She Brought Hope And Joy

Rosa and her parents fled the Nazi
osa Levinson refused to let the
horrors of World War II or her invasion, barely missing the massacre
at Babi Yar which wiped out much of
husband's physical disability
her
family.
interfere with her escaping Nazi-occu-
They
settled in Uzbekistan and spent
pied Europe, establishing a family busi-
the
remaining
war years in central Asia.
ness and being active in various Jewish
There
she
met
her beloved, Louis
causes. .
Levinson, who had also escaped the
She and her husband, Louis, who
Nazis from his home in Poland, and
died in 1989, were leaders in helping
was
then imprisoned by the Soviets in
the first wave of Soviet
a Russian labor
Jews immigrate to the
camp. They married
Detroit area. But their
in May 1945 at the
work didn't stop when the
conclusion of World
new arrivals came here.
War
II and escaped
The Levinsons worked to
the
Soviet
Union
find them jobs and apart-
with
her
parents
to a
ments, even co-signing car
displaced
persons
loans so that the new
camp in Austria.
arrivals would have trans-
portation.
Life wasn't all serious
business for the couple.
The Levinsons found time
to produce several Yiddish
language plays.
Mrs. Levinson, 79, of
West Bloomfield, died
Aug. 30, 2004. Her family Rosa Levinson
remembered her as a lov-
ing mother, grandmother,
cousin, aunt and friend.
Nik
"She emanated warmth
and a genuine concern for
They planned to immigrate to
those around her. Rosa brought beauty,
Palestine;
but when the journey was
music, dancing and joy into many lives
deemed
too
difficult for her parents,
despite all of the adversity she faced.
the Levinsons instead came to Detroit
She was loved and will truly be missed
to join relatives.
by everyone whose lives she touched,"
In 1950, they opened a tailor shop,
said Risa Levinson, a daughter-in-law.
Radom
Tailors, which grew into a
Born in Kiev, Russia, she was the
men's
clothing
store. Initially located
only child of David and Clara Radom.

R

IDA CHAMIS, 80, of Southfield,

died Sept. 3, 2004.
She is survived by brother-in-law,
Sidney Moss; nephews, Dr. Paul and
Susan Moss, Larry and Melissa
Moss, Craig and Judy Carnick; dear
friend, Ruth Frishman.
Ms. Chamis was the daughter of
the late Alex and Becky Chamish;
loving sister of the late Bess Moss,
the late Jenny Broad, the late Sylvia
Barman.

Interment at Adat Shalom
Memorial Park. Contributions may
be made to a charity of one's choice.
Arrangements by Hebrew Memorial
Chapel.

MILTON T. CROSS, 84, of

Southfield, died Sept. 2, 2004.
He is survived by his wife, Gitel
Cross; son and daughter-in-law,
Steven and Susan Cross of

on Dexter, the store later moved to
Oak Park where it remained in busi-
ness until 1983. In 1954, Lou suffered
a devastating diving accident in Cass
Lake, leaving him a quadriplegic for
the rest of his life.
Having two young children and
being pregnant with a third, Rosa and
her family pooled their strength and
resources and managed to survive the
calamity. In spite of his physical dis-
ability, Lou remained Rosa's active
partner in business and in life until his
death in 1989.
Shortly after arriving in Detroit,
Rosa and Lou were active in Shaarit
Haplayta, a Holocaust survivors'
organization. In 1956, they founded
the Albert Einstein Lodge and Chapter
of B'nai B'rith, comprised exclusively
of Holocaust survivors.
Rosa and Lou put their talents and
love of music and theater to work,
writing and directing two Yiddish
musical plays, M Yiddishe Chasene" in
1957 and "Dos Groise Gevins" in 1959,
a musical adaptation of a Sholem
Aleichem story which ran at the
Detroit Institute of Arts theater. Rosa
continued this tradition, directing chil-
dren's talent shows and later a musical
tribute to 20th century Jewish history
which was presented at the Jewish
Community Center at Curtis and
Meyers in 1973

Helped Soviet Jews

In the early 1970s, Rosa and Lou
became active in supporting Soviet
Jewry. They held fund-raisers in their

Henderson, Nev.; daughters and
sons-in-law, Lisa and Michael
Ericksen of Huntington Woods,
Bette and Stan Cohen of Littleton,
Colo., Anita and Stephen Mann of
Huntington Woods; grandchildren,
Heidi and Frank Biotti Bercovici,
Mark Bercovici, Andrew Ericksen,
Daniel Ericksen, Donna Mann,
Keith and Dulce Mann; great-grand-
children, Alex, Yarrow.
Mrs. Cross was the loving grand-

home for Al Tid'om, an organization
committed to smuggling Jewish litera-
ture into the Soviet Union, and she
even traveled there in 1973.
As the first wave of Soviet Jewish
immigrants arrived in Detroit in the
early 1970s prior to the establishment
of the Russian Resettlement Services,
Rosa and Lou established a de facto
resettlement service in their Oak Park
store.
They helped numerous immigrants
find jobs, apartments and furniture
and even co-signed car loans for some.
Rosa volunteered as an English as a
Second Language teacher for Russian
immigrants at the Jewish Community
Center and also as a Russian translator
at Sinai Hospital.
In 1991, Rosa sponsored the immi-
gration of her cousin, Dora Shamban,
and her family of nine from Tashkent
to the Detroit area. In addition to
these activities, Rosa was a lover of
Zionism and championed many Israeli
causes, traveling to Israel on numerous
occasions.
She is survived by her sons and
daughters-in-law, Dr. Sandy and
Daniella Livnat of Silver Spring, Md.,
Dr. Marty and Elise Levinson of Royal
Oak, Dr. Jay and Risa Levinson of
West Bloomfield; grandchildren, Rona
and Abi Kronenberg, Oren Livnat,
Joshua, Simon, Noah, Gideon, Ilana
and David Levinson, and Michael,
Robert and Scott Jurewicz.
Mrs. Levinson was the beloved wife
of the late Louis Levinson.
Interment at Beth Tefilo Emanuel
Cemetery. Contributions may be made
to JARC, 30301 Northwestern,
Farmington Hills, Mi 48334 or any
Israeli charity. Arrangements by
Hebrew Memorial Chapel. ❑

mother of the late Sherri Madison.
Interment at Machpelah
Cemetery. Contributions may be
made to a charity of one's choice.
Arrangements by Hebrew Memorial
Chapel.

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