Sam Israel

Sam Israel (born March 4, 1899, in Rhodes, Greece; died June 11, 1994, in Seattle, Washington) [http://www.samis.com/foundation/who/sam.html Sam Israel] , Samis Foundation. Accessed 1 December 2007.] [ [http://ssdi.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/ssdi.cgi?lastname=israEL&firstname=SAMUEL&start=21 Social Security Death Index at Rootsweb.com] , accessed 1 December 2007.] was a real estate investor and developer. Israel immigrated to the United States in 1919 and became a shoemaker in Seattle. After World War II, during which he had a military contract to repair combat boots at Fort Lewis near Tacoma, he began to invest in real estate. [http://www.samis.com/foundation/who/sam.html Sam Israel] , Samis Foundation. Accessed 1 December 2007.] His holdings, many of them in the Pioneer Square historic district, were largely run-down and undesirable to the majority of investors. Through what Paul Dorpat in "Pacific Northwest" Magazine called Israel's "benign neglect," [Paul Dorpat, [http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/pacificnw/2003/0126/nowthen.html An Art-full Restoration] , "Pacific Northwest" Magazine, a Sunday supplement to the "Seattle Times", January 26, 2003. Article about the Collins Building in Seattle's Pioneer Square neighborhood. Accessed online 1 December 2007.] many of these buildings survived to be renovated after his death in 1994.Maude Scott, [http://www.djc.com/special/cmarket97/10020743.htm It's A New Day For The Samis Foundation] , "Seattle Daily Journal of Commerce", February 28, 1997. Accessed online 1 December 2007.]

Israel established the Samis Land Company (now simply Samis) to manage his holdings; in 1979, he established the Samis Foundation, which is supported by the company and has granted over $40 million toward "enhanc [ing] the quality and continuity of Jewish life in Washington State and the State of Israel." The foundation states that over 80% of its annual grants support Jewish education in Washington.

Israel spent much of his later years in Soap Lake, Washington, which was said to remind him of the land of Israel.

Samis currently owns over 500 parcels in Washington, including convert|16000|acre|km2 of land outside Seattle. Within Seattle, Samis owns two blocks in Downtown, and 11 historic buildings in Pioneer Square. [ [http://www.samis.com/ Home page] , Samis. Accessed 1 December 2007.] The Smith Tower was part of its portfolio from 1996 to 2006. [Jennifer Langston, [http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/265873_smith07.html Smith Tower, Seattle's first skyscraper, sold] , "Seattle Post-Intelligencer", April 7, 2006. Accessed online 1 December 2007.]

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