ASOR LEGACY CIRCLE: TOM AND ALINA LEVY
Tom and Alina Levy in front of the Garden Apartment at the W.F. Albright Institute of Archaeological Research, 1986
Alina and I just joined the ASOR Legacy Circle as ASOR has been in our lives for many years. ASOR became a very important chapter starting in 1982 when Tom was fortunate to receive a National Endowment for the Humanities ASOR grant to spend the year doing post-doctoral research at the W.F. Albright Institute of Archaeological Research in Jerusalem. We did not have a lot of money at that time, but Alina thought it was a good idea to accept ASOR’s unique offer of life membership for $1000 – a huge amount for us at the time. Several years later, Albright Director Sy Gitin offered Tom a job as Assistant Director of the Albright. This was a wonderful opportunity for a young archaeologist. Alina and I were invited to live at the Albright in what we called the Garden Apartment beneath the Director’s home. We were even allowed to bring Sandy, our beloved Boxer, to take up residence at the Albright for two years. Living in East Jerusalem was a wonderful experience. We became very close to the Palestinian staff at the Albright – Munira Said (Secretary), Omar Jabrin (Cook), Said Freij (Major Domo). Labiba, Salami, Abu Ahamad, and Fais (Gardener). Fais is the only staff member left from the old days. Omar would tell us innumerable stories about the old days, including many about one of Tom’s archaeological heroes who served as the director of the school in the 1930s – Nelson Glueck. Although there was no meal plan linked to Tom’s salary, almost every evening after dinner, Omar would send one of his sons with a plate of delicious food for us and scraps for Sandy. We made numerous trips to the West Bank with Said to visit traditional olive oil, soap, charcoal and other producers. Omar, Munira and Said invited us to their homes for meals and good conversations. Living and working at the Albright was a unique experience to meet all the top scholars in the field at that time.
Around the table in the Kershaw Garden at the Albright Institute (from left): Larry Stager, David Amiran, Geoffrey Shipton, Diane Saltz, Tom Levy, Sy Gitin. In the background – Munira Said, Jodi Magness, Doug Esse and others.
When Tom started to work in Jordan in 1996, ACOR became another home in the Middle East. Director Pierre and Patricia Bikai, and later, Barbara Porter, helped facilitate living and carrying out research in Jordan in so many ways.
Although the Albright and ACOR have their own fundraising mechanisms, these two centers, along with CAARI in Cyprus, are the tip of the ASOR research spear in the Eastern Mediterranean. These overseas centers serve as key components of ASOR mission that facilitates American research in this wonderful part of the world. For these reasons, we are happy to be members of the ASOR Legacy Circle.
Alina and Tom Levy
