Newspaper Page Text
Meeting a man of means
by Rabbi Bernard S. Raskas
Seven Aru t-caiurc Syndicate. Ini-
In Hong Kong, where Ihe sky
line changes rapidly and old is con
stantly giving way to new, there
exists the extraordinary name of
Lord Lawrence Kadoorie, a Jew
ish man of means. Lord Lawrence
and his brother Horace are consid
ered to be the most affluent and
influential men in that part of Asia.
When I met Lord Lawrence on
the 24th floor at the top of the St.
Georges buildingfwhich, of course,
the Kadoories own), I was plea
santly surprised. The elegantly de
signed bronze-colored building on
the Hong Kong waterfront gave
me pause to reflect on his power as
1 approached my meeting with
him. His office had a sweeping
view of the harbor and one could
see both Kowloon and the island of
Hong Kong.
But I need not have worried, for
he greeted my wife and me with
warmth, charm and a quick sense
of humor. As fellow Jews we began
to discuss Israel, international
Jewish life and then we ended up
talking about our families. He asked
my advice about a synagogue prob
lem and then we discussed a per
sonal problem that was concerning
him.
Lord Lawrence’s father. Sir Elly
Kadoorie, was born in Baghdad
and arrived in Hong Kong from
Bombay on May 20, 1880, as an
employee of the Sassoon Company,
a prominent Jewish firm. He left
their employment when he was
ordered to be too stern with those
whom he supervised and so he
struck out on his own. The mother
of Lord Lawrence and Horace was
a member of the Mocatta family—
the second Jewish family to settle
in England at the time of Crom
well, nearly 400 years ago. Sir
Lawrence was born in Hong Kong
in 1899 and Horace in London in
1902.
Sir Elly established the family
fortune. Having once been poor
himself, he held firmly to the belief
that “wealth is a sacred trust, to be
administered for the good of so
ciety." Following this philosophy
he built schools in Hong Kongand
agricultural colleges in Palestine.
The meaning of the word charity
takes on an entirely different con
notation as practiced by the Ka
doories. In fact, they detest the
word “charity” and insist that what
they offer is not charity in the
accepted sense of the word but
rather a partnership between mem
bers of the same community, while
working for individual benefit,
work for the benefit of all.
Sir Lawrence explained this con
cept to me by telling me how “a
nice Jewish boy got into the pig
business” and created the Kadoorie
Agricultural Aid Society. At the
end of World War II, Asia was
shattered from Hiroshima to Hong
Kong. In China, a raging civil war
had destroyed the fabric of the life
and millions of refugees poured
into Hong Kong. At the same time,
when the Kadoories returned from
being interred in a Japanese prison
camp, they found their beloved
city filled with refugees that were
so destitute that they lacked even
the simplest necessities of life.
The refugees were mostly rural
folk whose roots were deeply em
bedded in the land. Secondly, they
shied away from handouts and
charity. Ihe Kadoories found a
rocky hillside, arid and dry. They
approached the government and
told them: “We’ll finance it if you
make this unused land available
and give the aid of agricultural
experts." Then they went to the
refugees and said: “If you use the
stones to build pigsties while clear
ing the land, we’ll supply you with
cement, and for every pigsty you
build we will give you two pigs.”
Fourteen refugee families took up
their offer.
Today, there are 5,000 families,
195 miles of roads, 316 dams, 54,000
pigs, 97,000 ducks and 93,000 fruit
trees in bloom. In addition, they
created the famous botanical gar
dens Paak Ngau Shek. They have
made interest-free loans to over
60,000 applicants and their losses
have been less than one-quarter of
one percent, and those mostly due
to illness or a family death.
Indeed, the Kadoories are very
deeply rooted in their Jewishness.
In the '40s and ’50s they helped
care for 20,000 European Jews
through work in Shanghai. They
still continue their support of agri
cultural schools in Israel. Although
the Ohel Laeh Synagogue in Hong
Kong was given by the family of
Sir Jacob Sassoon, the adjoining
Jewish Recreation Club was pres
ented by the Kadoorie family.
As we were leaving Sir Lawrence,
he showed us his marvelous jade
collection. With his back to the
panoramic view of the harbor, he
walked us to the elevator located
below his private helicopter on its
helipad, he smiled, shook hands
graciously and said, “Thank you
for coming; come again. Shalom.”
Happy"
°]Sfewmar
fiffm Delta
jDrLlnes.
Delta Air Lines extends best wishes to our Jewish friends for
the holiday season and for the year to come. May the new year
bring peace, health, happiness and prospenty for everyone.
c\ w- *- (-tv
. # *** • ■ • *. '.•
X Happy * •
* New Year y
^ Taylor Letter Services, Inc. W
316 Techwood Dr., N.W '
0 Atlanta, GA 30313 0
\ _ 523-1616 *
■**
May you have
a happy
and healthy
New Year
Factory’s Inc.
M. Berkowitz & Sons
Manuel, Harvey & Rick
1819 Peachtree Rd., N.E.
Atlanta, GA 30309
351-8476
Maybe you don't worry about your child and drugs.
Teenage alcohol and drug abuse. The prob
lem could be a lot closer to home than you
think. The signs ot drug use aren t always
easy to spot. In fact, it could have been
going on in your home for quite a while
without your knowledge
What can you do' 1 First, watch for
personality & behavioral changes, such as
loss of initiative. Dramatic mood swings. A
defensive attitude A drop in grades Dif
ferent friends. And defiance of rules and
regulations.
Call Charter Brook Hospital
at 457-8315 or 1-800-835-TFEN
outside Atlanta.
i A .1 1 J We are the only private facility specializing
A43yt)C yOU should. exclusively in the treatment of teenage
substance abuse problems with both inpa
tient and outpatient alternatives Our staff
is available around the clock to answer your
questions And we can arrange a confiden
tial, free assessment interview. Whether
your child's problem is mild or severe the
sooner vou call us, the sooner we can help
Cl IART1.R
BR(X)KI IPStYlAl.
39J3 North Peachtree Road
Atlanta Georgia 70341
1404)457 S315 or
1 HIM) K3S THfcN outside Atlanta
PAGE 27RH THE SOUTHERN ISRAELITE October 3, 1986