Levi Shemtov is the Executive Vice President of American Friends of Lubavitch in Washington D.C., Founder and President of the Capitol Jewish Forum, which is the largest Jewish group on Capitol Hill designed to "create and enhance a sense of identity and community among Jewish Congressional staffers and members of Congress" and which enjoys strong support of the Leadership and members of both parties in the US Senate and House of Representatives, and serves on the board of the Rabbinical Council of Greater Washington.
Professional life
Shemtov is the head Chabad Emissary in Washington D.C and serves the daily governmental and diplomatic needs of the international Chabad-Lubavitch movement, the world's largest and fastest growing Jewish network of educational and social service institutions, with over 3,500 centers in all 50 states and over 100 countries. The founder and spiritual leader of TheSHUL of the Nation's Capital. He maintains close relationships with numerous members of the United States Congress, senior Administration officials and leaders in the international community, including a number of heads of state and government. Rabbi Shemtov chairs the organizing committee of the International Chabad-Lubavitch Conference - Living Legacy, which facilitates high-level interaction between rabbis and communal leadership from around the globe and prominent US and international figures in the arenas of government, diplomacy, academia and the arts. TheSHUL offers a unique place for Jewish life, regardless of formal affiliation, children's programs, Torah study programs and celebrations of Shabbat and Jewish holidays. He has also been dubbed numerous times as "the rabbi of Capitol Hill", "a Washington institution", "one of the most unlikely players in the nation's capital" "a fixture on the diplomatic circuit" and "one of the most savvy politicos in town". Programs he organizes include several signature events such as the annual lighting ceremony of the National ChanukahMenorah drawing thousands to The Ellipse every year, and seen by millions more via various media and the internet. In 2012, for example, the total TV viewership - in the US alone - was close to 50 million. Shemtov appreciates technology, being one of the first to bring the Chanukah celebration on-line. Shemtov is often at the White House, Pentagon, United States Department of State and other venues in official Washington, seen by many as an effective, bipartisan unifier and premier Jewish resource. He has overseen the koshering of the White House for the celebration of Jewish American Heritage Month and Chanukah in the administrations of George W. Bush and Barack Obama.
