based in Santa Fe Springs, California and have warehouses in California, Texas, Illinois, Ohio, Florida and New Jersey.[8] He is also the owner of Brius Healthcare Services, the largest nursing home provider in California.[9] Rechnitz runs over 80 facilities in California.[10]

In 2014, 23 nursing homes owned by Rechnitz received a total of 50 serious deficiencies graded G or higher by the federal government,[11] nearly triple the state average, according to a Sacramento Bee investigation.[10] In October 2015 the FBI raided one of his facilities, the Alta Vista Healthcare & Wellness Centre, in Riverside, California “seeking evidence in relation to alleged criminal activity.”[10]

In March 2016, The Forward and the Jewish Telegraphic Agency reported on rumours that he was one of the purchasers of the website Failedmessiah.com.[12][13]

Philanthropy and community work

Rechnitz oversees the Shlomo & Tamar Rechnitz Charitable Foundation which distributes funds to over 1,100 institutions yearly. He is known in the Los Angeles area for opening his home every Saturday night to listen to the needy and to hand out charity.[14] Rechnitz donated $5 million to support the Mir Yeshiva and encourage others to come to its aid. Soon after Rechnitz's donation others followed suit and the debt was paid in full within three months.[1][15]

In December 2011, Rechnitz purchased a creditor’s note against Chabad of California’s headquarters in Westwood for $2.35 million in order to help the organization avoid foreclosure.[1] After Hurricane Sandy, Rechnitz gave $1 million to aid in the rebuilding of Orthodox Jewish day schools and to assist the families whose children attend those schools[1]

In 2012 Rechnitz heard about Diane Aulger, a mother of five in North Texas that had her labor induced few weeks early so that her husband could meet their daughter before he died from pulmonary fibrosis. Upon hearing the story, Rechnitz personally phoned Augler himself and sent her $20,000.[1][16] In the autumn of 2014 Shlomo pledged $2.5 million to the Lakewood Cheder School's building campaign, enabling the school to finish their new building and thus allowing the children to begin school on time.[17]

In 2014, Rechnitz released an album featuring many of the most famous Jewish singers. The proceeds from the album went to the Keren Hashviis fund to support Israeli farmers keeping the laws of Shmita.[18]

In June 2015, Rechnitz donated $250,000 to restore the Mount Zion Cemetery in East Los Angeles. Mount Zion, also known as the “orphan cemetery,” is the final resting place of many of the founders of the Los Angeles Jewish community, but has been neglected, and even vandalized, over the years.[19] In November 2015, while on a layover in Dublin, Rechnitz purchased hot meals for 400 US troops when he saw they were eating bagged lunches while other passengers dined at airport restaurants.[20][21]

In January 2016 it was reported that Rechnitz had purchased 18,000 Powerball tickets for his employees, and that one of his employees had receiving a winning ticket. While he did indeed buy and distribute 18,000 tickets, the employee had been tricked by her son into thinking she had won. Rechnitz then offered the family a paid vacation.[22]

Honours and awards

Shlomo Rechnitz is the President of Torath Emeth and he is the first Chairman of the Board for the Chofetz Chaim Heritage Foundation.[23] On August 1, 2012 Rechnitz was honored as the keynote speaker of the 12th Siyum HaShas event at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. The event attracted more than 90,000 people and celebrated the conclusion of the 7 1⁄2-year learning cycle of the Babylonian Talmud.[24][25]

Personal life

Shlomo Rechnitz and his wife Tamar (née Belsky, daughter of Rabbi Yisroel Belsky)[26] live in Los Angeles, California, with their six children.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Doheny Meats Buyer Shlomo Rechnitz on Business, Philanthropy". The Jewish Journal.
  2. ↑ Suissa, David. "On the Money".
  3. ↑ Stansberry, Linda (July 2015). "The Shut Out". North Coast Journal. Retrieved 13 November 2015.
  4. ↑ "Shlomo Rechnitz". The Frum Deal. Retrieved 8 March 2016.
  5. ↑ Media, JNi. "Rechnitz: I help Lakewood Institutions I Know Would Never Accept my Own Children". Jewish Press. Retrieved 8 March 2016.
  6. ↑ "California’s largest nursing home owner under fire from government regulators". The Sacramento Bee. 13 June 2015. Retrieved 13 November 2015. He started out in 1998 selling latex gloves and adult diapers alongside his twin brother, Steve, but branched out on his own to buy his first nursing home in Gardena in 2006.
  7. ↑ "TwinMed, LLC: Private Company Information - Businessweek". Businessweek.com. Retrieved 2015-11-28.
  8. ↑ "TwinMed, LLC: Private Company Information".
  9. ↑ "California’s largest nursing home owner under fire from government regulators". sacbee. Retrieved 2015-11-28.
  10. 1 2 3 Lundstrum, Marjie. "FBI raids Riverside nursing home". Sacramento Bee. Retrieved 2016-01-15.
  11. ↑ Sacramento Bee: "Nine stories from Rechnitz’s California nursing homes" BY MARJIE LUNDSTROM June 13, 2015
  12. ↑ "Do Buyers Plan To Silence FailedMessiah.com?". The Forward. Retrieved 2016-03-08.
  13. ↑ "Founder of Orthodox muckraker blog Failed Messiah sells – but did he sell out?". Jewish Telegraphic Agency. Retrieved 2016-03-14.
  14. ↑ Suissa, David. "On the Money". Jewish Journal.
  15. ↑ "Donor Pulls Through for Chabad".
  16. ↑ "Shlomo Rechnitz Donates to Devastated Family in North Texas". Working to Give.
  17. ↑ "Reb Shlomo Yehuda Rechnitz Dedicates The New Vassar Avenue Building of the Lakewood Cheder".
  18. ↑ "Shlomo Yehuda Rechnitz Releases Album To Raise Funds For Keren Hashviis "SHIR" | Jewish Insights". www.thejewishinsights.com. Retrieved 2015-11-28.
  19. ↑ "Local Entrepreneur Donates $250K To Repair Abandoned East LA Jewish Cemetery". CBSlocal.com. 5 June 2013. Retrieved 10 August 2015.
  20. ↑ "Philanthropist Sees 400 US Troops Eating Bagged Lunches, Pays For Them To Eat Wherever They Want".
  21. ↑ "Philanthropist treats 400 U.S. soldiers to warm meal during airport layover". AOL.com. Retrieved 2016-01-15.
  22. ↑ "Pomona nurse pranked by son, was not Chino Hills Powerball jackpot winner". ABC7 Los Angeles. Retrieved 2016-01-24.
  23. ↑ "Shlomo Yehudah Rechnitz Named Chairman of the Board of CCHF". The Online Voice of Torah Jewry.
  24. ↑ "My Machberes: Daf Yomi Siyum HaShas". The Jewish Press.
  25. ↑ "Tens of Thousands Celebrate Historic Siyum HaShas". The Jewish Press.
  26. ↑ Blum, Shimmy (9 April 2013). "You Can’t Build Up If You’re Looking Down". Mishpacha Jewish Family Weekly. Retrieved 13 November 2015.
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Monday, March 14, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.