Abdallah Shanti was born and raised in Jerusalem’s Old City and attended the Collège des Frères. In 1979, he left to pursue his higher education in the United States, traveling on a one-way ticket to Chicago, Illinois, with $900 in his pocket and a dream in his heart, accompanied by the good-luck wishes of his parents. Abdallah graduated with two master’s degrees, one in electrical/electronic engineering and the other in computer engineering, from Oakland University (Michigan).
His passion for cars started with the toy cars of his childhood years and never left him. So when General Motors (GM) offered him an entry position in engineering, he accepted and started his automotive journey in Detroit, Michigan, the town that has become his new home. Abdallah married a Palestinian woman from Jerusalem, Dr. Christina M. Shanti. In 1990, he left GM to be part of a start-up company founded by H. Ross Perot. Together they built a high-technology company that went public in 1998 and eventually was purchased by Dell Computer Company for approximately US$ 3 billion. At age 38, Abdallah retired – for three months. Then he decided that it was too early for such a move; more needed to be done! Abdallah returned to GM to be part of another start-up that became a company independent of GM and went public. Here, Abdallah assumed multiple roles and responsibilities: he worked in the areas of electronic engineering, procurement, and information technology, and he became vice president and chief information officer. Later on, he joined another giant automotive company, where he is currently executive vice president of systems and technology.
Abdallah has always been a passionate athlete, and in his younger days was a lifeguard at the Jerusalem YMCA. An avid golfer (with a single-digit handicap), he also enjoys running, and runs one or two full marathons per year. He is also an accomplished private pilot. He admits that his “true passion, however, is being the father of two young adults, Julian and Juditte, and the husband of the most wonderful person in my world, Christina.”
Christina M. Siniora-Shanti, was born in Jerusalem to a Palestinian father and a Danish mother. She attended Schmidt College and graduated at the top of her class before leaving to study mechanical engineering at Wayne State University in Detroit. In 1994, she was awarded the Woman Engineer of Michigan Award. But after a stint in engineering, Christina changed course and obtained a medical degree from Wayne State Medical School. She completed her residency in general surgery at Detroit Medical Center and fellowships in critical care and pediatric surgery at Children’s Hospital of Michigan in Detroit. Today, Dr. Christina Shanti is both chief of pediatric surgery and director of the children’s hospital of Michigan. She has been nominated and awarded the TOP Doc Award in the State of Michigan several times. She enjoys her job tremendously, and she is privileged to operate on children, improving their situation and, in some cases, giving them another chance at life. She values the parents’ trust and faith in her to do her best to save their children.
An ardent surgeon and avid runner, Christina is also “an incredible mother of two wonderful young adults” (Abdallah Shanti). For relaxation, she enjoys doing needlepoint work, reading, hiking, and co-piloting her husband’s plane on long journeys across the United States. She is a casual golfer just to keep her husband happy. She and her husband Abdallah are training for their next marathon this coming spring. Abdallah asserts, “Couples who run together, stay together.” (smiley emoticon)
