It's not just laying around for Abe Berman of
Farmington Hills. Stretching exercises do wonders for
the back.

Exercise instructor Lisa Wade puts her Saturday
morning class through a vigorous set of moves.

Sabbath — must be preserved."
"It should be protected, respected and hallowed,"
wrote Editor and Publisher Philip Slomovitz. "We
pray that it should not be desecrated, and we appeal
to the board of directors of the Jewish Community
Center to reverse a decision we view as unwise and
harmful to our communal unity."
"Even organizations like Workmen's Circle and
Sholem Aleichem came out against it," Bolkosky told
the JNthis week. And though there were individuals
who sent letters for opening on Saturday, no organiza-
tion was willing to support it.
The controversy became a discussion on what it
means to be a Jew, not just an observant Jew,"
Bolkosky said.
Limited Saturday hours, beginning at 1 p.m., began
on June 24, 1961 at the Meyers-Curtis JCC.
In late 1961, Federation leader Max Fisher formed
a lay committee that drafted recommendations that
essentially said if the Center were to open on
Saturday, it should follow the cultural and recreation-
al activities sensitively laid out by Irwin Shaw, the
highly respected JCC executive director. The JCC
board adopted the recommendations on Oct. 25,
1961.
Saturday hours became 1-7 p.m. A legal challenge
against the opening, filed in June 1961, was dismissed
a year later. The controversy was over, Bolkosky said.
Until now.

Changing Priorities

Peter Alter, president of the Jewish Federation of
Metropolitan Detroit, which annually supports the
Center beyond the $33 million raised during the
Millennium Campaign for Detroit's Jewish Future,
said: "You want to make the JCC as competitive as
you can and in as many areas as you can."
Federation allotted $1.6 million to the JCC from

Top: Tammy Shafir of West Bloomfield works on her
abs while the aerobic class labors in the background

Center: Hilda Roman of Commerce puts the NuStep
machine to good use.

Bottom: Lianne Paskel of West Bloomfield is a
dedicated workout buff

the 2004 Annual Campaign. Federation also contin-
ued a $200,000 annual supplemental grant to sup-
port JCC operations.
Alter said that those that don't want to use the
Center on Saturday morning won't — and shouldn't.
"I believe the Center presented their proposal to the
Michigan Board of Rabbis — not for their approval,"
Alter said, adding that eventually everybody came to
understand the JCC's financial problems and accept-
ed Saturday morning hours though they may not
have necessarily agreed to the hours.
For those with strong opposing views, like Rabbi
Spolter, the move was not smooth. As in the earlier
controversy, he believes the community needs to
rethink the fundamental questions of what are the
community's and the JCC's priorities.
"It's now a business that needs to take care of itself,"
the rabbi said. "Does the Federation need to pour
millions of dollars annually into a JCC that ultimate-
ly sees itself as a glorified health club?"
"I enjoy the Center, and it does a lot of great
things, Rabbi Pachter said. "I want it to remain in
business. But I'm not convinced the Fitness Center is
going to be a victory."
Cheri Victor, chair of the Center Fitness Club, a
former JCC board member and one who has used the
fitness facilities for 30 years, responded that revenue
from the health club helps support the agencies in the
Jewish community using the JCC and its cultural
programming.
"It helps support the elderly, the IRP (Institute of
Retired Professionals), the kids' camp, Shalom Street,
SAJE (Seminars for Adult Jewish Enrichment) and
the Book Fair," she said. "They all need the revenue,
and if the health club is not successful, the agencies
suffer.
"The Center has never been more Jewish," she said.
"We do many wonderful things — and we're depend-
ent on the Fitness Club being successful for long-term
financial support for them."
Alter said, "The proof of the pudding is in the eat-
ing. Over a period of time, we'll see what ways
[Saturday hours] helps the Jewish Center." II

12/17
2004

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