S. Daniel Abraham

Sim Daniel Abraham (born August 15, 1924) is an American businessman, investor, and philanthropist. He is the founder of Thompson Medical, whose main product is Slim-Fast, a diet program. He has endowed the S. Daniel Abraham Center for Middle East Peace and he supports Jewish causes in Florida and Israel.

S. Daniel Abraham
Born
Sim Daniel Abraham

(1924-08-15) August 15, 1924
Long Beach, New York
OccupationBusinessman, philanthropist
Known forfounder of Slim-Fast
Net worth $2.1 billion (October 2018)[1]
Spouse(s)Estanne Weiner (divorced)
Ewa Sebzda
Children6

Early life

Abraham was born on August 15, 1924,[2] the son of Stella K. and Dr. Samuel Abraham.[3] He was raised in an Orthodox Jewish home in Long Beach, New York.[4][5] His father was a Zionist and follower of the Ze'ev Jabotinsky and Abraham as a teen printed his own newsletter warning Americans about the danger from the Nazis.[5] During World War II, Abraham served in the United States Army in Europe.[5] In 1970, he moved to Israel with his wife and children where he lived through the 1973 Yom Kippur War and returned to the United States in 1978.[5]

Career

Abraham founded Thompson Medical, which introduced the Slim-Fast line of diet products in the late 1970s.[6] Abraham made Thompson Medical private in 1988; Unilever acquired Slim-Fast for $2.3 billion in 2000.[7][8] As of October 2016, he had an estimated wealth of US$2.1 billion.[1]

Abraham is the author of the book Peace is Possible, with a foreword by President Bill Clinton. Abraham also published his memoirs in 2010, entitled Everything is Possible: Life and Business Lessons from a Self-Made Billionaire and the Founder of Slim Fast.[9]

Philanthropy

Abraham founded the Center for Middle East Peace in Washington, D.C.[10] Through personal friendship with leaders in the United States, Israel, and throughout the Middle East, he has worked over the past two decades to help bring an end to the Arab/Israeli conflict.[11] He is a major sponsor of the Washington-based United States Institute of Peace.[12]

Abraham endowed an S. Daniel Abraham Chair in Middle East Policy Studies at Princeton University and a Chair in Nutritional Medicine at Harvard University Medical School.[13] He has endowed the S. Daniel Abraham Center for Middle East Peace and the S. Daniel Abraham Center for International and Regional Studies at Tel Aviv University. He funded the Dan Abraham School for Business Administration and Economics at Bar-Ilan University in Israel, and the S. Daniel Abraham Israel Program at Yeshiva University, and Honors Program at Stern College for Women.[14] He holds honorary doctorates from the Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Bar-Ilan University and Yeshiva University. He is also the founder of the New Synagogue of Palm Beach. His gift to the Mayo Clinic served to create the Dan Abraham Healthy Living Center, whose opening in 2007 received national media coverage.[15] The Stella K. Abraham High School for Girls was dedicated in honor of his mother.

He is a founding member of the New Synagogue of Palm Beach.[16]

Political contributions

Abraham is a long-time donor to the Democratic Party and the Clinton Foundation. He gave $1.5 million to the party and ranked as the number one contributor of soft money to the national parties in 2000.[17]

Abraham donated $3 million to Priorities USA Action, a super PAC which supported Hillary Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign.[18][19] In 2020 he's donated $5 million to Democratic aligned Super PACs, including American Bridge 21st Century, House Majority PAC, and Senate Majority PAC.[20]

Personal life

Abraham is divorced from his first wife, Estanne Weiner; they had four daughters:[21][22] Rebecca, Simmi, Leah, and Tammy.[23] He is remarried to Ewa Sebzda with whom he has two children:[1][24][25] Sarah and Sam.[23] He resides in Palm Beach, Florida.[1]

References
  1. "Forbes 400: #335 S. Daniel Abraham". Forbes. Retrieved October 20, 2016.
  2. http://www.paladium.net/usanycmuseumofjewishheritage.php
  3. "Paid Notice: Deaths ABRAHAM, STELLA K." The New York Times. December 16, 1998.
  4. Shani McManus (Apr 20, 2010). "S. Daniel Abraham: Philanthropist and peace maker". Sun-Sentinel.
  5. "S. Daniel Abraham". American Jewish Peace Archive. Daniel Abraham was born in 1924 and was raised in an Orthodox Jewish home.
  6. Rose, Lacey (2005-04-06). "America's Most Famous Diet Gurus - Forbes". Retrieved 2016-08-05.
  7. Kanner, Bernice (1992-05-18). "Slim Pickings". New York. 25 (20). pp. 14–16.
  8. Branch, Shelly; Beck, Ernest (2000-04-13). "Unilever Buys Ben & Jerry's, SlimFast for Over $2.5 Billion". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 2015-04-19.
  9. Abraham, S. Daniel. Everything Is Possible: Life and Business Lessons from a Self-Made Billionaire and the Founder of Slim-Fast. ReadHowYouWant.com. ISBN 978-1-4587-5846-0.
  10. "S. Daniel Abraham". Retrieved 2016-08-05.
  11. "Bio: S. Daniel Abraham" - S. Daniel Abraham Center for Middle East Peace
  12. "S. Daniel Abraham: Philanthropist and peace maker - Sun Sentinel". Articles.sun-sentinel.com. 2010-04-20. Retrieved 2014-02-01.
  13. "S. Daniel Abraham | Jewish Virtual Library". www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org. Retrieved 2016-08-05.
  14. "S. Daniel Abraham, Chairman - S. Daniel Abraham Center for Peace". Retrieved 2016-08-05.
  15. "Dan Abraham Healthy Living Center - Dan Abraham Healthy Living Center Internship". Mayo Clinic. Retrieved 2014-02-01.
  16. The New Synagogue of Palm Beach: "Founding Member, S. Daniel Abraham" retrieved August 17, 2017
  17. "State parties collected nearly $570 million in contributions, soft money transfers in 2000". Center for Public Integrity. 2002-06-25. Retrieved 2016-08-05.
  18. "Priorities USA Action: Contributors, 2016 cycle". OpenSecrets.org. Center for Responsive Politics. Retrieved October 20, 2016.
  19. Iacob, Ivona (May 27, 2016). "The Top Donors Backing Hillary Clinton's Super PAC". Forbes. Retrieved October 20, 2016.
  20. https://www.opensecrets.org/outsidespending/donor_detail.php?cycle=2020&id=U0000000338&type=I&super=N&name=Abraham%2C+S.+Daniel
  21. New York Daily News: "Inside the ugly battle for the $1B SlimFast fortune" by Emily Smith February 25, 2016
  22. New York Times: "NEW YORK DAY BY DAY; A Marriage" by Susan Heller Anderson and David W. Dunlap January 6, 1986
  23. Abraham, S. Daniel (Jun 13, 2012). Everything Is Possible: Life and Business Lessons from a Self-Made Billionaire and the Founder of Slim-Fast. ReadHowYouWant. ISBN 9781458758460.
  24. Palm Beach Daily News: "Birthright Israel Foundation - Ewa and Dan Abraham" retrieved August 17, 2017
  25. Encyclopedia.com: "Abraham, S. Daniel 1924-" retrieved August 17, 2017
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