Sammy Ofer
Israeli businessman (1922–2011)
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Early life
Shmuel Hershkovich was born in 1922 in Galați, Romania, to a Jewish family.[3] In 1924, his family immigrated to the then British Mandate of Palestine. The family resided in the port city of Haifa. His father was a merchant who supplied ships, and after finishing elementary school Ofer worked in the family business. He also worked as a messenger boy for a shipping agency in the city and joined the Haganah. During World War II, Ofer enlisted in the Royal Navy and served on a minesweeper.[3][4] During the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, he served in the Israeli Navy.
Career
After finishing his military service, he became a shipping agent with the Eastern Conglomerate, and by 1950 had bought his first ship. He expanded in the shipping business.[5]
Ofer's assets were partly in his exclusive ownership and partly owned together with his brother Yuli, consisting of one of the largest private shipping companies in the world, with a value of $3.6 billion in 2011.[6] This includes the companies ZIM, Royal Caribbean International, Israel Corporation, Israel Chemicals, Oil Refineries Ltd, Bank Mizrahi-Tfahot, and Tower Semiconductor.
The annual Forbes magazine's list of The World's Billionaires estimated in 2011 his fortune, together with his brother Yuli's, to be $10.3 billion, ranked him in 2011 as the 79th in the wealthiest people in the world, and the wealthiest man in Israel.[7]
Philanthropy
In March 2008, Ofer donated £20 million to London's National Maritime Museum (NMM) at Greenwich, as part of a £35 million programme of expansion.[8] Ofer donated £3.3 million to help complete the restoration of the Cutty Sark by 2010.[9]
In 2013, a £1.5 million donation from Eyal Ofer enabled the NMM to buy two paintings by George Stubbs from 1772. The paintings depict a kangaroo and a dingo, and are the first depictions of Australian animals in Western art.[10]
In 2007, Ofer donated $25 million to the Rambam Health Care Campus in Haifa, Israel, which included $17 million[11] for its 2000-bed Sammy Ofer Fortified Underground Emergency Hospital.[12]
On 10 November 2008 he was made an Honorary Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE) in recognition of his involvement with maritime heritage in the United Kingdom.[13]
Personal life
He was married to Aviva Ofer. They had two sons: Idan Ofer and Eyal Ofer. They mainly resided in Monte Carlo, Monaco.[citation needed]
Death
On 3 June 2011, Ofer died in his house in Tel Aviv, Israel, at the age of 89.[14]
Legacy
In 2013, Idan Ofer donated £25 million to London Business School in honor of his father, Sammy.[15] A new educational facility at Marylebone Town Hall was established as the Sammy Ofer Centre. The gift was the largest in the school's history.[15] There is also a well-known Israeli soccer stadium named after him that he also partially funded, Sammy Ofer Stadium in the city Haifa, Israel.