V() o mmafille/, -)f kyyrouRcl a az nth la ,_171;zia/ among them Detroit Symphony Orchestra concertmaster Gordon Staples, Boston Symphony concertmaster Joseph Silverstein and violinists Annie and Ida Kavafian. His music students also have gone on to receive national and international acclaim, among them pianist David Syme; Paul Schonfield, who headed the composition department at the University of Toledo, and conductor Kurt Saffir. In its heyday, the orchestra had 50 members, some amateurs and many professional musicians. Thanks to the wide acclaim the symphony received,.Mr. Chajes had no trouble finding professionals locally and from out of town who wanted to be part of the CSO. Paul Paray, Detroit Symphony Orchestra conductor from 1952 to 1963, appeared as a guest conductor with the CSO. dRice nt h ik ti2c000 r312-oleia „2,;,‘ ( e2(//, Staff, members and the community braved the July heat to build the Weinberg playground. As the saying goes, it takes a village to raise a child, but it takes a com- munity and JCC staff to build a playground. It's also helpful to have a generous grant from the Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation. Past President Linda Lee and Todd Sachse chaired the project: a new play- ground for the JPM Building. More than 300 volunteers turned out on July 3-4, 1994, some with little or no building experience, others with More, but all dedicated to providing a safe and wonder-fill place for chil- dren and families to gather. Children were asked to draw what they imagined would make a nice play- ground, and off the pictures went to the designers who came to the JPM Building to view the site. When the final pieces were delivered, the main- tenance staff prepared them for installation, and then young and old, from all levels of Jewish observance came to help out by serving food, working on assembling the pieces and just lending a hand wherever needed. The maintenance staff was so devoted that after their role doing the hard labor, they stayed on working alongside the volunteers. According to Linda Lee, "it was a true community effort." Manny, Natalie and Jeffrey Charach wanted to find a way to honor the memory of their daughter and sister Janice, an artist. They did it at the JCC. In 1990, with Janice's husband Stuart looking on, the Charachs broke ground for what became the Janice Charach Epstein Gallery. Opened in 1991, the two-story gallery, acclaimed by the Detroit Free Press as one of the metropolitan area's leading art galleries, is an impor- tant venue for Jewish art and artists. The gallery : hosts seven shows a year, filling the multi-level space with an ever-changing visual experi- ence, ranging from contemporary art to exhibitions . of religious signifi- cance and relevance to Jewish history and culture. • It also provides edu- cational experiences for children. • The Janice Charach Epstein Gallery showcases art in a variety of media: glass, photography, architecture, painting, jewelry; fiber, ceramics and more. It also has held shows featuring the works of the late Janice Charach Epstein. Although-its mission is to highlight Jewish art and artists, the gallery has drawn audiences from many religious and ethnic groups in the communi- ty. The Center Symphony Orchestra makes its debut in 1940 under the baton of composer, pianist and conductor Julius Chajes at the Aaron DeRoy Memorial Building. From its first concert in 1940 and for the next 45 years, Julius Chajes led the JCC's world-class Center Symphony Orchestra. When he came to Detroit, Mr. Chajes was charged with organizing an orchestra, a music school and choir at the JCC. The Polish-born composer, pianist and con- ductor created an orchestra that produced countless classical music stars, Attending the groundbreaking for the Janice Charach Epstein Gallery in 1990 were. from left: JCC Past President Hugh Greenberg, Manny Charach, Natalie Charach, Jeffrey Charach, Stuart Epstein, the late Janice Charach Epstein's husband, JCC President Linda Lee and JCC Executive Director Dr. Morton Plotnick.