Schvach! It's a shonda! What kind of kiddush is this?!

These were Larry and Marilyn's initial impressions of the Ansche Chesed kiddush. The couple had fallen in love with AC's warm and welcoming kehillah, but being the foodies that they are, they felt the kiddush simply didn't cut the mustard. "Food is love," the Levis would say, and their desire to show their love and give back to the shul community were their inspiration for revitalizing the kiddush. Thanks in large part to their efforts, the AC kiddush became a wonderful extension of the Shabbat experience and one that weaves a fabric of community as congregants linger on a lazy Saturday afternoon. The Levis couldn't be happier.

Marilyn and Larry began as high-school sweethearts. More than 60 years later, they love the lives and family they've built together. The dynamic duo have run the beloved Appletree Market on 120th and Amsterdam for over 40 years, building it into the neighborhood fixture that generations of Upper West Siders have considered their "go to" place. Situated virtually around the corner from JTS, the store has given Marilyn and Larry the inside track on the young, up-and-coming Conservative rabbis. That includes Rabbi Kalmanofsky, to whom the couple sold challah back when he was just "Jeremy."

Constantly surrounded by their children, Jeff and Wendy and Richard and Julie, and their grandchildren, Ilyssa, Ben, Amanda, Rachel and Sara, Marilyn and Larry relish their close-knit family. "Judaism keeps us together," says Marilyn. "From Passover to Rosh Hashanah and everywhere in-between, we love the time and experiences we share with our family."

When Larry's father, Lothar, passed away nearly 20 years ago, Larry needed a place in Manhattan to say Kaddish. With the Appletree only 20 blocks away, AC was the logical place to land. Things could not have worked out better. He immediately felt welcomed and embraced, and years later, when the couple decided to move from New Jersey to the Upper West Side, the idea of making AC their Jewish home began to germinate. Since moving to 110th Street, Marilyn and Larry have been AC regulars who prize their time at AC and are always eager to volunteer their time and resources to support the community and have often been privately generous to those who have needed a helping hand.

Marilyn and Larry are grateful for this evening's honor and wish to congratulate the other honorees.