Focus

Morris and Eva
Shapiro on their

Esther Eichner,
92, of Southfield

wedding day.

enjoys paint-

ing with water-
colors at the
Brown Center in

Southfield.

Relative In Search
Of American Family

Shelli Liebman Dorfman
Staff Writer

j

anet Wees may live in
Calgary, Alberta, Canada;
but she's been connected to
a slew of American contacts in her
search for never-met family members,
some of whom might have made their
way to the-Detroit area. .
"Growing up, I only knew about my
father's paternal side Wees said. "It
Was as if the other three sides of the
family began in Winnipeg, Manitoba,
[where her roots seem to begin]. Since
retiring, I have been searching for
cousins my mother and father never
mentioned:'
Having already had success in locat-
ing one branch of the family tree, she
is hoping some of the others are in
our community. .
After quite a bit of research, here's
what she's found: Wees' maternal
grandfather, Louis (or Lev or Laib)

Kalnitsky, was born July 18, 1883.
His father was David Abraham or
Abraham David. He had three broth-
ers named Moses, Meier and Berel,
all of whom lived in Winnipeg at one
time, but moved away in the 1920s.
He also had a sister, Eva, who married
Morris (or Maurice) Shapiro and had
a daughter or daughter-in-law named
Bessie.
"We have a card from Morris and
Eva from Boston, so they must have
lived there at one time she said. "My
grandfather emigrated with his wife,
Olga Worgaftik, and his daughters
Anna (my mother) and Fannie, from
Odessa in 1915."
Her paternal grandmother, Molly
Adler, was born in the early 1880s.
She had two sisters, one named
Annie Greenberg, who, with her hus-
band Harry Greenberg of Ipswich,
Mass., had a son named Nathan. A
second sister, whose last name was
Goldstein, had four sons and owned
a store called Boys' Market in Los
Angeles. One son's name was Bernard.
Wees' paternal grandfather,
Abraham Minuk (or Meniuk or
Menyuk) was born around the 1870s
and died in 1955. He was married to
Molly Adler and his family was from
Chartoryisk, near Kiev. He moved to
Rovno when he married. Abraham
Minuk had three brothers, Mordechai
(1873-1972) and Berel, both of whom
immigrated to Canada, and Laibl who
stayed in Europe and died in 1903.
Anyone with information on Wees'
family members may contact Shelli
Dorfman, (248) 351-5141 or
sdorfman@thejewishnews.com . El

Art As Therapy

.

Brown Center clients get in touch
with their feelings.

Keri Guten Cohen
Story Development Editor

perception that older adults, especially
those struggling with memory disor-
ders, are unable to create, learn new
things or engage fully in artistic expe-
' here's no doubt that creating
riences,"Verriest says.
art can be therapeutic. It cer-
Their artwork was displayed March
tainly works wonders at the
Brown Center, where art sessions with 29 at the Art•of Aging Successfully
seminar at Greater Grace Temple in
individuals with Alzheimer's disease,
Detroit.
dementia and other memory disor-
Participants
ders yield
work on note
colorful note
cards in groups
cards for
of six to 12, and
sale to the
get individual
public.
assistance from
"Two
Lorraine Feber,
women gig-
a registered art .
gling over
therapist. Some
their color
she coaches
choices; a
step-by-step;
rarely verbal
for others she
woman ask-
recommends dif-
ing for water
ferent color com-
Cards carry vibrant, lyrical
to clean
binations or brush
watercolor designs.
her brush;
strokes.
and a man
Often the par-
so proud of
ticipants paint to music. "We put on
his work that he wants to display it
music and ask the participants to
above his wife's hospital bed as she
close their eyes and put marks on the
recovers from surgery" — these are
paper:' Feber says. "We also ask them
testimonials to -what art can do, says
to get in touch with their feelings and
Julie Verriest, activities director at
then draw because what comes out
the Dorothy and Peter Brown Jewish
reflects what's inside."
Community Adult Day Care Program
The note cards are sold at the
in West Bloomfield. •
Brown Center and JVS at 5 cards for
The seniors regularly paint note
$5. They are also for sale by calling
cards, which sport vivid watercolors,
(248) 661-6390.
deliberate brush strokes and seem to
The Brown Center is a nonsectarian
capture the joy in life.
program operated by JVS and Jewish
"People in the community are
Home and Aging Services to give
often delighted when they see the
people with memory disorders the
beautiful works of art produced by
dignity of a purpose.
our participants because there is a

7

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April 20 • 2006

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