Opinion
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Publisher's Letter
In Pursuit Of Vibrancy
T
o Our Readers:
As we sit
together with
family and friends,
around a festive dinner
table and in synagogue,
there is much to ponder.
While the introspection
necessary to strengthen
Arthur
our relationship with
Horwit
God during and beyond
Presiden
the Days of Awe between
Publish
Rosh Hashanah and Yom .
Kippur are enough to
overwhelm most minds, the world and
the community in which we live has
changed in significant ways, too.
Let's stay close to home.
The Jewish Federation of Metropolitan
Detroit's recently released demographic
study provides a revealing snapshot of a
community in the "best of times ., worst of
times" mode (with apologies to Dickens'
A Tale of Two Cities).
On the one hand, the study shows the
Detroit Jewish community to be the most
generous in America, with remarkable
institutions and infrastructure and high
levels of Jewish affiliation and involve-
ment. The community, according to the
study, is politically active and remains
geographically cohesive, with its popu-
lation rooted in southeastern Oakland
County. The common thread that links
the Detroit Jewish community is the
Jewish News. According to the study,
23,400 of the 30,000 households that
comprise the Jewish community read the
Jewish News with some frequency. And
within the southeast Oakland County
core area, an astonishing 88 percent
of the households report reading the
Jewish News with some frequency. The
Federation study's demographer, Dr. Ira
Sheskin, found the Jewish News to be
the most widely read Jewish publication •
among the 30-plus Jewish communities
he has studied.
On the other hand, the community is
shrinking, numbering 24,000 fewer than
in 1989, when the last population study
was fielded. We have more elderly in need
of care and fewer young families to serve.
Will one of North America's great Jewish
communities slowly whither and die, the
result of a region-wide economic down-
turn that appears to limit employment
and career opportunities? Or will the
resources and creativity at our disposal
lead to a gradual reversal of this trou-
bling trend?
As the data are studied, the task forces
are formed and the inevitable hand wring-
"
76
September 21 e 2006
ing continues, I believe there is a
remarkable opportunity to rejuve-
nate the Detroit Jewish community,
making it attractive for newcomers
and a place where natives will want
to stay ... or return to.
Ideas To Consider
In the hopes of stimulating dis-
cussion (perhaps around your
holiday table), here are some sug-
gestions:
• Package Ann Arbor with
Detroit when marketing and
promoting the attributes of living in
the Detroit Jewish community. This
is not about merging the Detroit and
Washtenaw federations! Rather, Detroit
needs the lure of Ann Arbor, a great col-
lege city possessing culture, vibrancy,
youthfulness and jobs to attract newcom-
ers and retain them. For those already
residing in Farmington Hills and West
Bloomfield, Ann Arbor is closer, more
convenient and alluring than downtown
Detroit. From now on, let's sell ourselves
as the Detroit-Ann Arbor Jewish com-
munity.
• Coordinate job opportunities. On
occasion, I am asked, "I am looking for a
dentist to join my practice. Do you know
of any?" Or, "I have a successful CPA firm
and am looking for an associate who
would like to be a partner. Do you know
of any?" There are Jewish groups in the
Detroit area who are quietly looking to
match employers and employees as a
way to keep community members from
moving away. Can we create a centralized,
highly visible job bank for the Jewish
community? A young Jewish dentist
shouldn't move to Florida with his fam-
ily because he wasn't aware of excellent
opportunities in his home community.
• Undertake a Neighborhood Project-
type effort to attract and retain families,
especially those with children. In the
mid-1980s, the Federation's Neighborhood
Project, which provided attractive loans
primarily for home purchase and home
improvement, helped stabilize parts of
Oak Park and Southfield. With a nine-
figure endowment, the Jewish Federation
should find ways to make dollars avail-
able to young families ... perhaps in the
form of vouchers for Jewish pre-school
education, synagogue membership, tuition
relief, home purchases, etc. The Jewish
community of Cleveland is already doing
a variant of this to address its declining
Jewish population. We should never reject
a good concept because it originated else-
where!
• Advertise in the Jewish News. The
surest way to re-image and rejuvenate
the community, and its institutions, is
through the Jewish News. A consistent
and creative advertising presence in
the Jewish News by Federation, the
Jewish Community Center, Jewish Family
Service, synagogues and other communal
institutions will be seen by 78 percent of
the Detroit area's Jewish households ...
88 percent of those residing in the core
area. The Jewish News is the common
thread that still links the community.
What will our Jewish community look
like in 2020? If we do nothing, it's likely
we'll just ride the trend lines and num-
ber, perhaps, 50,000. Today, our median
age is . 47. In 20 years, without interven-
tion, our median age will be "retired."
The JeWiSh News' vibrancy and suc-
cess hinges on the vibrancy and success
of the Detroit Jewish community. We
pledge to do .our part to meet and exceed
your information needs while providing
leadership and ideas to make sure our
community remains one of America's
best, for young and old. E
L'shana TOVah,
Dry Bones
ONCE AGAIN, ON ROSH
HASNANA, WE WILL DIP
APPLE SLICES IN
HONEY AND WISH FOR
A SWEET NEW YEAR
SHANA TOVA
YEAR AFTER YEAR WE
DIP THE APPLE SLICES
INTO HONEY, ROPING
FOR A SWEET NEW
YEAR
Honey
ROPING AND
DIPPING, HOPING
AND DIPPING.
PERSONALLY, I
MINI( WE'RE
IN IT FOR THE
HONEY,
Honey l
www.dry onesb og.com