Ni I 'TIZNOTAnk
H E ROES

Photos by G lenn Trie

FRIENDLY
VISITOR

Robert Singer has friends across Eight Mile.

ROBERT

SINGER

REGULARLY

VISITS INNER

CITY JEWS.

ALAN HITSKY

Associate Editor

68

FRIDAY, MAY 22, 1992

obert Singer has given
himself a difficult job in
retirement. Sometimes it
scares him.
Mr. Singer, 71, drives down
to East Grand Boulevard to vis-
it Jews in nursing homes and
adult foster care facilities. Some
are down and out on their luck.
Some are too fond of booze, cig-
arettes or drugs. Some are in-
digent and ill. The neighborhood
is no longer the best.
But Mr. Singer has an oblig-
ation, and as long as a few of his
"clients" remain, despite his re-
cent illnesses, he will continue
his visits.
A civil engineer who retired
after working for several local
railroads, Mr. Singer has been
a volunteer for nearly a decade
with the Jewish Vocational Ser-
vice's Project Outreach.
He started with 10-12 clients
in four or five homes. He would
make the rounds once every two
weeks, visiting the clients, talk-
ing to administrators, serving

as an advocate.
"Some have passed on," he
says, "and some have been
transferred to Borman Hall
(Jewish Home for Aged). I still
visit two on the Boulevard and
two at Borman.
"Sometimes I'm concerned
about my safety — apprehen-
sion is the word. One of my
clients became a beggar, a pan-
handler. He would lean up
against a party store and hold
out his hat. There was little we
could do; he would use any mon-
ey I gave him for cigarettes and
soft drinks."
The man is in terrible shape,
both physically and mentally,
Mr. Singer says. His clothing is
"beyond description" and Mr.
Singer has donated attire to him
on several occasions. He is one
of two clients Mr. Singer still vis-
its on the Boulevard, between
Jefferson and Gratiot.
Mr. Singer's daughter, Julie,
believes the clients have touched
his life as much as he has