AMBASSADOR DAVID B. HERMELIN, 1936-2000
man. He was one of the most
beloved men I have ever met
A large, boisterous,
close-knit family
remembers a legend.
in all my involvement in
Jewish and community life. He just had
something special for everybody, and we'll
all miss him. I'm happy to at least have had
"There esn t Ailing he wouldn't do.
'
He w a snvoved in every Jewish activity.
He Everything he
was invo
-,anklin's Max Fisher,
patriarch of the
Detroit Jewish community
HARRY KIRS BAUM
Staff Writer
D
avid Hermelin didn't just enjoy
life, he seized it. He wrapped
himself in it, showed it off like a
prize, and invited everyone he
knew to grab a share of it, too.
He made everyone he met feel special,
but none as special as his family.
As the last of the 100 or so mourners
leave from morning shivah, a dozen
family members and wife Doreen find
themselves gathered at one end of the
massive dining room table, swapping
"David stories," remembering, without
tears, a life lived without hesitation.
David pulled pranks, memorized Tom
Lehrer songs, wrote parodies for every
family event, and never met a micro-
phone he didn't love.
He thought large, dreamed larger and
lived the same way he skied. Without
changing direction, David bombed
down the mountain with the unbridled
enthusiasm of a 7-year-old kid.
Whether speaking in front of a group,
or taking his five kids for a drive, every-
thing was an event, an adventure, some-
thing worthy of show-business propor-
tions.
"My father claimed that he invented
the term 'quality time,"' said his daugh-
ter Karen Hermelin Borman of Los
Angeles. "When we spent time together
[as kids], it was always a grand time. We
didn't just go to the circus. We rented a
bus and invited all of our friends. We
had noisemakers and party favors, and
went to Lafayette Coney Island after."
For almost three hours, Karen
swapped stories with her mother, her
12/1
2000