Arts Life
Sports
Flour Greats
Jewish Sports Hall of Fame will induct new class on Monday.
ALAN HITSKY
Associate Editor
lir
he Michigan Jewish Sports Hall of Fame will
induct four new members at its annual dinner
on Monday, Nov. 3, at Congregation Shaarey
Zedek. In addition, two high school athletes of
the year and the Bill Hertz Scholar Athlete will be honored.
Michigan State University basketball coach Tom Izzo will
receive the Alvin Foon Award and his predecessor, Jud
Heathcote, will be master of ceremonies.
This year's Hall of Fame inductees are former University
of Michigan and Mumford High School basketball player
Steve Fishman, long-time Detroit newspaper reporter and
sports public relations director George Maskin, national
yachting figure Eugene Mondry and squash champion
Willie Stone.
Willie Stone
As an athlete at Detroit Central High
School, 5'5" William "Willie" Stone
competed in track, cross-country and
basketball. He later was a fast-pitch soft-
ball pitcher for B'nai Kith.
But at age 24, he discovered the game
of squash, and over the next 50 years
accumulated more than 200 trophies in
singles and doubles, from the club level
to North American competiitons.
He was Michigan Class C champion,
won several Michigan doubles champi-
onships in both Class A and B, was run-
ner-up in Class B singles and a finalist
several times in the state Class A singles.
Stone gave up squash five years ago, at
age 74, when he had both knees
replaced. But he still plays tennis, win-
ning a prize several years ago in Florida
"for the slowest serve."
"I'm kind of surprised and very hum-
George Maskin
The Michigan Jewish Sports Hall of Fame induction dinner will be held at
Congregation Shaarey Zedek Southfield on Monday, Nov. 3. Cocktail hour and
silent auction begin at 5:30 p.m. Live auction, seaecl dinner and awards cere-
monies begin at 7. Tickets are 8125 (members) and 5150. Age 17-and-younger
price is equal to person's age. For tickets, call Elavue Wolfson, (248) 788-0921.
The Michigan Jewish Sports Foundation was founded by Alvin Foon in 1 . 984 to
honor Jewish , sports figures who have distinguished themselves in IVIichigari.
Significant funds are raised annually to support several charities, including the
Hank Greenberg oncology Fund at the Detroit Medical Center.
Projects include the Hank Greenberg Memorial Golf and Tennis Invitational,
the annual Fame Games for developmentally disabled persons and camp and
college scholarships.
The MJSF is housed at the Jewish Community Center in West Bloomfield,
where the Hall of Fame plaques are permanently displaye d.
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10/31
2003
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The son of Russian immigrants who
owned a candy store in Hamtramck,
George Maskin always wanted to be a
sportswriter.
He began writing for the Detroit Times
when he was a student at Detroit
Northern High School. The Times hired
him to cover Michigan State University
sports while he was an MSU student; he
served as sports editor of the State News.
Returning to the Times in 1939,
Maskin was a reporter, editor and colum-
nist until the paper folded in 1960,
except for 1941-45, when he served in
the U.S. Army and wrote for Stars and
Stripes.
When the Times closed, Maskin joined
the Detroit Pistons as public relations
director and assistant executive manager.
He traveled with the team, was public
address announcer and occasionally
served as TV color announcer.
He has also been PR director for the
World Hockey Association Michigan
Stags and both Hazel Park Raceway and
bled" about his Hall of Fame induction,
Stone said. Its been a long time."
He said squash has changed dramati-
cally over
the years.
Today's rac-
quets are
larger and
the balls,
courts and
scoring are
different.
"The new
game is for
the young
and fast," he
said. "In the
William Stone
old days, it
took finesse
and more brains than body."
He owns William Stone Insurance
Group in Southfield.
Detroit Race Course. At the same time,
he has been a regular official at high
school, col-
lege and
other ama-
teur sports.
Even today,
at age 86, he
referees
grade school
and middle
school vol-
leyball
matches.
He
remains one
of approxi-
George Maskin
mately 25
Michigan
voters for the national Baseball Hall of
Fame in Cooperstown "and I still sit in
the press box at Tiger games — both the
Tigers and the Pistons have been very
nice to me," he said.
Maskin lives in West Bloomfield and
Boca Raton, Fla.