1) What qualities make the nominee deserving of the Z3 Bridge Builder Award?

Baruch “Bucky” Apisdorf is the founder and CEO of Let’s Do Something, one of the fastest-growing Jewish organizations to emerge in the wake of October 7th. What began as a WhatsApp group created after the tragic murder of his best friend and roommate, David Newman, quickly transformed into a movement focused on three pillars: Defense, Healing, and Advocacy. Under Bucky’s leadership, LDS has mobilized thousands of young Jews across Israel and the diaspora, united not by ideology, but by a shared sense of purpose.

What sets Bucky apart is his ability to bridge generational, political, and geographic divides within the Jewish world. Through initiatives like Operation Tyler—a groundbreaking, unapologetically pro-Semitic campus campaign—he is building a new language of Jewish pride that resonates with Gen Z and cuts across traditional silos. His work brings together student leaders, influencers, and major institutions in a unified front to reshape campus culture and re-center Zionism as a source of dignity, not division.

Equally powerful is David’s Circle, a trauma healing center Bucky launched in Thailand for Israeli soldiers and Nova survivors. The center has served over 700 individuals and models a radically inclusive approach to healing—one where survivors become mentors, and traditional roles of “provider” and “recipient” are reimagined. By creating a safe space outside of Israel, David’s Circle enables deep emotional work that bridges the personal and the collective, the wounded and the whole.

At every level of his work, Bucky builds bridges—not just between people, but between pain and purpose, identity and action, isolation and community. His leadership is grounded in doing: taking grief and transforming it into impact, and creating spaces where all Jews can show up fully, heal, and lead.

For his tireless work uniting Jews across boundaries, ages, and ideologies, Bucky Apisdorf embodies the very spirit of the Z3 Bridge Builder Award.

2) In what ways has the nominee demonstrated exceptional leadership and commitment to their work in bridging divides?

Baruch “Bucky” Apisdorf’s leadership is defined by urgency, clarity, and action. In the immediate aftermath of October 7th, while many were still frozen by shock, Bucky mobilized. He didn’t wait for permission or funding—he took his grief and turned it into movement. Within 48 hours of losing his best friend, he had coordinated the first aid flight to Israel. In the months that followed, he oversaw ten full shipments of aid, built national coalitions, and established a new organizational model that fused grassroots agility with high-impact outcomes.

What makes Bucky’s leadership exceptional is not just what he builds—it’s how he brings people together. Whether coordinating advocacy campaigns with U.S. college students, designing trauma recovery systems with mental health professionals, or forging partnerships between Israeli military innovators and diaspora donors, Bucky leads with radical inclusivity and conviction. He speaks the language of Gen Z and of Jewish elders. He builds bridges not only between Israelis and Americans, but also between the deeply religious and the deeply secular, between grief and resilience, and between the past and a livable future.

At David’s Circle, his leadership goes beyond operations. Bucky has created a healing model that turns survivors into leaders, therapists into community members, and volunteers into changemakers. His commitment to the individuals behind the numbers is unwavering. He knows names, stories, wounds—and he shows up for all of them, relentlessly.

Through Operation Tyler, he has taken on one of the Jewish world’s most urgent challenges—campus antisemitism—and turned it into an opportunity for renewal. He’s not just reacting to hate. He’s proactively building a proud, unapologetic, and magnetic culture of Jewish belonging and identity.

Bucky doesn’t simply fill gaps. He reimagines what’s possible—and then makes it real. His commitment is total, his vision bold, and his execution fierce. That is the kind of leadership our people need.

3) How has the nominee's work impacted the Jewish community and beyond?

Baruch “Bucky” Apisdorf’s work has created a ripple effect across the Jewish world—connecting people, healing wounds, and reigniting purpose in a time of unimaginable grief and division.

Following the October 7th massacre, where his best friend and roommate David Newman was murdered at the Nova music festival, Bucky responded not with paralysis, but with purpose. He founded Let’s Do Something (LDS), a grassroots initiative that rapidly scaled into one of the most dynamic Jewish organizations today. Within six months, LDS coordinated ten flights of aid to Israel and built operational partnerships across military, mental health, and advocacy spaces.

But Bucky’s greatest impact is not in logistics—it’s in human connection. He has brought together Jews across the ideological spectrum, from deeply religious to entirely secular, from Tel Aviv to New York, around a shared mission of defending, healing, and rebuilding the Jewish people. His work is rooted in action and dignity, not ideology. That’s why people show up.

His most groundbreaking project is David’s Circle, Israel’s only dedicated healing center abroad, based in Thailand. In under a year, it has served over 700 young people—soldiers, Nova survivors, and others affected by the war. The center’s model redefines trauma care: it’s not a top-down clinical environment, but a peer-led, community-driven space where survivors become mentors and healing happens through belonging. The approach is already influencing therapists and trauma centers across Israel.

Beyond healing, Bucky is also reshaping Jewish advocacy. Through Operation Tyler, he’s confronting the identity crisis playing out on college campuses with a bold, unapologetically pro-Semitic campaign. The program trains Gen Z leaders, produces viral content, and builds visible, proud Jewish communities on the ground. Rather than reacting to antisemitism, Bucky is building an ecosystem of strength and clarity that inspires—not just defends.