In this episode of the Aliyah Story podcast, we explore how recovery didn’t just change Eric Levitz’s life — it gave him a mission that could only be built in Israel. Eric, the founder of AZ House Jerusalem, shares how his own near-death battle with addiction and his experience in a free, donation-based recovery center in Cleveland shaped everything he would later build in Israel. 

Arriving in Israel with no Hebrew, no money, and no plan, Eric followed what he describes as a faith-based jump — trusting that the reason would become clear only after he arrived. Within six months, it did: he realized that the Jewish world had no free, community-driven recovery center, the very kind that saved his life. 

Eric also shares how recovery gave him everything: his community, his life, even the introduction that led him to his wife. “Every dream I ever could have imagined — and many I couldn’t have imagined — came from the decision to get sober.” 

This episode is a powerful look at how recovery doesn’t end with getting better — it can ignite a mission, transform a community, and root a person deeply in Israel.

Mentioned in this episode: 

AZ House Jerusalem - Eric’s treatment center in Jerusalem. https://www.azhousejerusalem.com/

To support AZ House: https://donorbox.org/the-az-house-a-home-to-rebuild-lives

Pizgat Ze'Ev - https://www.jerusalem.muni.il/en/residents/communities/pisgat-zeev/

Anthony's Pizza - https://www.facebook.com/anthonys.pizza.jerusalem/

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Production: Yazek Shrem

Business & Social Coordinator: Tehila Simantov