NEWTON, Mass. – Bruce Mendelsohn has been named the new executive director for the New England Region of Friends of the Israel Defense Forces (FIDF). Mendelsohn replaces Lior Zommer, who, after five years in New England, is relocating to New York.

A lieutenant in the U.S. Army, Mendelsohn was stationed in Korea and Germany from 1990 to 1993. Prior to his military service, he earned a Bachelor’s degree from Vassar College. He also holds a Master’s degree in systems management from the University of Southern California’s Marshall School of Business.

Mendelsohn’s professional experience includes serving as director of communications and outreach at the Bernard M. Gordon-MIT Engineering Leadership Program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Prior to that he was director of communications for both the Marketing Research Association and the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund in Washington, D.C.

“I am honored to join the FIDF New England Region, and I’m eager to build on my predecessor’s accomplishments,” said Mendelsohn. “I have family living in Israel and serving in the IDF, so advancing the well-being of Israel’s soldiers is not just a professional mission, it’s also a personal passion.”

FIDF was established in 1981 by a group of Holocaust survivors with the mission of providing and supporting educational, social, cultural, and recreational programs and facilities for the soldiers of the IDF. Today, FIDF has more than 120,000 supporters, and 15 regional offices throughout the U.S. and Panama. For more information, please visit www.fidf.org.

CAP: Bruce Mendelsohn. Photo credit: Courtesy of FIDF