Coming Home from page 29

young children, a couple's club and more.
The various activities have attracted an
increasing number of participants. The
Michigan Chapter of Friends of the IDF
just created its young adult group within
the last year.
"We're putting an enormous amount of
time, energy and resources into this age
group based on our belief that if we don't,
we will lose this next generation:' Rabbi
Loss said. "We can't afford to do that:'

Optimistic Outlook
There's a definite air of optimism among
the young adults who've recently moved
back.
Jeffrey Minden, 33, of West Bloomfield
believes being close to home improves his
quality of life.
"It's not where you are, but who you're
surrounded by that's important:' Mindell
said. "It depends on what people value.
You're never going to get a person back
here who wants to have a huge city life
experience and needs that. But, people
who want to be with their families and
have their friends nearby are going to
come back."
Minden, who grew up in Franklin,
recently returned to Michigan from
Chicago along with his fiancee, Jessica
Tucker, 28, who's originally from West
Bloomfield.
"I was the person who said I'm never
- coming back — that's why it's so funny
that I'm back here Jessica admitted. "But
once you go away and get that out of your
system, you realize there are a lot of great
things about being home and being close
to your family!"

A Matter Of
Reconnecting

unny things can happen when
you humor your in-laws. For
Dr. Lowell Schmeltz, 31, of
West Bloomfield, following his father-
in-law's recommendation to inquire
about a job opportunity in Michigan
changed the course of his career and
his life.
Schmeltz, and his wife, liana Glazier,
30, were living and working in Chicago
where he completed his residency
and an endocrinology fellowship at
Northwestern University and she
attended law school at the University
of Chicago. Schmeltz is originally
from Pittsburgh; Glazier grew up in
Bloomfield Hills. She says she had no

30

November 16 * 2006

Steven and Jill Ingber met at the University of Michigan and
lived in Miami briefly.

Tucker and many of the other Michigan
returnees believe it's just a matter of time
before other young adults come to the
same conclusion.
"We're pretty optimistic:' Marty Maddin

intention of moving back home, but life
has a way of changing your plans.
"Lowell sort of humored my dad and
talked to somebody here to see what
the market was like," said Glazier. "He
ended up joining a private practice."
It's only been four months since the
couple moved to town, but already
they're enjoying some of the benefits of
living closer to family and friends. The
couple have two young sons, Benji, 3,
and Ryan, 7 months. They're members
of Congregation Shaarey Zedek and
have shared a number of Shabbat din-
ners and other weekly visits with family
members since their move.
"They're ecstatic – my parents come
by all the time to see the kids," Glazier
said.
"Having two children without
any family in Chicago was tough,"
Schmeltz added. "One of us would
have to take time off from work when

Jeffrey Mindell and his fiancee, Jessica Tucker, both grew up
in Oakland County but have moved back here from Chicago.

said. "Hopefully, people are going to keep
coming back and we can reverse the
trend."
"You're hearing all of this doom and
gloom about the population going down,

but with our positive experience, I think
you're going to see a change for the bet-
ter," concluded Josh Levine. "I think
you're going to see the Jewish population
increasing."

a child was sick."
While both say
transitioning from a
big-city lifestyle to the
suburbs has been an
adjustment, Schmeltz
is making new friends
and taking part in a
Jewish men's football
league. Glazier, who is
a corporate bankruptcy
attorney with Clark Hill
PLC in Detroit, believes
the benefits of return-
ing to her hometown
-AdiagiL
make the trade-offs
liana Glazier and her husband, Dr. Lowell Schmeltz,
well worth it.
with their sons Benji, 3, and Ryan, 7 months
"I was pretty happy
in Chicago," she said,
community. People are great, they're
"but it's been nice to reconnect with
friendly, and it's great having family
people I haven't seen in 10-15 years. It's
around."
easier to make connections because
of everyone I've always known in this

