UP FRONT I Tickton Dies Continued from Page 5 these are only a few of the features you'll find weekly in The Jewish News order a subscription or gift subscription today! To: The Jewish News 20300 Civic Center Dr., Suite 240 Southfield, Mi. 48076-4138 1 year - $26 — 2 years - $46 — Out of State - $33 — Foreign - $48 Enclosed $ Gentlemen: Please send a (gift) subscription to: NAME ADDRESS CITY STATE ....ZIP .... From If gift state occasion L FLOWERS & GIFTS, INC. Now — breast cancer has no place to hide in Michigan. Call us. For The Unique in Floral Design WEDDINGS/BAR MITZVAHS Simsbury Plaza 33250 Fourteen Mile Road West Bloomfield, MI 48322 12 FRIDAY, JUNE 16, 1989 Mark P. Ephraim ALL MAJOR CREDIT CARDS 851-9244 AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY' association with Wayne State University, where he served as professor of music for 47 years. He was at the temple for 55 years. During his tenure at Beth El, which ended last year when illness curtailed his ac- tivites, the temple treated him and his wife to a tribute dinner which recalled his tireless devotion to the con- gregation and to the Jewish community in general. It was not unusual for Mr. Tickton to teach Jewish music to children whose grandparents were once his students. "No one in all of North America has served a synagogue for as long and with the same amount of devotion as Jason," said Rab- bi Richard C. Hertz, Temple Beth El's rabbi emeritus. "He never missed a service in all those years. "The children loved him. He watched the generations, from the time they were bless- ed, consecrated, confirmed, married and buried. He was a part of every family in the temple. He and his wife Mamie were living legends in their own time." He was the first music educator to receive the Presi- dent's Award for Excellence in leaching and twice receiv- ed the Adult Education Prize for Creativity in the Arts. He was a lecturer for the DSO, taught a WSU course on radio and wrote numerous articles. His communal and profes- sional memberships included Temple Beth El and its brotherhood, American Guild of Organists, Phi Mu Alpha National Music Fraternity and the Guild of Temple Musicians, the WSU Retirees Club and the National Association of Temple Educators. Among his credits is a Shabbat service he composed, Tefilot Beth El (Songs of Beth El), in honor of the temple. It has been performed in more than 400 temples nationwide. But Mr. Tickton was not alone in his activities. Not on- ly did he share a marriage with the former Mamie Maldawsky, but the two held a long association with the temple, serving a combined 101 years, he as music direc- tor and she as choir director. They did many things together — especially talk. Ask one of them a question and they both answered in unison. For reporters trying to do an interview, it created a nightmare, but it really was a sign of the devotion the cou- ple had for each other. One of Mr. Tickton's greatest joys was to go out to lunch and to take as many friends as possible, never let- ting himself be the guest. But, somehow, he was always the guest of honor, delighting his friends with stories about his experiences, both past and present. Last year, at the end of a luncheon which included among his guests his then- future daughter-in-law, Carol, Mr. Tickton asked what they wanted for dessert. When the menu showed an item called "Chocolate Mozart," the guests were compelled to order it in tribute to their music teacher friend. While at Beth El, Mr. Tickton once estimated he played music for more than 2,000 weddings, sometimes for second and third genera- tions of the same family. To John Redfield, the tem- ple's honorary cantor, the Tickton legacy will live long into the future. "His great gift as a teacher and human being will be perpetuated from generation to genera- tion." Besides his wife, Mamie, Mr. Tickton leaves a son, Dr. Stanley of Virginia Beach, Va.; a brother, Sidney of Chevy Chase, Md.; and three grandchildren. ❑ Panel Debates Mideast Policy The Detroit Federation Community Forum will discuss from four different viewpoints the question "Should U.S. Mideast Policy be Changed?" at the United Hebrew Schools building on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. The panel will consist of: Steven Goldin, Herut-USA; Jeffrey Sherman, Michigan Committee for a Safe Israel; Prof. Boaz Siegel, Labor Zionist Alliance; and Sherwin Tukel, Zionist Organization of America. The forum moderator will be Leon War- shay, ZOA public affairs chairman and WSU professor of sociology. Goldin is a member of the national executive of Herut- USA and vice president of its Detroit Chapter. Siegel was WSU professor of law from 1952 to 1972 and now is pro- fessor emeritus. He is legal counsel to many health and welfare, pension and sup- plemental unemployment trust funds. Tukel has been president of the Metro-Detroit Chapter, Zionist Organiza- tion of America. Norman Naimark, presi- dent, Detroit Zionist Federa- tion, said the forum is the fourth in the ongoing series sponsored by his coalition of 21 local Jewish organizations and is intended to encourage dialogue.