Obituaries are updated regularly and archived on JN Online: www.detroitjewishnews.com A Sparkling Star DAVID SACHS Senior Copy Editor s 9/28 2001 118 ince 1953, Temple Israel mem- bers have benefited from the brilliance of Sonia Syme — the beloved temple leader, teacher, scholar and wife of the temple's equally beloved Rabbi M. Robert Syme. "She had such a quick and probing mind," recalls Rabbi Paul Yedwab of the West Bloomfield temple. 'And there was always a sparkle in her eye. "Even if she were disagreeing with you, there was always that sparkle. I loved to learn with her and I loved to watch her teach." Even the temple's 12th-grade classes sensed her brilliance -- having the pop- ular Mrs. Syme as a teacher was an incentive for religious school students to stick it out to the senior year and gradu- ate. "She taught back in the years when everyone was so concerned about their children going off to college and being grabbed up by a cult," said past sister- hood president Carol R Cooper of Bloomfield Hills. "She taught a class to these high school seniors on cults. They would later call her from college and say, `What do I do about this?" Mrs. Syme, 83, of West Bloomfield, died Sept. 25. She had been house- bound for several years with multiple physical ailments. "Through the years of her illness, one could not help but be impressed with her incredible courage," said Temple Israel Rabbi Harold Loss. "Clearly, it was the support of her family that kept her alive. Our congre- gation and community will truly miss her." Sonia Hendin was born in a small town in Russia and her family fled to Canada during the 1917 revolution, set- ding in Winnipeg. She later earned a bachelor's of science degree from the University of Manitoba and moved to New York with her husband, a fellow Winnipegger and a rabbinical student at the Jewish Institute of Religion in New York City. They had married secretly because, at the time, the rabbinical stu- dents were given stipends and were not permitted to marry. Before the Symes settled in Detroit, Mrs. Syme worked as a laboratory technician and chemist. "She was the smartest one in our fam- ily — I'm serious," said her son, Rabbi Daniel Syme of Temple Beth El in Bloomfield Township. "First and foremost, however, she was a mother who protected and cared for my brother David and me with an unconditional love. "When it became apparent that David had musical genius, she began to teach public school as a substitute and put aside S20 a day until she could buy him his first grand piano. When I was stricken with cancer at the age of 20, she scoured the medical journals and found the one person in the world who was pioneering a treatment. That was the kind of mother she was. "She was a gifted classical pianist," said David Syme. "She gave me my first exposure to the piano and I was actually seeking ro emulate her when I began to play. "When I went to Poland for the Chopin International Competition in 1975, she went with me," he said. Daniel Syme eulogized his mother at services Wednesday at Temple Israel and David Syme played a Chopin piano piece as part of a musical tribute to her. In addition to her devotion to her family, Mrs. Syme was a powerful force in both the temple and the community. She taught adult education classes for the Reform move- ment's former cirvwide College of Jewish Studies and was director of religion and My Beloved Mrs. Syme ROBERT A. SKLAR Editor E very once in a while, someone comes along who inspires you to search deep within your soul to find the passion to learn Jewishly and the vigor to live as a Jew. For me, Sonia Syme was such a per- son. Mrs. Syme was one of my teachers during the 1960s at Temple Israel, locat- ed in those days in Palmer Park area of northwest Detroit. And more than any- one besides my parents, she made me want to study my religious history and heritage. She had a special knack for connect- ing to teenagers. Those were highly education for the temple's sisterhood. She planned its retreats for more than 25 years. She was an expert on responsa — the scholars' method of exploring Jewish answers to modern ethical dilemmas. "It was everything from biomedical ethics to whether a man who has a toupee is also required to wear a yarmul- ke," said her son, Daniel. She studied Jewish law with renown Rabbi Solomon Freehof of Pittsburgh — and she was a lifelong student. "Mom had students from every move- ment, including many young men who are Orthodox rabbis today," said son Daniel. "That's how brilliant she was, that they came to study with her." Mrs. Syme also served for nearly three decades on the board of directors of Botsford General Hospital in Farmington Hills, with stints as chair of its professional affairs committee and as vice-chair of the board. Botsford President-CEO and temple member Gerson I. Cooper said Mrs. Syme's background in responsa prepared her well to handle complex medical-eth- ical issues. A major accomplishment for Mrs. Syme was the Institute on Judaism she created and presented with the aid of sisterhood volunteers. The yearly day- long symposium has introduced Judaism ro thousands of secular teachers from Wayne and Oakland counties for three decades. Its purpose is to enable teachers to better understand and accom- formative years for us; we could be restless, suspi- cious and unforgiving. She knew that she had only a moment to win us over and that Sunday school was more apt to be a turnoff than an inspiration. Yet she persevered — always undaunted, always animated. Mrs. Syme had a commanding pres- ence, but she got down to our level. She taught us about biblical times, the holi- days and sacred books in a way that I could relate to — in a way that was, my God, fien. She was the wife of revered Rabbi M. Robert Syme, a captivating speaker with a loyal following. And they had three sons on whom she doted. Yet she savored her individuality and taught others to savor theirs. Talk about the impact of a Jewish education! She gave me a love for modate the needs of their Jewish stu- dents. Mrs. Syme was also a popular lecturer, said sisterhood's Carol Cooper. "When people knew she was going to speak, it was a sellout." Her 59-year marriage to Rabbi M. Robert Syme was a full partnership," said their friend and temple member Ph _ illip Bittker of Bloomfield Hills. "The rabbi would always ask for her opinion and she gave it like it was. Not necessarily what you'd like to hear; it made no difference. She saw it as she saw it and said it that way. She was very strong woman." Said Rabbi Yedwab: "This is a soul that simply will not die. She will live on clearly in the hearts and the minds and the intellects and the very souls of the people that she's taught through the years." Sonia Syme is survived by her hus- band, Rabbi M. Robert Syme; sons and daughters-in-law, Rabbi Daniel and Dr. Jill Syme of Farmington Hills, David and Victoria Syme of West Bloomfield; grandson, Joshua Syme; and brother and sister-in-law, Nate and Eve Hendin of Toronto. She was the loving mother of the late Michael Syme. Interment was at Beth El Memorial Park. Contributions may be made to the Sonia and Michael Syme Memorial Fund at Temple Israel, 5725 Walnut Lake Road, West Bloomfield, MI 48323 and the Sonia Syme Memorial Fund at Temple Beth El, 7400 Telegraph Road, Bloomfield Hills, MI 48302. Arrangements by Ira Kaufman Chapel ❑ Judaism and a desire to share its bounty that later would lead me into Jewish journalism. One of my best friends growing up at Temple Israel was Michael Syme, who died at age 21 in 1975. I once asked him during a rehearsal for the youth group's annual Purim play what prompted his mother to teach Sunday school. He liked to explain things I detail, but this time he answered simply: "She knows we're the Jewish future." Only then did I grasp her ultimate gift to me. Without airs, she had taught me that Jewish survival hinges on the beauty, wonder and teachings of what it means to be Jewish spreading from one generation to the next. I'm a better Jew, and a better person, for having experienced the light upon learning that was Sonia Syme — my beloved "Mrs. Syme." She'll forever be in my heart. ❑