David Page
receives the
1999 Fred M
Butzel
Memorial
Award from
Joel Tauber.

y Winner

David Page receives top communal honor from close friend Joel Tauber.

HARRY KIRSBAUM

Staff Writer

I

t was a night of acknowledge-
ment, glad-handing, applause,
laughter and tears — the first
combined annual meeting of
the two Jewish communal giants of
the metro area, and the presentation
of an award that, in many eyes, was
especially deserved.
David K. Page received the Detroit
Jewish community's highest honor, the
Fred M. Butzel Memorial Award, at
the annual meeting of the Jewish
Federation and the United Jewish
Foundation on Tuesday at Yeshivat
Akiva in Southfield.
"Any time that David Page is men-
tioned, one thinks of integrity,

10/1

1999

14 Detroit Jewish News

strength, wisdom, creativity and
responsibility," said Joel Tauber, Page's
colleague and friend for 40 years, and
the award's presenter.
Tauber joked about David's taste in
expensive shirts, suits and furniture
from England, as a payback for gradu-
ating from the London School of
Economics.
Tauber told the crowd about Page's
athleticism, falling every three feet
down a slight incline during a ski trip
they took together in Vail, Colo.
There were personal, heartfelt
words that struck a chord with every-
one who listened.
Law partners at one time, Tauber
and Page later found themselves on
opposite sides of a dispute. "This liti-
gation was particularly ugly and emo-

tional," Tauber said. "And yet because
of David's analytical ability, compas-
sion, his principles and sense of fair-
ness, we were able to work behind the
scenes and come to a conclusion
mutually acceptable to both parties,
and more impor-
tantly, we main-
tained and
enhanced our
friendship."
When you
ask a good friend
to present an
award to you,
you're never quite
sure what you're
going to get,
said Page. "But
I'm absolutely

dumbfounded by everything you just
said."
"I find myself in extremely distin-
guished company, joining a group of
men and women who have devoted
their lives to the service of the Jewish
people and to the
Detroit community,"
he said.
Citing the 52 pre-
vious Butzel recipi-
ents, Page said,
"There's a special
quality about these

Keynote speaker Dr.
Ronald Wolfion