Members of the Institute for Retired Professionals gather in dis-
cussion groups and for special events for the purpose of con-
tinued learning. Formed in 1985, the IRP began with a core
membership of 30 to more than 300 members involved in more
than 25 groups. It is comprised of retired and semi-retired men
and women. Some members offered reflections on their experi-
ences at previous JCC locations:
I have many fond memories from my
involvement with the JCC over the years.
As a young girl around 10 or 12 years old
I attended day camp at the Woodward
Avenue and Holbrook Street (Aaron DeRoy
Memorial Building) JCC and remember
learning how to cook and going on many
field trips such as one to Eastwoods
Amusement Park, my very first time visit-
ing an amusement park. Then, as a
teenager, I still went to the Woodward
Avenue and Holbrook Street JCC with my
girlfriends and looked for boys. As an
added perk, we learned how to bowl. As a
newlywed, I took dancing lessons from Harriet Berg at the Dexter Davison
JCC. Many years later I took both my sons to plays and activities at the
Curtis and Meyers Building where they also attended day camp many times.
Now I proudly take my twin grandchildren to many functions at both the JPM
Building and the Kahn Building.
Sydelle Isaacs
Program Assistant
Institute for Retired Professionals
I have fond memories of the Jewish
Community Centers in Detroit, as I was a
member at both the Woodward Avenue and
Holbrook Street and Curtis and Meyers
JCCs. I remember the movie group at the
Woodward and Holbrook JCC where
unusual movies were shown and then a
psychologist would lead a discussion on
the movie just shown. I also was a member
of the theater group at the Curtis and
Meyers Building and was assigned to work
the stage lights for the production of
"Enemy of the People." We (my wife Ethel
and I) attended the stage prOductions on a
regular basis at its wonderful theater. In closing, I took a course at the
Woodward Avenue and Holbrook Street JCC on cantorial music given by
three local cantors which I still remember with great delight.
David Silberg
One of the most memorable experiences
was at the Curtis and Meyers Building
when my daughters were very young and
they were taking swimming lessons. One
was asthmatic and had very little lung
capacity. The final testing day came and
in order to pass the course they had to
swim the length of the pool. Needless to
say, there was a lot of apprehension for all
of us. With great determination, they both
passed and we all sighed with relief
Ethel Silberg
All my life..1 have loved fairs, fairs of all
kinds, but my favorite is the (Annual Jewish)
Book Fair each year at the Jewish
Community Center. I love browsing amid
the bustling crowds until I make my choices
as to which books to add to our family
library. The first time I came to the Annual
Jewish Book Fair I noticed a Yiddish section
in the corner. Before it stood a woman,
Sarah Friedman, who helped people make
their selections. (I later learned that Sarah
Friedman was called Mrs. Yiddish by every-
one.) The thought came to me that my moth-
er might like a Yiddish book. With Sarah
Friedman's help I picked one out. My mother was delighted, so the next year I
bought a Yiddish book for her too. Indeed, it became a family tradition for me to
buy a Yiddish book for my mother year after year at the Annual Jewish Book Fair.
Both my mother and Sarah Friedman are gone now The tradition of buying an
annual Yiddish book for cony mother is now a part of our family history, and I know
that Sarah Friedman with her Yiddish corner at the Annual Jewish Book Fair is a
part of the history of the JCC.
Shoshana Wolok
We lived a few blocks from the Curtis and
Meyers Building of the JCC and the whole
family took advantage of that handsome
facility. Our son, Barry was a member of a
teen club called The Condors in 1966. The
boys held a dance and donated the $60 prof-
its to Mogen Hayeled to sponsor an Israeli
orphan. I had the fun of playing the Molly
Picon part in "Milk and Honey" on the
beautiful Aaron DeRoy Theater stage... I
remember being in a very witty JPI (Jewish
Parents Institute) Purimshpiel. The Jews
unabashedly wore white and the Persians
black. As Vashti, I had a giant rhinestone
pin at my navel over my black gown. I remember with pleasure singing in the JCC
Women's Chorus under the brilliant Julius Chafes. There was no upper age limit,
but you couldn't get in if you had gray hair The Center Symphony Orchestra,
under Mr Chajes' direction, was a community phenomenon, filling the auditori-
um for every concert. In the early days of the D. Dan and Betty Kahn Building,
before the professional JET Theatre, there was a production of "Tevye's
Daughters," the non-musical predecessor of "Fiddler on the Roof" Our daugh-
ter, Amy played Hodel. Her most impressive attribute was being able to burst into
real tears on cue!
Harriet Goldman