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Lauren and Rick Altman, with Jasper
The Beshert Connection counts
four marriages,
two engagements,
seven serious relationships
and dozens of
budding courtships
at its two-year anniversary.
JILL DAVIDSON SKLAR
Special to The Jewish News
T
o say Lauren Altman was
skittish about joining the
Beshert Connection at
Temple Israel may be an
understatement. Twelve months after
relocating to West Bloomfield from a
10-year stint in Los Angeles, the
Michigan native found herself crossing
. her fingers as she handed in a $36 check
along with her application for the pro-
gram.
Perhaps it was that little bit of finger-
crossing. Perhaps it was fate. But what-
ever it was that got the 36-year-old to
the bimah this past October, Altman is
thankful it happened. Two months after
saying Mni li dodi, vi dodi li" to Rick
Altman, she still hasn't come down.
"I have to say that I wasn't sure about
joining [the Beshert Connection] at
1/8
1999
90 Detroit Jewish News
Lisa Sandler wipes lipstick from hubby Matt Fein's face at their wedding recep-
tion last month.
first, but I am glad I did. Rick and I do
a lot of laughing and we are always
doing activities together," she said. "I
am so happy.
The Altmans are one of four couples
brought together in wedded bliss by the
singles network at the West Bloomfield
Reform temple. Two other pairs have set
wedding dates, and dozens more are in
varying stages of courtship, including
seven couples who pulled their individ-
ual profiles from circulation because
their relationships had shifted into high
gear.
Amazing stuff for a program that is
celebrating its two-year anniversary.
"It makes me feel so good," Beshert
Connection director Kari Provizer said
of the married and chuppah-bound cou-
ples. "We are providing a service to the
Jewish community and to the individu-
als."
Provizer created the program after a
friend moved to Florida. Tired of the
bar scene and blind dates, the friend
turned to a Jewish singles network. Her
friend was so jazzed by the results that
Provizer began to wonder why there
wasn't something similar in Detroit.
"There are singles networks all over
the country that operate in a similar
fashion," she said. "It was just a matter
of time before there was one like this in
Michigan."
In September 1996, Provizer gath-
ered names of interested people, but
didn't kick off the program until January
1997. The Beshert Connection grew
steadily from there, now with over 570
individuals ages 21 to 92 on its roster.
To join, applicants pay a $36 annual
fee, then fill out a questionnaire, which
includes queries about education, habits,
hobbies, interests, likes and dislikes.
Information from the questionnaire —
including a photo, but excluding last
names, addresses and telephone num-
bers — is worked into a profile, assigned
an administrative number and pasted
into a book.
Members view the books, read pro-
files and indicate which person of the ...A
opposite sex they want to meet. A post-
card is mailed to that individual, indi-
cating the pursuer's administrative num-
ber. The pursued is asked to come in
and view the interested party's profile.
After reviewing the info, the person is
asked to either send his or her telephone
number or decline the advance.
The concept of making matches or
helping people find their beshert ("des-
tined") in the Jewish community is
probably older than marriage itself.
For millennia, men and women have
been given the title of shadchan, or
matchmaker, and set about arranging
marriages or encouraging hopeful
matches.
."