Underwater Wonder

LYNNE MEREDITH COHN
Scene Editor

S baron Bluestein peers into the
oven, checking the chicken.
The clock ticks closer to
Shabbat.
She slices gefilte fish, pulls a wine
bottle from the refrigerator, arranges
pastries on a platter.
Seven friends mill about the living
room in her condo, impressed.
As she lights the candles, calm over-
comes Sharon. Then it's time for a
"Echaim." Her friends range from
quite observant to completely secular,
and that's OK.
Although the hostess is shomer
Shabbat and regularly walks the seven-
mile roundtrip to daven at Ohel Moed
of Shomrey Emunah, she doesn't
expect anyone to match her obser-
vance.
"I remember feeling uncomfortable
about keeping Shabbos," says the
Pittsburgh native. "I was scared I'd do
something wrong." And she did, until
she got it right.
Sharon began by spending Shabbat
at the Oak Park home of Tzipi and
Todd Ashin. "They were very open,
didn't pressure me, didn't correct me,
answered questions. Being a logical
mind — I'm a financial analyst — I
was getting good answers. It kept
making sense."
"I grew up in a very traditional
home, in a Conservative shul," she
says. "In my house, Shabbos was
Shabbos. We had Friday night din-
ners, always had guests."

Friday, June 5
The real history of the Jews. noon.
Young Jewish Humanists ltmch. Cost
$5. (248) 477-1410.

Saturday, June 8

Charity fund-raiser Disco party. 9
p.m. At Temple Israel in Korman
Hall. $20 per person. Sponsored by
young adult congregation of Temple
Israel. Ages 21 and up welcome.
Snacks and open bar included.
Donations go to Jewish National
Fund, Karmanos Cancer Institute,

Scuba-diving maven,
Shabbat-observant Sharon Bluestein
adds peacefulness to her life through ritual.

The youngest of four, Sharon says
family was always important.
It took a couple of turning points
for the University of Michigan gradu-
ate and MBA recipient from the
Carnegie-Mellon University Graduate
School of Industrial Administration to
become observant.
"My second day in Cleveland, I was
a witness to a bank robbery," says
Sharon, who was opening an account
when robbers walked in with guns.
"They didn't have masks on, and I
thought, All this hard work in grad

Gilda's Club, Ensure (the children's
research endowment fund for Chil
dren's Hospital of Michigan) and
Young Friends of Woodward. (248)
661-5700.

Sunday, June 7

JARC flowerathon, plant flowers at 10
JARC homes, 9:30 a.m. to noon. Rena
Friedberg, (248) 352-5272.

with Jewish Professional Singles.
3-5 p.m. Borders Books & Music,
Southfield. Followed by dinner at Tav-

school and I'm not going to see my
first day of work.'"
She made it through and called
home. "My mother said, 'Go bentsch
gomel.' I didn't know what that meant,
and that's when I realized I didn't
know what it meant to be a Jewish
adult."
The next day, Sharon joined a Con-
servative shul and bentsched gomel —
a prayer thanking God after a person
survives a traumatic event.
She started going to services once a
month and reread the Torah portions.

A year later, after moving to Detroit,
Sharon wanted to get involved Jewish-
ly, and someone suggested she call
Rabbi Avraham Jacobovitz of Machon
L'Torah, the Jewish Learning Network
of Michigan.
Rabbi J immediately exclaimed,
"'You'll come for Shabbos!' There was
no choice. I was a little nervous, had
never been to a true Orthodox
home..."
The first night Sharon stayed at the
Ashins', Tzipi handed her 6-month-
old Binyamin, and everything
changed.
"She thrust this 6-month-old baby
at me. This little kid puts his head on
my neck, arm around my neck — cor-
porate businesswoman melts in the
arms of 6-month-old. Suddenly, my
focus was shifted."
It's hard to imagine an Orthodox,
high-powered businesswoman don-
ning scuba gear and diving underwa-
ter. But that's Sharon. Certified in
Eilat, Israel, scuba diving, she says, "is
my absolute love.
"Everything down there is as it
should be. There's nothing man-made,
and there's no horn honking or com-
puter beeps or telephones ringing.
She also works out at the Jewish
Community Center and plays almost
any sport. Of course, she'll modestly
beg off as "not being an expert at any-
thing."
Same thing with Judaism. "You try
to keep the Shabbos, you try to guard
the Shabbos. I know when Shabbos
comes, that's it, I get to rest. The week
kind of crescendos." 0

em On 13, 5:30. I. rry, (248) 545-
6912.

207 S. Woodward, Birmingham. (313)
577-3459.

Monday, Awe 8

Wednesday, Jane 10

Fund-raising party for JARC's Endow-
ment Campaign, with Sand Castle
Advennire. 7 p.m. At the Oakland
Grill, Royal Oak. Cost: $75 per per-
son. Cocktails, hors d'oeuvres and
dessert. Rena Friedberg, (248) 352-
5272.

Coffee with Jewish Professional Sin-
gles. 7:30 p.m. Borders Books &

JP77:

Hillel of Metro Detroit Coffee House
Night. 9 p.m. Lonestar Coffee Co.,

Help out with Food Gath'eters
fund-raiser and meet Jewish s*
through Connections. 7 p.m.
971-3280.

