GLuGLu'

presents

cuts at least until then. When news
J leaked to a parent, Sorkin said, he told
the child development director to talk
with all the Oak Park program parents.
"This is one of those difficult cir-
cumstances when mission and margin
butt up against each other," said Mark
Davidoff, Federation's chief operating
officer. While he's concerned with the
termination of the child development
center at the JPM building, Davidoff
said Federation "understands the
Center's need to be fiscally responsible."
Sorkin acknowledged that he had
been talking to synagogues in the
vicinity of the JPM's 10 Mile Road
building that have expressed interest in
expanding their own programs.
"Schools that are running full pro-
grams could use the space to hedge the
competition," Sorkin added, noting
that Yeshiva Beth Yehudah is con-
structing a new building for its child
development program, and
Congregation Beth Shalom will be
starting a pre-school in the fall.
Marion Freedman, director of the -
Federation's Neighborhood Project,
said the presence of the kids in the
JPM building will be missed.
"Seniors stop to coo and look at the
babies all the time, and they aren't the
only ones who do that," said Freedman,
whose organization works to sustain the
Jewish community in Oak Park and
Southfield and rents space at JPM. "It's
sad to see [the child development pro-
gram] leave because it's nice to have an
intergenerational building."
Freedman, like Sorkin, attributes the
program's end to families largely sup-
porting the synagogues in the area.
"The fact that its closing in no way
indicates that the community doesn't
have a need for these services. They are
just exercising their options elsewhere."
Rosie Schlussel, a grandparent of
two in the program, is concerned that
the JCC is alienating parents of the
affected children. "These are the young
adults that the Jewish community
wants to get involved in the communi-
ty," she said. "If they don't get them
now, when will they get them?"
Schlussel's husband, Mark, is a past
Federation president and her son, Ira,
is on the board of Federation's Young
Adult Division and The Jewish Fund.
Ira said he's looking at in-home care as
the only possible option for his 10-
month-old daughter Claire.
"We always lay claim to having one
of the best Federations in the country
and it's sad they couldn't continue
this," he said. "Of all the important
things, I can't believe that children
aren't a priority." ❑

GETTING READY FROM PAGE 14

had their work cut out for them.
Lapides said the plan was to teach
their daughters "that women have a
role in the seder other than just pro-
viding the seder meal." So the seder
committee set out to rewrite the tradi-
tional Haggadah.
Four extra questions were added,
including "Why are most seders
directed by men, but at this one the
women are the leaders?" Added to the
Haggadah was the inclusion in the
seder of an egg, the women's symbol
of birthing, and the orange, an idea
derived from a comparison of women-
on the synagogue bima to the sight of
an orange on the seder plate.
Lapides said the seder also tried to
include the family traditions of women
participants, even when it meant "five
or six women sat at Adat Shalom the
day before the seder, cutting slivers of
horseradish," because at one family
table, that's just the way it is.
Even the plastic play kitchen for
the Child Development Center at the
D. Dan & Betty Kahn Building of the
Jewish Community Center in West
Bloomfield had to be prepared.
Under the supervision of Judaic spe-
cialist Allison Berlin, kids at the center
filled their pretend sink with soapy
water, and washed their dishes and tea-
party cups. They then separated and
boxed for storage all the pretend food
that would not be used even in play,
during Passover. Berlin said storing the
food and cleaning the kitchen, used
only for make-believe eating, was a
learning experience, and so was wash-
ing all the dishes. But, she noted that
changing them for Passover would be
carrying the lesson a little too far.
For some, like Nitzana York,
Passover means getting ready for com-
pany.
Having her parents Nediva and
Ben-Zion Cohen here from Haifa
requires a traditional Passover family
preparation — her mother's gefilte
fish. "Cutting a slice of the whole fish,
cleaned out and stuffed with little fish
balls," is the easy part, York said. The
hard part is when the fish is served
complete, with "the little head and
eyes" — and then watching while her
mother "eats the whole thing."
For York, Passover is a time for
"telling the story of the Jewish people,
a family thing."
So while the planning time is
extensive, Passover is "the" holiday.
And after all is said and done, and all
is cleaned and cooked, it's still a little
sad when it's over. 17

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Detroit Jewish News

17

