LORI WEISS

Special to the Jewish News

T

hey were friendships meant to
last a lifetime, the kind built on
the most basic principles of all —
laughter, love, camaraderie and
common bonds.
Thousands of metro Detroiters have boxes
stored under stairs or hidden away in attics
containing memories of long-lost friends
they thought they'd always have, friendships
they formed during their days in Jewish
youth groups like USY (United Synagogue
Youth), BBYO (B'nai Brith Youth Organiza-
tion), NFTY (North American Federation of
Temple Youth), NCSY (National
Conference of Synagogue Youth), Hadassah's
Young Judaea and Habonim Dror.
Now, in a trend that's sweeping the nation,
alumni — many now in their 40s, 50s and
60s — are reaching out to rebuild those old
relationships. They correspond on Web lists,
fund-raise and coordinate reunions. Last
spring, for example, a Young Judaea regional
camp in Texas held a 50th anniversary event
and drew more than 350 people.
Now there's a reunion planned April 4-6
for CRUSY (Central Region United
Synagogue Youth), which includes the
Detroit area. It's the brainchild of former
Detroiter, Karen "KiKi" Moss Hale, who
now lives in Cleveland.
"My brothers and I were back in Detroit
for my parents' 60th wedding anniversary in

June 2001, and we were looking at old
slides," Hale said.
"At least 30 of them were from our USY
days. It dawned on me that there were so
many people who had such an influence on
my life, so many people I'd lost touch with.
So I thought, 'Well, I can sit and dream
about them or I can try to find them."'
USY was a family affair for the Moss fami-
ly. Sons Gary and Joel, both members of the
USY chapter at
Congregation Beth Aaron
in Detroit during the
1950s and 1960s, each
moved up to become pres-
idents of CRUSY. Dad
Harmon acted as a youth
advisor at the synagogue
and constant chaperon at
events and conventions
Karen Mosss Hale
around the country. Mom
Dorothy became known
for the banners she made
and her constant supply
of cookies.
Karen, too young then to officially join
the group, acted as USY "mascot." Their
house, just down the street from the syna-
gogue, became a natural meeting place.
"The kids used to go to Camp CRUSY
[in Grass Lake, MI] for two weeks every
summer and often times the out-of-towners
would come in early," Harmon Moss said.
"Rather than hanging around the syna-
gogue, they'd come to our house," Dorothy

Moss said. "The boys would pull the mat-
tresses off the bed and flip a coin to see who
had to sleep on the springs. Sometimes, we
had eight boys up there!"
Joel Moss, now a record producer in New
York, said, "It wasn't until I was long out of
the house that I realized how great it was
being at the center of all that activity. When
I think about who I am, I know that some
of what I consider to be the best of me was
shaped during those years."
For Karen Hale, her brother's friends
became her first crushes, and the girls in the
group were the ones she wanted to emulate.
Though the family left Detroit for
Minnesota in 1964, and Karen joined a
chapter there, the memories of CRUSY
stayed with her.
"When I got back to Cleveland, I started
going through phone books and went
online," she said. "I'd find one person and
they'd lead me to the next and the next."
As the group began to grow, Hale realized
she had the makings of a CRUSY reunion.
She moved into action, announcing a
reunion in Cleveland the weekend of April
4-6 for USYers who graduated between the
years of 1955 and 1980. The announcement
began a buzz on the group's Web list and
throughout Detroit's Jewish community.
"If there's going to be a reunion, I want to
be there," Margi Fridson Weinhaus, a 1966
Detroit Mumford High School graduate and

Looking over old
photos of their
USY days and
remembering the
good times are
Susan Moiseev
of Southfield,
and Margi
Fridson
Weinhaus and
Allen Olender,
both of West
Bloomfield

FRIENDSHIPS on page 54

2/21
2003

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