Grandchildren Catch
Supreme Court Justice

661
Words

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Th al Come
F rom The -
E nter The -

JENNIFER FINER STAFF WRITER

earl

TALMUD BRACHOT

It is with heartfelt and deep
satisfaction that we convey
our feelings of gratitude for
the generous expression of
your sentiments and good
wishes during our mother

Judge Cooper introduces Justice Ginsburg and her husband, Prof. Martin Ginsburg.

0

1

recovery

extends its wishes to all our
friends and the entire Jewish
Community to be inscribed in
the book of life for a year of
health, happiness and most of
all peace in Israel.

I

n the day of Ruth Bader
Ginsburg's nomination to
the U.S. Supreme Court,
Southfield Judge Stephen
Cooper began a letter-writing
campaign. The judge desperate-
ly wanted her to speak in Michi-
gan.
Although she responded, his
efforts were fruitless until "the
bubbie letter."
After his most recent invita-
tion to address the annual Michi-
gan District Judges Association
Conference, Justice Ginsburg
said "maybe" and mentioned the
possibility of attending with her
grandchildren.
Judge Cooper took the letter-
writing campaign one step fur-
ther by sending another letter to
Justice Ginsburg's office. This
one was addressed to her two
grandchildren.
Printed in oversized type,
Judge Cooper wrote about how
much fun the children were go-
ing to have if they visited Michi-
gan with their bubbie.
"She (Justice Ginsburg) called

back and said, 'OK, you got me.
I'm coming,' " Judge Cooper said.
On Aug. 20, the Supreme
Court Justice spoke about the in-
ner workings of the High Court
before 500 Michigan judges in
Traverse City.
'Personally, I find her to be the
most interesting justice and
someone I really wanted to hear
from," said Judge Cooper, the
president of the Michigan Dis-
trict Judges Association. "She
seems to be carrying the banner
of religious and individual lib-
erties."
During the event, Justice
Ginsburg told Judge Cooper that
some Jewish attorneys refused
to display their certificate to prac-
tice before the U.S. Supreme
Court because it gives the date
as "...in the Year of Our Lord ..."
She told him it has since been
changed.
After finally luring Justice
Ginsburg, Judge Cooper pre-
sented her grandchildren with
a package of Michigan sou-
venirs. ❑

Beth El, Member
Feud Over Fund

ALAN HITSKY ASSOCIATE EDITOR

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T

emple Beth El and one of
its longtime members are
having a controversy — a
$6,200 controversy.
Dr. George Leach, a Livonia
physician, believes the rules have
been changed for a college schol-
arship fund he established, in
memory of his parents, at the
temple. Temple officials believe
Dr. Leach is improperly trying to
direct the fund.
The impasse may not be set-

tled for several weeks until Her-
bert Kaufman, a past president
of the temple and member of its
Jeanette and David Leach Schol-
arship Committee, returns from
a trip. In the meantime, scholar-
ships are not being disbursed.
Shortly after his mother died
in 1991, Dr. Leach created the
fund at Temple Beth El by pledg-
ing $25,000 over five years. He
says other contributions also
have been made to the fund, in-