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April 05, 1996 - Image 18

Resource type:
Text
Publication:
The Detroit Jewish News, 1996-04-05

Disclaimer: Computer generated plain text may have errors. Read more about this.

The Prentis Closure:
Expediency Vs. Responsibility

The Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Detroit
and the Jewish Home for Aged have announced
the impending closing of Prentis Manor nursing
home in Southfield.
The long-term care facility has housed Detroit's
most frail Jewish elderly for many years. Fed-
eration and JHA say the closure will lead to bet-
ter facilities and better care for our elderly.
But the families of the Prentis residents are
not content with this response.
Many Prentis families expressed their anger
at a stormy meeting last week at which the
timetable was outlined. Many, though not all,
object to any inference that care could be better
somewhere else, and they are concerned that a
forced move from Prentis will have a negative
impact on the residents. National research backs
them up: Forced moves or major changes in rou-
tine often lead to the deaths of nursing home res-
idents.
A second, major concern involves numbers.
The Federation and JHA change will lead to a
net loss of available Medicaid beds for the De-
troit Jewish community's elderly. Prentis cur-
rently has more than 80 Medicaid patients. The
new JHA facility under construction in West
Bloomfield will have 30 Medicaid beds. Even con-
sidering the number of Medicaid beds at Meno-
rah House, the community will not have as many

as it did before the closing of Borman Hall. This,
despite the fact that the Jewish community's pop-
ulation of needy elderly — by all national stud-
ies — is growing, not shrinking.
Federation and JHA are caught in an economic
vise. Care for the elderly is the most costly un-
dertaking of Jewish communal resources. But,
we contend, that is the purpose of Jewish com-
munal resources, to take care of those most in
need.
Stressing private-pay or Medicare beds at a
privately run Jewish Home for Aged, at the ex-
pense of needy Medicaid patients, might be eco-
nomically expedient. But, recently, we opened
our doors and invited all those who are hungry
to eat at our seders. In the same spirit, we must
still continue to keep those community doors open
to all of our frail elderly.
Our Federation's national reputation for its
generosity and its effective Campaign even dur-
ing lean times is well-deserved. Our communi-
ty members responded so favorably, with
government cutbacks staring Jewish social ser-
vices straight in the eye, to the Federation's re-
cent Days of Decision effort. We urge Federation
to consider the urgency of the wishes of the Pren-
tis families and other Jewish elderly. If ever there
was an "on-the-ground" example of how com-
munity members need to be heard, this is it.

Holding Hesitant Syria
Accountable For Peace

While the focus of Middle East attention seems
to be on the upcoming elections and whether or
not a referendum on peace with the Palestinians
is the way to go, there remains an issue that isn't
getting the attention it deserves.
Syria, the nation that Israel and the U.S. are
hoping to have join in a regional peace, has been
absent from the regimen of countries taking part
in this "process."
Syria refused to condemn the bus bombings,
the very reason Prime Minister Shimon Peres'
office is facing a higher degree of contention from
Likud leader Benjamin Netanyahu. It also was
absent at the most recent anti-terrorist summit
in Sharm-el-Sheikh in the southernmost part of
the Sinai Peninsula. This was, at one time,
ground held by the Israelis. It was returned to
Egypt as part of its peace accord with the Arab
nation.
What does this absence of public activity mean?
Certainly, the Jewish residents in northern Is-
rael are finding their increased occupancy of
bomb shelters a very real "public activity" as

Hezbollah forces escalate their deadly nuisance
in an area Syria wants Israel to return.
Also, Hamas radio stations remain on the air
from broadcast sites in Syria.
The late Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin talked
about bringing peace with Syria to a national ref-
erendum in much the same way that Mr. Peres
talks of a referendum concerning the Palestini-
ans.
Syria isn't directly sending suicide bombers
into Israel. Its silence on both the regional and
international scale, however, is deafening.
All the while, U.S. foreign policy isn't doing
enough to bring Syria into a public posture, choos-
ing instead to sidestep the issues.
It's important for Israel to determine its own
destiny and make its own decisions regarding
peace with the Palestinians. It shouldn't, how-
ever, overlook Syria, a country that needs to be
drawn out of the shadow of terrorism and into
the open where it can be asked to respond to its
silence.

Letters

Senate Race
In Minnesota

will be owned and operated by a

large (non-Jewish) nursing-home

corporation. Their facility is being
built on land that has been leased
from the Jewish Community Cen-
ter campus.
It is a shame that our Jewish
community cannot allot the mon-
ey to maintain a Jewish kosher
home for our aged.

As the political campaign season
heats up, there is one race for the
U.S. Senate that is particularly
important to American Jews. In
Minnesota, incumbent Sen. Paul
Wellstone and the person he de-
feated in 1990, former Sen. Rudy
Jack D. Kutnick, D.D.S.
Boschwitz, are headed for a prob-
Southfield
able 1996 rematch.
Unfortunately, Mr. Boschwitz,
who has been quite active in the
Jewish community, has been a
real disappointment thus far in
the campaign. He has publicly en-
dorsed the extremist Christian
Coalition's "Contract with the We have recently returned from
American Family," a document a visit to Israel and would like to
that has been condemned by share a few of our impressions
many Jewish organizations, in- with our Jewish community here.
cluding the Anti-Defamation
We were impressed by the
League.
numbers of Christians who came
Mr. Boschwitz has also refused not only on religious tours, but also
to condemn presidential candidate as active participants in the Vol-
Pat Buchanan's virulent -anti- unteers for Israel program. They
Semitism and incendiary rhetoric. came from Germany, Holland,
Regardless of ideology, Ameri- Scandinavia, England, Korea,
can Jews should be disappointed Japan, South Africa and Ameri-
by Mr. Boschwitz's endorsement ca Many returned to Israel 10 and
of the "Contract with the Ameri- more times.
can Family" and his silence on Mr.
We were there when the recent
Buchanan's divisive campaign.
terrorist attacks occurred. These

Noting Christian
Support For Israel

attempts by Hamas to kill the
Laura R. Rubin peace process were extremely up-
Ann Arbor setting to the tourists as well as to
the Israelis. Other things upset us
as well. Why, after these attacks,
did so many American Jews can-
cel trips instead of showing sup-
port for Israel? How come
Christian groups did not cancel
The administration for the Jew- and continue to come in such large
ish Home for Aged invited to a
numbers from all over the world?
meeting the members of the fam-
We were also stunned by the
ilies of Prentis Manor residents to small number of Jewish tourists.
inform us of its plans for closing
The Jews we met were almost all
Prentis. They will be moving some in Jerusalem and for the most part
of the residents from Prentis to the were either university or yeshi-
new facility on the grounds at the va students. When we voiced our
Maple-Drake JCC campus. The
surprise at this lack of Jewish
problem is that only 30 of the 80
tourism to our Israeli friends, their
residents who have exhausted
answer was, "So what is new?"
their personal funds and are now
Why are Jews not visible
on Medicaid (whom the Federa-
among the crowds of tourists? Do
tion promised to care for even on
they have no interest, no desire to
Medicaid when their personal
see Israel? Or is it only important
money was spent) will be accept-
for a select few of our children to
ed by the new facility.
have the Israel experience?
The rest of the Medicaid resi-
Wake up American Jews. You
dents will be accepted to Menorah claim to support Israel. Why don't
House, four per month as beds be- you go and enjoy your homeland?
come available, or at whatever

Maintaining
A Jewish Home

nursing home will accept Medic-
aid patients.
The new Jewish Home for Aged

Bernard and Sam Schiff
Huntington Woods

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