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Man Of Foods

HARRY KIRSBAUM
Staff Writer

ack Peitz was innovative.
When he owned the House of Foods on
Seven Mile and Schaefer from 1953-1974, he
was one of the first grocers to extend store hours and
open on Sundays. He introduced "Bagel Boys" —
young men who delivered bagels, lox and smoked fish
to Jewish Detroiters.
When he purchased the Franklin Cider Mill at 14,
Mile and Franklin roads in 1966, he only made tech-
nological changes to improve the apple cider and
doughnuts. He didn't change the Bloomfield Township
mill's charm.
He purchased the Greenfield Noodle Co., which in
addition to manufacturing kosher noodles, distributed
many kosher products locally.
Mr. Peltz, 82, of Franklin, died of a cerebral hemor-
rhage on July 25, 2004.
"He was a good father and grandfather," said da
ter Dr. Laura Weisel, of Columbus, Ohio. "He always
embraced family; and his workers -were, in essence, part
of his family."
Born in St. Louis, Mr. Peitz moved to Detroit when

Pioneer Journalist

BOB MENAKER
Atlanta Jewish Times

Atlanta

ioneer Jewish journalist Vida Goldgar always
liked to be in the middle:Of things, friends and
colleagues recalled after.the former editor of the
Atlanta Jewish Times died July 18, 2004, at age 74.
In a 40-year career in Jewish journalism that spanned
1964-2004, Ms. Goldgar reported from Beirut in the
middle of the Lebanon war, walked with more than one
American president and Israeli prime minister, became
the first woman president of the American Jewish Press
Association (AJPA) and the first woman president of
the Atlanta chapter of the Society of Professional
Journalists.
Her column "The Last Word" appeared every week
on the final page of the Atlanta Jewish Times, the sister
newspaper of the Detroit Jewish News, published by
Southfield-based Jewish Renaissance Media.
"She was always in the middle of everything in the
best sense," said Alvin Sugarman, former senior rabbi of
the Temple in Atlanta.
"She didn't do anything halfway. She did it 100 per-
cent with full enthusiasm and with a smile."
That included being Jewish. For example, when Ms.
Goldgar and her family came to Atlanta in 1959, she
made no bones" about letting people know she was a
convert, she told an interviewer with Jewish Women of
Achievement Oral History Project. "This is what I was

.

7/30
2004

92

he was about 10. He had to drop
out of school to help support his
mother during the Depression.
Mr. Peltz met Eleanor, his wife of
62 years, through a mutual friend.
"He believed strongly in educa-
tion and helped numerous people
earn the money to get through
school," said Dr. Weisel. Many suc-
cessful attorneys and doctors
earned their first paycheck as a
Bagel Boy, she said.
When Mr. Peltz bought the cider
mill, he really understood the con-
cept of stewardship, she added: "It
was his time to take care of that
special business."
Grandson Jason Peltz of Chicago
Jack Peltz
remembers going on runs with his
grandfather at the cider mill —
waking at 2 a.m., heading to Detroit's Eastern Market
to buy the apples, then returning home at 4 a.m. for a
one-hour nap before going to the mill to crank up the
doughnut machine. "He was always happiest when he
was working with his team," Jason said. "He wasn't
tired — he thrived on it."
"The cider mill season was only about 90 days long,
from Labor Day to Thanksgiving; and my grandfather

only used Michigan apples; he never
wanted to import apples from other
states," said Jason. "He was really
proud of Franklin's heritage of the
`Village That Time Forgot.' He really
wanted to keep things old-school."
Mr. Peltz is survived by his wife,
Eleanor Peitz; son, Barry Peltz of
Scottsdale, Ariz.; daughter and son-in-
law, Dr. Laura Weisel and Dr. Philip
Cass of Columbus; grandchildren,
Jason and Jackie Peltz, Melanee
Wertheimer, Joshua and Kim Weisel,
Marissa Weisel, Sarah Cass and
Rachel Cass; great-grandchildren,
Zachary and Aaron Peltz and Devin
Wertheimer; former son-in-law,
Michael Weisel; sister-in-law, Rose
Weinstein.
He was the devoted son of the late
Benjamin Peitz and the late Mary Peitz; brother of the
late Joseph Peltz, the late Fred Peltz and the late
Manuel Peitz; brother-in-law of the late Maj. Gen.
William J. Weinstein.
Interment was at Machpelah Cemetery.
Contributions may be made to Yeshiva Beth Yehudah,
15751 Lincoln, P.O. Box 2044, Southfield, MI 48034.
Arrangements by Ira Kaufman Chapel. 111

and I was proud of it."
She was also proud of her col-
umn, which she wrote for nearly
four decades. Fot her colleagues in
the Jewish press as well as for her
Atlanta audience, Ms. Goldgar's
column was considered a must-
read.
"I knew right away she was one
to reckon with," said Neil Rubin,
senior editor of the Baltimore Jewish
Times, who came to Atlanta in
1991 as an assistant editor.
"I kept reading her column after
[returning] to Baltimore. She was a
gateway to genteel Southern Jewry"
Vida Goldgar
Ms. Goldgar's columns and
reporting also helped build bridges
in Atlanta's Jewish community.
"I'm sure that those who did not know her felt like
they did just by reading her columns over the years,"
said Kitty Jacobs, one of her closest friends.
Ms. Goldgar started doing publicity for Hadassah,
but gradually she came to write obituaries and simchah
announcements for the Southern Israelite, predecessor to
the Jewish Times.
At one point, Ms. Goldgar recalled in her oral histo-
ry, Publisher Adolph Rosenberg told her, "I like the way
you write. Do you want a job"?
That conversation in 1964 marked the beginning of
Ms. Goldgar's journalism career. In 1973, when she and
her husband divorced, she began working full time at
the Southern Israelite. Following Rosenberg's death in

the late 1970s, she became the paper's
editor and publisher. She bought the
paper in 1979 and later sold it, but rarely
missed her column deadline until just a
few weeks ago when she became seriously
ill.
One of her last public appearances
came at the AJPA's annual meeting in
Atlanta in June. Robert A. Cohn, editor
in chief and publisher of the St. Louis
Jewish Light and past AJPA president,
paid tribute to Ms. Goldgar at the event.
"She brought personal integrity, superb
organizational and business skills and a
kind, passionate approach to leading the
[our] organization," said Cohn.
Cohn also described Ms. Goldgar as
part of "a silver-age generation of Jewish
journalists" who made the transition from "morn-and-
pop-type journalism to something more — incorporat-
ing the business savvy of the next generation."
Survivors include sons and daughters-in-law, David
and Constance Goldgar of Salt Lake City; Dirk
Goldgar and Mary Ellen Curtin of Pennington, N.J.;
Dean and An Goldgar of Covington; daughter,
Deborah Barber of Alpharetta; sister, Adele Fox of
Cincinnati; and eight grandchildren.
Interment was at Atlanta's Arlington Memorial
Park.

Atlanta Jewish Times sta f fwriters Linda Bachmann,
Gabriella Burman and Fran Nachman Putney con-
tributed to this story.