COMMUNITY American-Israel Chamber Honors Michigan Businessmen KIMBERLY LIFTON Staff Writer F Dr. Rudolf Vrba George Mandel Mantello Heroes Of Holocaust Will Be Honored George Mandel Mantello and Dr. Rudolf Vrba will be honored by the Holocaust Memorial Center at its fifth anniversary dinner, 5:30 p.m. Nov. 12 at the Westin Hotel. Gov. James Blanchard will be the keynote speaker. Mantello was first secretary of the general consulate of El Salvador in Geneva, Switzer- land, from 1942-45 and used his position to issue citizen- ship papers to thousands of Jews in German-occupied countries. He also disseminated the Vrba report about Auschwitz, which com- pelled the allies to intervene with the Hungarian govern- ment into halting deportations. A bill to award Mantello the Congressional Gold Medal of Freedom was recently in- troduced in Congress. Vrba, professor of phar- macology, school of medicine, University of British Colum- bia, is one of five people who succeeded in escaping safely from Auschwitz. A Slovak Jew, he worked in a "cleaning commando," dragging out the dead from the incoming trains and later became a registrar in the "quarantine camp" at Birkenau- Auschwitz. In January 1944, Vrba learned about a ramp being built in Birkenau to accom- modate the flow of Hungarian Jews. After many attempts, he escaped and - compiled a detailed, report of the inner- workings of Auschwitz and the impending plans to transport Jews there. That report was transmitted to the Hungarian Jewish leadership and Switzerland. For reservations, call the Holocaust Center, 661-0840. Vivace Concert Series Features George Benson The Vivace Concert Series of the Birmingham Temple will open its season 7:30 p.m. Oct. 29 with a concert featur- ing the George Benson Quartet with vocalist Sandy Patton. Benson has been perform- ing professionally since the age of 17. He has performed in many clubs in the Detroit area and has backed stars such as Dinah Washington, Aretha Franklin and Tony Bennett. He has been an educator in jazz studies at Schoolcraft Community College, Henry Ford Community College and is on the applied music staff of Wayne State University. In 1973, Benson appeared George Benson with the Austin-Moro Band at the Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland. He also has ap- peared with the Detroit Sym- phony Orchestra. or the past few years, Larry Crockett has devoted much of his spare energy to Israel and her future. Crockett, director of the special projects at the Uni- versity of Michigan's school of engineering, has helped to make the Michigan business community aware of the Israel opportunities in high technology by organizing research and development conferences — the last one in April 1989. He recruited a number of Israeli engineers to U-M, and brought Dr. Moshe Ziren from Israel's chief scientist office to U-M for three months as a visiting scholar. He and his wife, Kathy Richards, neither of whom is Jewish, visited Israel for the first time last winter with the American/Israel Chamber of Commerce of Michigan. For his efforts, Crockett this week received an Israel trade award from the American/Israel Chamber of Commerce of Michigan. Other recipients were: Mor- ton Feldman, chairman of the board of Classic Optical, who is the largest importer of Israeli eye-glass frames to the United States; Michael McDermott, a manager of General Dynamics Corp., who has been instrumental in increasing business ac- tivities of the company with Israel; Raymond Palmer, a buyer for K mart Corp., who brought 600,000 Epilady hair removal devices from ' its native Israel to store shelves in the United States; and Mark Kahn, president of Production Tool Supply Co., a major importer and distributor of Israeli-made industrial products. Feldman's company began doing business in Israel in 1980 when he helped adapt the optical frame manufac- turing business to the American market and helped distribute Israeli frames all over the United States. It now • sells an estimated $2 million a year in United States. Projections show Classic Optical will sell $5 million of Israeli eye- glass frames in the United States by 1992. With McDermott's help, General Dynamics has im- ported over $500 million in products from Israel in the past few years. Palmer, of K mart, first began stocking the highly visible Epilady last October. Due to the overwhelming response, the stores now are carrying five other Epi pro- ducts. Kahn's company has im- ported and distributed Israeli products since 1951. During the past year, Pro- duction Tool has purchased almost $2 million in Israeli goods. They recently signed a joint venture with Iscar metals to market their line of industrial tooling under a private label arrangement. Awards were given during the annual dinner meeting of the chamber this week. Speaking at the dinner were Oded Nechushtan, vice pres- ident for Epilady Products, and Meir Buber, the newly appointed Israeli trade commissioner to the United States. ❑ Planning the Yeshiva Beth Yehuda's 75 anniversary dinner are (left to right) Rabbi Norman Kahn, Harold Beznos, -Jerry Luptak, Paul Borman, David Hermelin and Rabbi E.B. Freedman. Yeshiva Beth Yehuda Marks Anniversary Paul Borman, David Hermelin and Harold Beznos will serve as Diamond An- niversary chairmen as Yeshiva Beth Yehudah celebrates its 75th anniver- sary at the Westin Hotel Nov. 19. Cocktails will be served at 6 p.m. with dinner at 7. Heading the honorary din- ner chairmen committee are Ivan Bloch, David Holtzman, Spencer Partrich, Mickey Shapiro and I. William Sherr. Attorney Jerry Luptak will receive the Humanitarian Award at the event. Yeshiva Beth Yehudah was founded as an afternoon Hebrew school in 1914. Today, the network of day schools in- cludes the Joseph Tannen- baum School for Boys, the Sally Allan Alexander Beth Jacob School for Girls, the Abner Wolf Pre-school Department, the Lillian Saltsman Educational Enrichment Program and the Beth Yehudah Day Camp. The P'TACH program for special education also is hous- ed at the Tanenbaum School in Southfield. The yeshiva was establish- ed on Division Street with 150 students. The Beth Jacob School for Girls, was created in 1943, with a high school in 1954. Classes are available to children in pre-school through 12th grade. For dinner reservations, call the Yeshiva, 557-6750. JARC Benefit At Fox Theatre Entertainer Peter Allen will perform at a benefit for JARC Nov. 13 at the Fox Theater. An afterglow in the Grand Lobby will follow. Nancy Jacobson, chairper- son for the annual fundrais- ing event, serves as a JARC vice-president and plays an active role in many Jewish community organizations. Proceeds from the event will help support JARC homes and services for adults with developmental disabilities. THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS 45