Dr. Conrad Giles with Natan Sharansky at the GA.
c
Th E Vi m
onnie Giles had waited for this
moment for years. It was his day
in the sun. A new beginning for
a Council ofJewish Federations
president, the one who would take the
organization right up to the year 2000.
He came to the podium beaming at the
applause.
Before he could thank anyone, how
ever, the audience of 3,000 stood up and
walked out. Dr. Giles also had to leave.
The Washington State Convention
Center in Seattle had received a bomb
threat. Delegates to the Council ofJew-
ish Federations General Assembly, or
GA, were asked to vacate the building
immediately. There would be no more
Wednesday evening events. The buildup,
the event, was over for the day.
Conrad Giles' wife, Linda, was part of
the evacuation. She helped Dr. Giles'
mother, Victoria, through the crowd and
out into a cool, damp Seattle night.
It wasn't exactly the way the South-
field ophthalmologist wanted to start his
presidency. In his hotel room about an
hour following the bomb scare, he stood
somewhat angry, somewhat hurt. But
he was also surrounded by his family and
his friends.
Larry Jackier flew in Wednesday af-
ternoon just to see his friend honored.
He would have to fly back to Detroit the
next morning. Others came by Dr. Giles'
suite to wish him well and to tell him not
to let a bomb threat spoil this moment.
Detroit's community leader now takes
the reins of the Council of Jewish Federations.
PHIL JACOBS EDITOR
"There was that incredulous sense
that I had," said Dr, Giles. "It was shock,
almost immediate depression over what
it meant for those who had gathered. It
was never fear. I, not for a heartbeat, be-
lieved that we were in danger."
The very next evening, Dr. Giles again
approached the podium. He picked up
where he left off. This time, the only thing
that was explosive was the applause.
His friends and those who know him
in the federation world call him Connie.
He's been known for 30 years here in De-
troit as a community leader, and in re-
cent years he's risen to prominence on
the national federation level.
This was unlike past GAS, where the
substance was usually found in an out-
of-the-way workshop on intermarriage
or AIDS or substance abuse. This year,
there were teeth in some of the agenda
issues. Dr. Giles knows that the matter
of pluralism. —"Who Is a Jew?" — is back
on the table during his term. There is
also the issue of the eventual merger of
CJF with the United Jewish Appeal.
There was work to be done at this GA.
There were on-the-ground issues that
needed answers. All this on top of a bomb
threat.
"The No. 1 near-term priority is how
we keep religious pluralism fpm divid-
ing us," said Dr. Giles. `The ***theme
is unity among the Jewish people. We
have to be careful that we don't let cer-
tain realities that surround us overcome
us and divide an already too-small com-
munity.
"I'm concerned," he continued, "that
those with single agendas, secular or re-
ligious, might end up dividing us unnec-
essarily. I think Binyamin Netanyahu
is comfortable with the current status quo
in Israel. But there was a coalition that
helped elect him with an enormous vic-
tory. My sense is that he has respect for
pluralism, and he'd rather not have this
bill come to the Knesset."
Dr. Giles was referring to a proposed
law, which is expected to be submitted
to Israel's Knesset, that would invalidate
non-Orthodox weddings and conversions
in Israel. It would also affect those per-
formed in the Diaspora.
It was an issue that resembled an un-
derground fire at the GA. While leaders
of all Jewish denominations talked civil-
ly and pleasantly, there was a feeling
that the "Who Is a Jew?" question was
about to raise itself and take center stage.
Dr. Giles has built a reputation over
the years for bringing together diverse
groups within the Detroit Jewish com-
munity to take on difficult questions. He
is the fourth CJF president to come from
Detroit. Those before him include Max
Fisher, the lath Martin Citrin and Man-
dell (Bill) Bennan.
It was Federation's Giles Commission
on Education that took what was once
seen as a huge risk and led to the turn-
ing around of the way we educate Jew-
ish youth. Dr. Giles' commission led to
the transformation of Detroit's United
Hebrew Schools into the Agency for Jew
ish Education.
The move brought in Howard Gelberd
to lead the AJE, putting the emphasis
on synagogue-based education, teacher
training and recruitment, and regular
teen trips to Israel. Last summer, De
troit sent 238 teens on a five-week mis
sion to Israel. This spring, it will send
more to Poland and then to Israel.
"He's like a diamond," Mr. Gelberd
said of Dr. Giles. "He's bright and shiny,
and he's got a heart and a soul. He's on
fire. He knows how to move a process for-
ward. He's the one who was picked to
move the educational process forward.
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