THE JEWISH NEWS SEVENTY-FIVE CENTS F _. SERVING DETROIT'S JEWISH COMMUNITY Venture Will Create Third Funeral Service KIMBERLY LIFTON Staff Writer A lan Dorfman, who served as funeral di- rector for Hebrew Memorial Chapel for 22 years, is launching a third Jewish funeral enterprise specializing in graveside services. The Alan H. Dorfman Fu- neral Direction, slated to open in Berkley on Jan. 18, is the first known funeral venture started since the late Ira Kaufman left Heb- rew Memorial to start his own chapel 50 years ago. Hebrew Memorial Chapel, part of the Hebrew Benevolent Society, is one of a few remaining non-profit Jewish funeral chapels in the country. Dating back to the turn of the century, the society was formed to pro- vide proper burial for all members of the Jewish community. "Graveside is an old tradi- tion in a modern world," said Mr. Dorfman, 52, a licensed mortician who has worked in the field for close to 30 years. "I've always had a dream of opening my own business, and I wanted to serve the Jewish commun- ity." Mr. Dorfman's recent departure from Hebrew Memorial followed a deci- sion last summer by the society's board of directors, who opted not to renew his contract. Mr. Dorfman has retained attorney Larry Jackier, who is studying op- tions. Mr. Dorfman declined to discuss the terms of his dismissal. But Rabbi Boruch Levin, Hebrew Memorial's executive director, said his departure was in the best in- terest of both parties. "I want his reputation to remain intact. He did a very fine job. It was time for a ca- reer change for him," Rabbi Levin said. "I wish Alan well." Direction is offering a long needed alternative, in which JANUARY 11, 1991 / 25 TEVET 5751 CLOSE•UP cost will be lower and service will be personal. The graveside service, Mr. Dorf- man said, eliminates stress of going to the chapel and then again to the cemetery. He said Direction will offer all services provided by other homes without the ex- pense of the chapel and that alternative services may be held at the cemetery chapel, temple or synagogue. Many Conservative and Orthodox rabbis said syn- agogues should not be used for funerals. Yet some Reform rabbis said they would work with Mr. Dorf- man if family members re- quested temple services. "It also eliminates the dangerous procession that follows the limousines to the cemetery," Mr. Dorfman said. "There is a certain closeness shared at the cemetery. It is less time con- suming." Directions will be located in a small office building Continued on Page 20 Lost Detroiter Holds Key To Inheritance ELIZABETH APPLEBAUM Assistant Editor J ohn Eisen was a dashing young New Yorker who liked ping pong and cars and was as smooth on the dance floor as Fred Astaire. David Newberger was a bespectacled teen-ager, the new kid on the Bronx block who just couldn't get enough golf A chance meeting brought the two men together, inex- tricably linking them to a $310,000 inheritance and a mysterious woman believed to have died 17 years ago in Harper Woods. The woman's name was Ada Greenberg, John Eisen's sister. Little is known of her except that she was a native New Yorker who came to Detroit with her husband, a physician. When Mr. Eisen died two years ago, he left half his $310,000 estate to charity and half to his sister. In case of Mrs. Greenberg's death, her portion of the in- heritance was to go to organ- izations in Israel. Mr. Eisen's old friend, David Newberger, was nam- ed executor of the will. He wants to direct the money to its rightful owner or to charitable institutions. But despite a lengthy search, he has been unable to discover the fate of Ada Greenberg. It all began in 1924, when the Newberger family left their home in the Lower East Side and moved to the Bronx. John's brother, Sam, had tuberculosis, and the family believed the Bronx air would be healthier. "That's when the Bronx didn't have the smog like it does today," said Mr. Newberger, who now lives in Phoenix. The family settled in a small house on Cambridge Street. "It was pretty rural," Mr. Newberger said. "We had an outhouse." One afternoon young David Newberger noticed a dark-haired man playing golf. A golf aficionado, David couldn't believe his good for- tune at stumbling across this sympathetic soul. He walked right over and in- troduced himself. The man held out his hand. His name was John Eisen. John Eisen's family were Bronx natives who lived several doors down from the Newbergers. John's mother was named Molly Sirota; his father was Benjamin Eisenman. Together, the couple had three children: Bertha, Simon, Abraham (John) and Ada, a pretty and lively young woman who made friends easily. John and David became the best of friends. After Continued on Page 21 he Federation Apartments have undergone unique growth and changes in serving the Jewish elderly.