12 Friday, October 8, 1976

THE DETROITJEWISH NEWS

Young Adults, Center Boost Activities for Singles

By HEIDI PRESS

Lectures,
dances,
drop-ins, oneg Shabat
programs and singles
weekends now are avail-
able on a regular basis to
Jewish singles age 18-25,
owing to the efforts of the
IVIichigail Jewish Singles
Council and the Jewish
Community Center.
However, it is only within
the past, year that this
frequency of events was
realized.
According to Cynthia
Leven, a graphic illus-
trator and vice president
of the MJSC (formerly
Michigan Jewish Young
Adult Council), five years
ago there was only one
organization functioning
to provide Jewish singles
with cultural, social and
educational activities —
"- Bnai Moshe Singles. The

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group became inactive
when its director, Sy Kap-
lan, left the synagogue,
and was reactivated
when Mel Owens of
synagogue's youth corn-
mission approached the
young adults to start
programming again.
'Soon, other groups
were started in Detroit
and Windsor and they
began scheduling prog-
rams on top of each other.
Alan Ferman, a former
University of Windsor
student now of Toronto,
who led the Jewish Young
Adults of Windsor, ap-
proached the Detroit
groups with the idea ,of
forming a council to pre-
vent scheduling conflicts.
Owens called a meeting
in his home of the rep-
resentatives of various
Jewish organizations. The
groups and their delegates
included Frank Leider-
man, adviser to • Cong.
Beth Abraham-Hiller§
New Dimension Singles,
Gordon Silverman of the
Jewish Community
Center, Al Kushner of the
Jewish Community Coun-
cil and Miss Leven, Caryl
Scheuer and Joel Marwil,
all of the Bnai Moshe
group, and Ferman. After
that first meeting to form a

council, more than a year
passed before it became a
reality.
At that first meeting,
the members sought to
approach the general
Jewish community and
the Jewish Center for
possible help with mail-
ings, the use of a copying
machine and most of all
funds with which to oper-
ate. According to Owens,
"No one seemed to care."
Helen Naimark cared.
A member of the Jewish
Center board and head of
the Center's college-age
and youth committee,
Mrs. Naimark has fou-
ght for the needs of the
community's single
young adults. Last year,
she called a meeting of
representatives of Jewish
communal organizations
and synagogues to a
meeting where Ron Fein-
berg, a research assistant
in Wayne State Universi-
ty's office of institutional
research, presented the
results of a study he con-
ducted during summer
1975 on the needs of
Jewish singles.
In March 1974, the
Michigan Jewish Young
Adult Council was formed
with Ferman as its head
and Owens and Leider-

man as advisers. Original
member organizations
included the Jewish
Young Adults of Windsor,
Bnai Moshe Singles, the
Bayit, )3nai Brith Hillel
Foundation on the Wayne
State University campus,
Beth Abraham-Hillel
New Dimension Singles,
the Israeli Student Or-
ganization and Beth El
Singles. Soon, Series of
Encounters, the Jewish
Center's singles program
joined the council., How-
ever, it and the Bayit,
Bnai Moshe Singles and
the Windsor group have
since folded or become in-
active.
Now, more than two
years old, the MJSC has
established a solid enough
base in the Jewish com-
munity to be able to gain
its assistance. In the past,
when synagogues were
approached to allow the
young adults a dignified
atmosphere in which to
hold social, cultural and
educational events, they
were refused on the
grounds that "it was not
the proper place," accord-
ing to the Feinberg study.
To date, Cong. Beth
Shalom, Cong. Shaarey
Zedek and Cong. Beth
Abraham-Hillel have
opened their doors to
allow the singles to hold
oneg Shabat programs on
their premises.
The council, directed by
a president, vice presi-
dent, secretary and trea-
surer, meets on a monthly
basis to discuss prog-
ramming, evaluate
events and resolve prob-
lems. The MJSC has
adopted a constitution
which provides for the
election and appointment
of officers and committee
chairmen and contains
the regulations by which
the council operates.
Financially, the MJSC
is self-sufficient, deriving
operating funds from
major dances held at t he
Jewish Center and area
hotels and from other
functions. Since its recent
merger with the Jewish
Centex., the council has
sought to share costs of
some programs. •
The council prints a
newsletter, that is mailed
to about '2,500 Jewish
singles and lists the
events of the constituent
organizations and those
of community groups.
Jewish communal or-
ganizations seeking the
aid of young adults also
are allowed space to pub-
licize their need.
The MJSC also offers
cultural and educational

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programs for interested have a cabaret theater
young adults. Oneg Shabat program, ski trips, Heb-
programs feature a rew classes for singles
speaker, Israeli dancing and a drama workshop.
What are the goals of the
and refreshments. Speak-
ers are sought for the MJSC? Miss Scheuer, a
Tuesday evening lecture medical librarian and
programs, and for the sec- president of the MJSC,
ond year, the MJSC is par- would like to get more
ticipating in the Jewish young adults involved in
Center Book Fair. Com- planning, "to make the
munally, the council par- MJSC a viable group to
ticipated in a fund-raising last for at least the next 10
event for the years." Mary Wagner, tre-
Dysautonomia Foundation asurer and past president
— an organization devoted of the Beth Abraham-
to raising funds for Hillel group would like to
Dysautonotnia — a Jewish "see the MJSC grow to be
genetic disease — by sel- THE singles scene for the
ling raffle tickets at a Jewish community — to
dance.
eventually branch out on a
These activities were statewide basis."
boosted by a film series,
cabaret evenings and
drop-in activities upon
the arrival of Jay Silver-
and His ORCHESTRA
man, young adult ac-
"Music and entertainment at
tivities coordinator for
its Best for Your Guest*"
the Jewish Center.
Silverman came to the
Center in May, filling in
as the young adult
worker, a post which had
been vacant for almost
TRISHA
two years. He is a former
(formerly of Trisha conducts)
TV director, therapist for
Is BACK!!
emotionally disturbed
youth and a teen and
TRISHA & DEE
senior adult activities
coordinator. Noting the
ESTATE &
lack of ongoing young
adult programs at the
HOUSEHOLD
Jewish Center, he set out
SALES
to develop programs for
the young adults which
would not compete with
the MJSC.
Since his arrival, there
has been an ongoing
Tuesday night series of
activities for young
THE LATEST NEW YORK
adults at the Maple
DANCING STYLES
Center — Hamakthn (The
Place). Programs here in-
New Fall Enrollment Open
clude speakers, films,
for private or class lessons
games nights and drop
Also Disco Parties with
ins. Cabaret evenings are
dance instructions
held monthly and feature
folk singers and improvi-
sational comedy. The
cabarets are more formal
than the Hamakom even-
ings — no jeans are al-
lowed. A singles tennis
clinic has been started,
Adult & Childrens Tap
and Silverman plans to

FRANK PAUL

557-7986

ANNOUNCEMENT

643-7004

DISCO

BONNIE
398-0353

IFIZKOli

FOR YOUR LOVED ONES
THAT THEY SHALL BE
REMEMBERED

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IN ISRAEL
IN THEIR MEMORY

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cherished memories of your
dear ones.

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WE WILL DO THE REST

JEWISH

mem nom

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Oak Park. Mich. 48237

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