Obituaries

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Tailoring Skills A Life-Saver

I Leonard Poger
I Copy Editor

K

arl. Gutman's custom tailoring
skills and a sharp eye for a cus-
tomer's measurements saved his
life while a German concentration camp
prisoner during World War II.
A Nazi officer ordered Mr. Gutman to
make him a new uniform - without tak-
ing measurements and by estimating his
size from 30 feet away. If the uniform did-
n't fit perfectly, Mt Gutman would be
ldlled. The uniform fit, and Mr. Gutrnads
life was spared.
Several years later, after the war ended,
Mr. Gutman was walking down a Pans
street when he recognized the Nazi. The
tailor immediately called out, "That's the
man!" and had him arrested_
In a 1957 newspaper interview, Mr.
Gutman said he recognized the officer
because of his unusual measurements,
said Mr. Gutmans son, Leonard, the ritual
director of Congregation Shaarey Zedek in
Oakland County
Mr. Gutman, 83, of Southfield, died Jan.
15, 2006. Born in Warsaw, Poland, on July
21, 1922, he was raised in an Orthodox

family and attended a
yeshivah during the
worldwide depression.
" When he was 14, he
walked by a tailoring shop
and heard the Orthodox
tailors happily singing,
Leonard Gutman said.
That was in sharp con-
trast to Mr. Gutman's life
of being poor and fre-
quently hungry, so he
entered the shop and
Karl Gutman
asked to be a tailor's
apprentice. Initially, he
was turned away, but he came back two
weeks later and completed a 30-day
apprenticeship.
Two years later, he opened his own shop
in Warsaw. When the Nazis invaded
Poland, Mr. Gutman, then a young adult,
was sent to a forced labor camp.
After the war, he showed photo of his
sister, Fay, to people he met on the street.
They were soon reunited. He learned that
they were the only ones to survive out of
some 200 relatives.
"My father wanted to live in Paris, but
my aunt [Fay, who had already immigrat-
ed to the United States] put her foot down

and insisted that he come
to America:' said Mr.
Gutman's daughter,
Rochelle Froehlich.
After settling in
Detroit, Mr. Gutman
worked for Julius
Klein and Brothers
Custom Tailors. In
1953, he opened
his own shop
UST on Seven Mile
at Schaefer. He
continued working
until his death.
A member of
Congregation Shaarey
Zedek, he contributed to several Jewish
organizations. When he knew of a mem-
ber of the Jewish community in need, he
provided new clothing.
Mr. Gutman didn't talk much about his
wartime experiences, his daughter said
but whenever she or Leonard asked, their
father would respond. She questioned him
about his concentration camp experiences
when writing a college speech class
assignment.
"My father always faced obstacles but
took them and made them opportunities,"
she said. "He was very determined and
relied on his instincts and intuition. That

Car Kills Philanthropist

I Chanan Tigay

Jewish Telegraphic Agency

New York

ndrea Bronfman
kept the book-lined
study in her
Jerusalem home exactly as it
had been when the house
belonged to her parents years
before.
The gesture, say those who
knew Mrs. Bronfman, was
characteristic of a woman
who had devoted herself to
perpetuating Jewish ideals
and education both in Israel
and in the diaspora.
Mrs. Bronfman, 60, a giant
' in the world of Jewish phi-
lanthropy, was killed Monday,
Jan. 23, 2006, when a car
struck her while she was
walking her dog in
Manhattan.

A

96

January 26 • 2006

"She was a Zionist - and
her parents were lovers-of
Israel and strong Zionists:'
said Marlene Post, who
worked with Mrs. Bronfman
at Birthright Israel, the 6-
year-old program that to date
has brought nearly 100,000
young Jews to Israel.on free
10-day trips. "She had excel-
lent Judaic and Zionist values
that I believe came from her
parents:'
Born in London to a
Scottish father and a mother .
from New York, Mrs.
Bronfman and her husband
- billionaire businessman
and philanthropist Charles
Bronfman - maintained resi-
dences in New York, Florida
and Jerusalem. They spent
about three months of each
year in Israel and in 2002
were awarded honorary
Jerusalem citizenship.

Andrea Bronfman

Twenty years ago, the
Bronfmans founded the
Andrea and Charles
Bronfman Philanthropies
Inc., which has supported
initiatives in the Jewish and
general community. Perhaps
the organization's boldest
and best-known project has
been Birthright Israel, a pro-
gram that the Bronfmans
helped co-found with
Michael Steinhardt, chairman

.

Al

.

of Jewish Renaissance Media,
the parent company of the
Jewish News.
"She was, unquestionably,
a visionary with the project:'
Post said. "She was a keen
planner and thought a great
deal about it in its earlier
years.
Mrs. Bronfman was also a
great patron of the arts and
worked to establish a nexus
between her concern for
Israel and her artistic pur-
suits.
Tourism to Israel dropped
precipitously at the height of
the intifada. So in 2003,
Bronfman founded AIDA: the
Association of Israel's
Decorative Arts, which has
helped expose Israeli artists
to North American galleries
and collectors and educate
North Americans about dec-
orative arts in Israel.
Burial will be Friday in
Jerusalem. LI

helped him his whole life."
Ten years ago, he said he "was given a
gift of 50 free years. How lucky I am - I
have a second chance to live.'"
Survivors include his son and daughter-
in-law, Leonard and Sandra Gutman of
Southfield; daughter and son-in-law,
Rochelle and Larry Froehlich of
Gaithersburg, Md.; sister, Fay Rotberg of
Southfield; sister-in-law Sylvia Bovitz;
grandchildren, Jason Froehlich, Robin
Froehlich, Stephen Froehlich, Justin
Binder, Danny Gutman, Geoffrey Gutman,
Devora Gutman, Jennifer and Lowell
Friedman, David Lerner, Michael Lerner;
great-grandson, Max Friedman.
He was the loving husband of the late
Esther Gutman; loving father of thelate
Linda Gutman-Binder; dear brother-in-
law of the late Sam Rotberg.
Contributions may be made to the
Kehilat Shalom Synagogue, 9915 Apple
Ridge Road, Gaithersburg, Md. 20866;
Congregation Shaarey: Zedek, Morning
Minyan Fund, 27375 -Bell Road,
Southfield, MI 48034; or the Jewish
Hospice and Chaplaincy Network, 6555 W.
Maple Road, West Bloomfield, MI 48322.
Interment at Hebrew Memorial Park.
Arrangements by Hebrew Memorial
Chapel. II

DEANA "DeDe"BENADERET, 65, of
Birmingham, died Jan. 16, 2006.
She is survived by her daughter and son-
in-law, Lynne and Dr.
Jeffrey Obron of
Bloomfield Hills; son,
Steven Benaderet of
Connecticut; grandchil-
dren, Elyse and Jacob
Obron; sisters and broth-
ers-in-law, Suzanne Abel
Benederet
of Florida, Joan and
Bernie Brawer of Franklin, Betty and
Stanley Wolfe of Florida. She was the
beloved wife of the late Dr. Gerald L.
Benaderet.
Interment at Clover Hill Park Cemetery.
Contributions may be made to Hermelin
Brain Tumor Fund, Henry Ford Health
System, 1 Ford Place, Suite 5A, Detroit, MI
48202 or to a charity of one's choice.
Arrangements by Ira Kaufman Chapel.

NORMAN GERALD DRESSLER 72, for-
mer Detroiter of Miami, Fla. Died June 27,
2005. While at Northwestern High School
he became active with the Metropolitan
High School Athletic League and was
awarded a first place in the men's 160-yard
free style. He later enlisted as seaman