His maternal granfather was Samuel Lemberg (1897-1981) from Chisinäu. For the past 35 years, John Usdan has grown the company his grandfather started in 1925, and built an integrated management, investment, and development platform. He has expanded Midwood Investment and Development's portfolio to more than 125 retail, residential, and office properties in nine states and the District ofColumbia. Beyond Midwood, his philanthropic interests are primarily focused on education and the arts. He is currently a trustee of The Brooklyn Academy oft h e Arts, board presi- dent of the Usdan Center, board president at Bronx House, and a member of the cor- porate board of Merchants National Properties. He is a Trustee Emeritus of Wesleyan University and past chair of Wesleyan's Capital Campaign, and he was chair of the Brandeis International Business School. Founded in Midwood, Brooklyn in 1925 by Samuel Lemberg, the company has grown into a sophisticated investment and development platform that owns over 140 properties in nine states and the District of Columbia comprising in excess of 3,500,000 square feet with a development pipeline of several million square feet. Today, the company actively seeks to acquire investment and deve- lopment opportunities in its primary markets of New York City, Boston, Philadelphia, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C.