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Napa Four plus one:
Anita Gray, Natalie Schiff
Anita Penslen Muriel Gwen ,
and Mani Kaplansky.

BILL CARROLL

Special to the Jewish News

A "wine country reunion"
brings together
old friends
from Durfee
Intermediate.

uriel Tarnol, Natalie Newman,
Anita Feldman and Marilyn
(Mimi) Hilson met at age 15 while
attending Durfee Intermediate
School in Detroit in the 1940s — and became
fast friends.
They formed one of the popular teenage girls'
social clubs of that era — the Athenas — attract-
ing the usual group of boys at -their Friday night
meetings. The four went on to Central High
School, helping to organize the Jive Club that
held weekend dances and parties.
"Hanging out" was an unknown phrase at that
time, but that's exactly what they did ... helping
each other with homework during the week,
going to movie matinees on Saturday and to the
local beaches on Sunday.
"We did all of the things that happy young
girls experienced in that period," Natalie recalls.
"Of course, at that time, we didn't have a care in
the world. We really enjoyed each other's friend-
ship."
Then the quartet started to break up. Muriel
moved to the Los Angeles area with her family at
age 16, finished high school there, graduated

from UCLA-North Ridge and met Larry Green
of New Jersey on a blind date while he was sta-
tioned there in the Navy. They now live in Studio
City, have two children, and he's retired from the
dry cleaning business. They recently celebrated
their 50th wedding anniversary. A former book-
keeper, she now volunteers with seniors and
tutors children.
Natalie, Anita and Mimi graduated from
Central in 1947. Natalie married attorney
Donald Schiff, had three children and eventually
moved to Florida, where she now lives in
Sarasota. Re died in 1982. She spent 17 years as a
volunteer with the National Kidney Foundation
and headed a senior volunteer program.
Anita, now of Southfield, attended the
University of Michigan, became a teacher in Oak
Park, then got a master's degree in psychology
and became an educational therapist. She married
,Philip Gray and had two sons. Gray, vice presi-
dent and treasurer of Farmer Jack Markets, died
in 1995.
Mimi, now a Commerce resident, married Eli
Kaplansky, who owned a linen business. He died
30 years ago at age 47, and she became a sales
representative for a janitorial and cleaning supply
company. They had three children.
For 55 years, the four kept in touch with each
other through phone calls and letters, but never
could get together for a reunion. "But when we
all turned 70 recently, we figured, that's it ... we've
gone long enough like this, and we just had to be
together," said Anita. -
Natalie suggested and planned the reunion at a
one-week Elderhostel progfarn in northern
California's Napa Valley wine country.. Elderhostel
is a non-profit educational organization for peo-
ple over age 55, offering abbreviated college-level
courses, hands-on learning, field trips and social
activities throughout the United States and 70
other countries.
The four women shared rooms in a hotel in
the city of Napa and learned about wine and
food, Jewish comedians and Broadway musicals
with 44 other people in the Elderhostel group. As
an added reunion bonus, the four hooked up
with Anita (Cooke) Pensler, a former Detroiter
and Central High grad now living in Napa. She
gave them some behind-the-scene views of the
wine country.
There were a few hitches along the way. Anita
Gray had a difficult time touring wineries, hob-
bling around on a cane after recent hip-replace-
ment surgery. And Natalie took a nasty fall after
arriving in nearby San Francisco, bruising her face
and arm and breaking a finger.
But nothing deterred the "Durfee Athenas"
(the Greek goddess of wisdom, skills and war-
fare). They spent most of the time just reminisc-
ing and catching up — even on a few trips to the
local 'hospital emergency room where they went
together to take care of Natalie's finger.
"We've kept in touch all these years by long
distance," said Muriel, "but being together for a
week was the best ... we were 'hanging out'
again." ❑

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