Attorney Alan Vosko Eyes
District Court Judgeship

"Justice for Sure" is the slogan of Alan
sions on legal precedent, he said,
Vosko, a candidate for judge in the
unless there is discretion within the
47th District Court. The court vacan- law to apply it to specific circum-
cy in the district covering Farmington
stances of the case.
and Farmington Hills is a non-incum-
Terming himself the "people's can-
bent, open seat due to the retirement
didate," because he is non-partisan
of Judge Fred Harris.
and not a career politician, Vosko said
For 30 years, Vosko has been an
he will be running a "bare-roots cam-
advocate for plaintiffs and defendants
paign." He plans to accomplish this
alike in civil litigation.
by meeting people as he goes door-to-
The attorney's caseload has been
door throughout neighborhoods in
divided between private practice and
the district.
house counsel for AAA. Vosko was a
Vosko has been married for almost
sole practitioner in private
35 years to Sue, a
practice for six years and an
middle-school teacher
associate in trial firms for
of language arts and
seven years. The remainder
social studies. The
of his career has been with
Vosko family has lived
AAA.
in Farmington-
Along with three private
Farmington Hills for
citizens, Vosko has fought
28 years. Both of their
for strong regulations to
grown sons attended
protect the residential char-
public schools.
acter and quality of neigh-
Additionally, the
borhoods in Farmington
family has been associ-
and Farmington Hills
ated with
against the proliferation of
Congregations Beth
Alan Vosko
cellular towers and out-
Ahm and B'nai Moshe
buildings. He initiated the
for over three genera-
research and advocated the
tions. Sue Vosko's
scientific data for the cellular tower
grandfather was among the founders
ordinance in Farmington Hills.
of Beth Abraham, one of three former
congregations comprising Beth Ahm.
Qualities Of A Judge
Vosko is a member of the Michigan
In Vosko's opinion, "the higher the
Bar Association, Wayne County Bar
expectations, the better the office
Association, Oakland County Bar
holder, and the more qualified the
Association and Defense Trial Counsel
person in office, the higher the quality Association. He is a mediator-case
of service will be rendered to the corn- evaluator for Detroit and Wayne and
munity.''
Oakland counties, and a volunteer
Vosko said too many judges don't
with the American Arbitration
have the practical trial experience he
Association.
feels is necessary for the job.
Vosko is a member of his commu-
Vosko also holds that the "long-
nity's Boosters Club and played trum-
established separation between the
pet in the Farmington Community
legislative and judicial branches means Band. He is a Master Mason in the
that judges apply the law, they don't
Mosaic-Perfection Lodge and past
make it. Nor should they."
master counselor of Mosaic Demolay,
Judges are supposed to base deci-
a youth organization.

Class Focus — Language, Beliefs

The connections between Hebrew
words and the thinking, values and
outlook of Judaism will be the
focus of a five-week class, noon-1
p.m. offered by the Agency for
Jewish Education of Metropolitan
Detroit.

6/7
2002

46

Nira Lev will teach the class, in a
lunch-and-learn format, beginning
June 19 at the Max M. Fisher
Federation Building in Bloomfield
Township. There is a charge.
For information or to register, call
Marion Bronstein, (248) 645-7860.

Appel Runs For Judgeship

Oakland County Commissioner
As a county commissioner, Appel has
Michelle Friedman Appel kicked off her
taken a particular interest in legal and
campaign for judge of the
justice issues. She serves on
45B District Court this
the Substance Abuse
week.
Advisory Committee board
The court, located in
of directors for Oakland
Oak Park, also serves
County. She is a member of
Huntington Woods,
the Justice and Public
Pleasant Ridge and Royal
Safety Steering Committee
Oak Township. Its two
of the National Association
judges, Benjamin
of Counties and is vice
Friedman and Marvin
chair of the Judiciary and
Frankel, must retire this
Public Safety Committee of
year. They both have
the Michigan Association of
served for more than 30
Counties. She is chair of
years.
the Oakland County Board
Appel has practiced law Michelle Frie dman
of Commissioners'
for more than 20 years.
Appel
Democratic Caucus.
She has served as public
Appel is running in a
defender, mediator,
field of 10 for the two open
guardian and hearing panel member of
court seats. She is the only currently
the Attorney Grievance Commission.
serving elected official in the race.

New Board Leader For Detroit's YN CA

A capital campaign, new branch facili-
ties and expanded service are in progress
for the YMCA of Metropolitan Detroit
along with a new chairmanship.
Burton Farbman, chairman of
Southfield's Farbman Group, was elect-
ed chairman of the YMCA
Board of Directors on April 24.
He's the local Y's first Jewish
chairman.
Farbman's goals will further
engage the other 55 communi-
ty leaders who volunteer on the
board to complete plans for
expanding outreach for more
children and families, complete
the capital campaign, open the
first new branch in 20 years
and initiate a significant strate-
gic-planning process. The local
Y serves 300,000. It is a United Burton
Way agency with 17 branches
in southeast Michigan.
Farbman's affiliation with the organi-
zation goes back to his childhood. His
first Y experiences were at the down-
town YMCA in Detroit, where he
learned to swim. He begin going to the
Y with his father, who would play
squash; the two would attend special
events together at the Y. "My father died
when I was young, so my times with
him at the Y are some of my best mem-
ories of our time together," he said.
Years later, when Farbman was work-
ing with the Downtown Development
Authority, as chair of the largest real

estate organizations in the Midwest, to
acquire the Y building and property for
a new Detroit Tigers baseball stadium,
he became reacquainted with the Y.
Farbman joined the YMCA of
Metropolitan Detroit Board of Directors
in 1996, noting the
YMCA's "everyone
belongs" tradition and phi-
losophy — whether young,
old, Jewish, Christian, etc.
— as another key reason to
give his support.
Stories shared form those
affected by the Y's service
have kept his support for
the organization strong.
He recalls a meeting he
had with a high-level offi-
D. Farbman cial of the Detroit police
force. The official told him
about his brother and how
the family grew up in poverty His
brother turned to a life of drugs and he
turned to a life of law and order. "He
told me the difference in the direction
each of them had taken was the YMCA.
He explained that participating in the
activities the Y offered and association
with the people who embraced core val-
ues of caring, honesty, respect and
responsibility helped move him forward
in the right direction," Farbman said.
"What we are trying to do today,"
Farbman said, "is to ensure the Y is here
to make a difference for future genera-
tions."