The Jewish Theological
Seminary mourns the death
of a leader of the Jewish
HERMELIN FILE
Personal
Born: Dec. 27, 1936, in Detroit.
Died: Nov. 22, 2000, at age 63, in Henry
Ford Hospital, Detroit.
Education: Central High School, Detroit,
1954; bachelor's in business administra-
tion, University of Michigan, 1958.
Family: Married the former Doreen
Curtis in 1958; five children, Marcie
(Robert) Orley, Karen Hermelin (Marc
Borman), Brian (Jennifer) Hermelin, Julie
(Mitchell) Frank and Francine Hermelin
Levite (Adam Levite); and eight grand-
children.
Service to U.S.: Appointed U.S.
Ambassador to Norway by President Bill
Clinton Dec. 3, 1997, resigned January
1999 to undergo brain surgery for cancer.
Business
Professional Interests: real estate develop-
ment, ownership and management;
financial services and venture-capital
investments.
Ventures: minority owner, Palace Sports
and Entertainment Centers Inc., which in
Michigan owns the Palace of Auburn
Hills and Pine Knob Music Theater and
operates Meadow Brook Music Festival. It
also has sports and entertainment opera-
tions in Tampa, Florida.
Positions: president, Active Aero Charter
Company and USA Jet Airlines; board
chairman, Phoenicia American-Israel Flat
Glass Ltd.; chairman and director, Federal
Enterprises, which owns and operates TV
and radio stations; part-owner, WWJ-AM
95; founding partner, Hermelin,
Colburn, Colburn, Blumberg and
Steinberg Insurance; director, Ace-Tex
Industrial Laundry and Circus World Toy
Stores.
Community
Service. president, Congregation Shaarey
Zedek; vice chairman, United Jewish
Appeal; vice president, Jewish Federation
of Metropolitan Detroit; chair,
Federation's Annual Campaign; co-
founder and donor, Hermelin-Davidson
Center for Congregation Excellence
through the Federation's Millennium
Campaign for Detroit's Jewish Future;
international chairman, State of Israel
Bonds; president, World ORT Union,
American ORT Federation, Jewish Home
and Aging Services; chairman, special
advisory council of Barbara Ann
Karmanos Cancer Institute, Detroit, and
its predecessor, Michigan Cancer
Foundation; director-at-large, United
Synagogue for Conservative Judaism; vice
president, Pistons-Palace Foundation;
advisory council member and national
co-chair, University of Michigan Major
Gifts Committee.
Boards/Leadership: First of America Bank
Corp.-Detroit, Arena Associates, Arbor
Drugs Inc., Village Green Management
Co., Children's Hospital of Michigan,
Community Foundation for Southeastern
Michigan, Greater Detroit Interfaith
Round Table, Detroit
Symphony/Orchestra Hall, Hebrew
University, Israel Tennis Centers
Association, Meyer L. Prentis
Comprehensive Cancer Center, Michigan
Opera Theatre, Weizmann Institute of
Science, American Friends of Hebrew
University, Michigan Development
Foundation, United Way for
Southeastern Michigan, Detroit Friends
of Bar-Ilan, American Jewish Joint
Distribution Committee, Jewish
Community Center of Metropolitan
Detroit, Operation Independence,
Friends of Modern Art of the Detroit
Institute of Arts, Hebrew Immigrant Aid
Society, United Synagogue for
Conservative Judaism.
people, an advocate of Jewish
Honors: Fred M. Butzel Memorial Award
Martin Gene, Chairman
for distinguished community service,
Jewish Federation of Metropolitan
Detroit; Federation's Annual Campaign
Builders of Israel Award; Golda Meir
Leadership Award, State of Israel Bonds;
(with wife Doreen) 2000 Dream Maker
Award and Rabbi Jacob Segal Award,
Hillel Day School of Metropolitan
Detroit; Knights of Charity Award,
Archdiocese of Detroit; Leadership
Award, March of Dimes; Detroit
Executive of the Year Award; Golden
Menorah Award for community service,
B'nai B'rith; Leonard N. Simons
Volunteer Award, Barbara Ann Karmanos
Cancer Institute; CATCH Hall of Fame
Award, Children's Hospital of Michigan;
Outstanding Volunteer Fund Raiser
Award, National Society of Fund Raising
Executives; Royal Norwegian Order of
Merit Grand Cross, highest honor that
Norway bestows on non-Norwegians;
honorary juris doctor, Detroit College of
Law at Michigan State University.
education and a long-time
supporter, Ambassador
David B. Hermelin.
May his memory be for
a blessing to his family.
lsmar Schorsch, Chancellor
Gershon Kekst, Chairman
Detroit Board
Tom Wexelberg-Clouser, Director
Great Lakes Region
It is with deep sorrow we mourn the passing
of our mentor, teacher, partner and friend
David B. Hermelin
Also: co-led 1,30.0 Detroiters on a
Federation-sponsored Michigan Miracle
Mission to Israel in 1993, the largest
community trip to Israel ever undertak-
en in the U.S.; naming, ORT Hermelin
College of Engineering in Netanya,
Israel, 2000; naming, part of the newly
renovated Berkley Prevention Center of
the Karmanos Cancer Institute, 2000
— recognizing the tens of millions of
dollars the Hermelins helped raise and
their personal contributions of nearly
$3 million to the Institute; naming,
Hermelin Brain Tumor Center as part
of the Detroit-based Henry Ford
Health System, 1999 — created with
$10 million he and friends donated;
hosted, during the 1990s, two fund-
raising receptions for President Bill
Clinton at the Hermelins' Bingham
Farms home.
❑
November 22, 2000
JAY ALIX &
ASSOCIATES
UESTOR