Las Vegas Combined Jewish Appeal (LVCJA) programs and planning documents for the annual May/Spring Ball held at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, Nevada. In 1979, the Las Vegas Combined Jewish Appeal changed its name to the Jewish Federation of Las Vegas.
Interview with Elaine Galatz by Barbara Tabach on April 22, 2015. In this interview, Galatz talks about growing up in Wisconsin. She attended the University of Wisconsin where she was an English major and active in Hillel and the Sigma Delta Tau sorority. She met her husband, Neil, while traveling through Las Vegas on several occasions, and sparks finally flew when she visited him in Tucson on a whim. She describes Neil's background in law, moving to Las Vegas together, and her job teaching second grade. She describes the small Jewish community in the 1960 including the Katzes, Brookmans, Freys, Molaskys and Greenspuns, and the current direction of the Jewish Federation. Galatz discusses raising her children, some of the cases that Neil worked on, their group of friends, and her love of horses.
Elaine Galatz was raised on a farm outside Madison, Wisconsin. Her father was a Russian immigrant father and her mother a young American born bride. Her father died when she was a teenager and her mother remarried a man who enjoyed gambling and that would lead her to first encounter with Las Vegas. Las Vegas would coincidentally become the center of her life when she and her husband of 51 years, Neil Galatz moved here in 1961. Elaine taught school briefly and worked in Neil's successful law firm for a number of years. Neil was a significant litigator in the MGM fire and PEPCON explosion cases. The couple also shared in the growth of Las Vegas Jewish community. Elaine served as Jewish Federation president, the second woman to hold that office. Among their favorite shared family activities was a love of Morgan horses, which continues to present day for Elaine.
Part of an interview with Elaine Galatz on April 23, 2015. In this clip, Galatz describes how she became involved with the Jewish Federation of Las Vegas as president.
The non-profit Jewish Nevada is the central coordinating body for fundraising, planning, allocations, and community services for the Jewish community in Las Vegas, Nevada and serves as the local chapter of the Jewish Federations of North America. Jewish Nevada has served the community since the 1960s and has raised several million dollars to support Jewish and humanitarian causes in Las Vegas, Israel, and in 59 countries around the world.
Todd S. Polikoff was born on September 8, 1971 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In 2015, he was named president and chief executive officer of the Jewish Federation of Las Vegas (Jewish Nevada).
Todd S. Polikoff served as President & Chief Executive Officer of the Jewish Nevada (formerly Jewish Federation of Las Vegas) from 2015 to 2018. Todd is a graduate of Stockton University and earned his MBA at Cleveland State University. He has three children: Samuel, Shira and Jordan.