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18
Locally, the Center board is
considering opening on some o f
the holidays and extending hours
but voted against opening mem
bership outside the Jewish com
munity. The board remains
undecided, Mr. Bloom says.
Jewish community centers, lo-
cated in 120 cities in the United
States and Canada, belong to the
Jewish Community Center As-
sociation, an umbrella organiza-
tion for almost 300 JCCs.
Robert Fischer, director of sup-
port and development with the
JCCA, says he has not been ful-
ly advised of the difficulties in De-
troit.
With the exception of a hand-
ful of non-JCCA members, cen-
ters pay roughly 1 percent of their
operating budget in dues. How-
ever, if a center faces financial dif-
ficulties and cannot afford it,
JCCA dues can be reduced.
In metro Detroit, the JCC's an-
nual budget is between $6.5 and
$7 million.
When a Center experiences fi-
nancial difficulties, the JCCA will
provide consulting and market-
ing guidance.
The JCC in Norwalk, Conn.,
recently closed its doors and put
the building up for sale. A shift-
ing Jewish population and fi-
nancial difficulties were behind
the decision.
In the past, say JCCA spokes-
people, Jewish community cen-
ters enjoyed the loyalty of Jews
who lived nearby. Joining a club
meant joining the JCC. They
wouldn't have thought to look
elsewhere.
"There is still that feeling in
the smaller towns like Nashville
and Memphis where people will
support their centers," Mr. Fis-
cher said. "Generally, young peo-
ple only belong to a center when
they need the services. Today, in
general, if you don't need it, you
don't belong."
hen it comes to cut-
backs, several members
of the Center have re-
sponded with concern
and outrage. Many have asked,
"How can we have a Jewish Cen-
ter without Jewish services?"
Douglas Bloom, Center presi-
dent, believes a different question
takes precedence.
"How can we have a Jewish
Center with a deficit?" he asks.
'We run a tight ship. We're try-
ing to make the best we can of a
tough situation until we can repo-
sition ourselves to generate more
revenue."
If the JCC is able to save
enough money, some programs
will be re-implemented in six
months to a year, Mr. Bloom
says. •
'What do we want the Center
to be in this community?" Mr.
Bloom asks. "The board members
are operating under the premise
that we should be more than a
health club and a day camp. If the
community wants us to be more,
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it has got to let us know."
Joan Char wants more. The
Farmington Hills resident has
a mother-in-law who, at 86 years
old, looks forward to participat-
ing in the Senior Service Core
program at the JCC.
Each week, senior citizens vol-
unteer their time stamping en-
velopes, filing and doing other
clerical work. The program oper-
ates through Jewish Vocational
Service and costs the JCC $7,000
annually. The monies go to trans-
port the elderly volunteers from
their homes to the Center.
Ms. Char's mother-in-law was
"laid off' from her volunteer po-
sition last week.
"I'm livid," she says. "They're
volunteers for God's sake. It's ab-
solutely ludicrous that there's not
enough money to keep this van
going to keep these people feel-
ing productive. They are produc-
tive. Jewish seniors should be a
priority."
The JCC has been
running a deficit for
several years.
Fred Levine and Janis Braun-
Levine of Farmington Hills are
new JCC members. They joined
the Center a few months ago af-
ter giving up a seven-year mem-
bership at the YMCA in
Farmington Hills. They believe
their JCC general membership
entitles them to use facilities are
that more diverse. The price, they
say, is reasonable.
The Levines also like the dis-
counts they receive on the JCC's
programs.
More than 470 people are en-
rolled in aquatic and physical-ed-
ucation classes at JPM. Sixteen
of the-77 publicized classes were
canceled because of a lack of par-
ticipation. All 43 adult classes ran
at two-thirds capacity.
Maple/Drake figures are equal-
ly high.
At the heart of the Center's
troubles, some say, are issues of
assimilation and Jewish values.
And frequently, Jewish events
take place at secular locations
other than the JCC, like the
Townsend Hotel in Birmingham
and Borders Bookstore in Farm-
ington Hills.
Nancy Kaplan of Midrasha
says she has hosted several
events at the JCC, but never gave
a second thought to holding the
ongoing "Cupid and Moses" lec-
ture series at Borders. The venue,
which attracts unaffiliated Jews,
is appropriate, she says.
"Jewish people these days are
so dispersed into the general pop-
ulation that you have to go out to
the general population to find
them. You have to go where they
already are," she says. "This is
the world we live in." ❑