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VacationDilemitia
The JCC has the answer for singles who want to vacation together.
ANITA H. EHRENFRIED
Special to The Jewish News
14:2)
arry Dutcher is
wearing his Detroit
Tigers cap under-
neath his white
water safety helmet. His
ragged, black work pants, an-
cient navy nylon parka,
button-down Oxford shirt and
black army boots are firmly
fastened to his body.
Halfway down the roaring
Ottawa River, Mr. Dutcher
deliberately jumps off the
raft, leaving his nine other
rafters and travel compa-
nions on the boat.
Suddenly, the raft takes
off, bouncing down the river.
Mr. Dutcher, now alone,
struggles to catch up to his
friends.
Adventures like this are
becoming common for
Detroiters who travel
together with trips organiz-
ed by the Jewish Commun-
ity Center. More and more
people are availing them-
selves of sponsored trips like
white water rafting, canoe-
ing and sightseeing jaunts to
Toronto and Chicago.
"We know the singles
population that's involved in
our activities is larger than
it has ever been," said Mort
Plotnick, executive director
of the Maple-Drake Jewish
Community Center.
Norm Moss, who often
travels with other singles,
says it's his favorite way to
meet people.
"Spending almost 24 hours
a day with a person, you get
to know them a lot better
than meeting them at a par-
ty or dancing with them for
10 minutes," Mr. Moss said.
"This way, you can let your
guard down and have a good
time."
This east side jeweler met
one of his best friends,
Cheryl Blau, an elementary
schoolteacher from Farm-
ington Hills, on a Canadian
white water adventure three
years ago.
Mr. Moss has been going
on singles trips, most of
which have been organized
by the JCC in West Bloom-
field, for the last five years.
He's skied with the Chai Ski
Club in 1986 and 1987, trav-
eled with them to West
Virginia on his first white
water rafting trip in 1988,
then was off to Ontario to ski
in the Pinery Provincial
Park.
"I had such a wonderful
time and met such terrific
people," Mr. Moss said. "I
The JCC is
serving up
more and more
singles trips.
couldn't wait to take another
singles trip."
Mr. Moss' next expedition
was a JCC-sponsored trip to
Ottawa's Ontario River in
Canada. He said the JCC
trips were inexpensive, com-
pared to trips that are pri-
vately sponsored.
For less than $225, par-
ticipants received two nights
at the River Run Cam-
pground outside Ottawa,
three meals a day, two guid-
ed trips down the river, plus
round-trip transportation
from West Bloomfield.
Mr. Moss went on so many
of these excursions, he
became one of the trip's or-
ganizers.
Caren Vinsky, a Novi
nurse who has gone on a
couple of the treks, said that
Mr. Moss' name has become
synonymous with rafting
trips in the Detroit area.
"I'll never forget the trip
down the river when our
guide informed us that, at
the last rapids, the water
looked exceedingly high,"
Mr. Moss said. "There was
at least a nine foot drop, and
he told us that we could
avoid it if we wanted to.
"Of course, being such dar-
ing adventurers, we told him
we'd ride the rapids," he
said. "But before our guide
told us to get down in the
raft, we were all under-
water. Our raft was upside
down and the paddles were
floating down river. So were
my glasses!"
Mr. Moss said he and a
fellow rafter swam to the
riverbank. "Two people were
carried over sixty yards
away from shore by the cur-
rent," he said.
About four of the rafters
decided they had enough ex-
citement for the weekend,
Mr. Moss said. They stayed
in the campground the
following day, which
averages about 800 people
on weekends.
Mr. Moss said he met
about 15 other Detroit Jew-
ish singles. Only a few of
them knew each other
before their adventure, he
said.
Scott Lantz, 29, of
Southfield, who describes
himself as a white water en-
thusiast, talked to every
single he met about the trip.
"People go to dances with
the actual intention of
meeting someone," Mr. Moss
said. "At the end of an eve-
ning, you feel that you've
wasted $11.
. "When I go canoeing or
white water rafting, I go
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
75