On Saturday June 18, 2015 a man had a heart attack. The man was driving. His car sped into a cafe in Tel Aviv and killed two patrons. One of those patrons was Alan Weinkrantz.
Immediately, shock waves rumbled through the Start-Up Nation and then to his beloved Texas and beyond. The shock of those who heard the news was somewhat offset by the immense number of people expressing their sheer loss, reflecting the abundant global influence that Alan had despite his modest manner, his humble personable interactions and his sincere desire just to listen and help all those he could.
The next day, two Meet-Ups took place simultaneously – one in Jerusalem and one in Tel Aviv. Novice hackers joined veteran Internet pioneers humbled by their loss and the magnitude of Alan’s generosity which was continuously amplified as posts, pictures, videos and tributes flooded social media and news sites around the globe.
This site was suggested at the Jerusalem meet-up by Saul Singer, co-author of the bestseller “Start-Up Nation” as a way to continue Alan’s legacy, facilitating mentoring and networking, propagating the culture of generous giving which Alan had demonstrated to thousands of people.
The Goal of This Site is to Help People
And to Help People, Help People
That is what Alan did and that is what we seek to continue to do.
This is an effort that transcends technology. Alan used his talents and connections to be an ambassador, an evangelist and a mentor for the amazing hi-tech Israeli culture he discovered, but all he wanted to do was help people, no matter who they were or what they did.
Initially, this site will focus on creating a community of mentors and those seeking guidance. We are seeking to help both online and in real-world events, following Alan’s example as an early adopter of technology as well as a natural networker who enjoyed the conferences and gatherings which became part of his routine.
Alan illuminated a way of being which many of those who expressed their loss following his untimely death seek to emulate. We hope that this site will be a catalyst for the type of human interactions which Alan inspired in us and which have the power to change the world.
In 2013, Alan wrote a post for Silicon Hills News about then Gov. Rick Perry visiting the tech industry in Israel. Here is how Alan described what he saw in the Start-Up Nation:
“People come to Israel from all over the world to create and do new things. While you can say it’s technology in the literal sense, I think what’s going on there is something that borders on being spiritual and even possibly religious, depending on what you believe in.
It’s code.
You know, the code from the various religions, beliefs sets and the rising consciousness of our planet that are now being written into the Internet of things.
I believe that a new type of scripture is being written – one that is part of a gigantic interconnected network and massive data sets. And much of that scripture is being written, or rather, coded in Israel.
If you take into account that Israel is the home of major R&D centers like Apple, Intel, GE, Cisco, Google, HP, TI, IBM, Microsoft, eBay and recently, Facebook, much of what drives the future of the global innovation comes from this very blessed region of the world.”