Editor's Letter
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Business Buddies
JARC salutes its
An Expansive Community
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ith so many 20- and 30-somethings on the move
to "hipper" urban areas, it's important for the
Detroit Jewish community to examine the cause
of this young adult flight. And this examination includes ask-
ing those who have left what drew them. That's just one rea-
son why we as a community shouldn't be so quick to dismiss
what this group is doing now, wher-
ever they happen to be.
As part of our periodic "Four To
Watch" series spotlighting young
adults who are contributing to Jewish
life, we occasionally have included
Detroiters who have moved elsewhere.
Such was the installment published
on Feb. 1. We included a profile of 28-
year-old Jodi Berris, who is helping
elevate Jewish opportunities for people
her age in Portland, Ore., where she
chased a career dream to work at Nike
World Headquarters. Isn't there something to learn from this
Hillel Day School of Metropolitan Detroit graduate's initiatives
in grassroots programming for Jewish peers in the Pacific
Northwest? I think so. By agreeing to be profiled, she felt she
could inspire other young Jewish leaders to the same heights
of success in their communities, Detroit and elsewhere. The
intent was never Portland versus Detroit.
Our "Four To Watch" series was never intended to be so
provincial as to ignore the posi-
tive stories of young people bred
here but who no longer live here.
From the start, it was meant to
spotlight four young adults with
Detroit roots who are up-and-
coming leaders. The series began
in 2002, and not every person
profiled has been a current resident. Still, the vast majority of
the select few we have profiled remain local residents. That
underscores the quality of young leaders the Detroit Jewish
community has retained. We do have a vital corps of young
adults who not only are professionally talented, but also cul-
turally engaged as Jews. And I'm proud of that.
I'm also proud of each young person with Detroit roots
who has made a difference by strengthening the larger Jewish
community. We're a people with a global expanse. Reader Jeff
Fox of West Bloomfield knows Berris from when she, too, was
a volunteer coach with the Maccabi Club of Greater Detroit.
"As a parent, I would hope that our children would choose to
live and work in the Detroit community:' Fox told me. "But
we cannot control where they want to live, who they want to
work for or who they choose to live the rest of their life with.
We can be assured that wherever they are, their Jewish com-
munity will be strengthened by their leadership!'
opportunity — whether landing a job, finding a mate or
making a Jewish connection.
It's not that we don't offer job, dating or communal oppor-
tunities. But we may not have the same abundance as say,
Chicago, nor do we promote the ones we have as well as we
should. So interviewing members of our tribe who have taken
flight doesn't seem wrong to me. Federation's migration task
force is exploring what will keep more young adults here.
Shouldn't finding out what lures them away be part of that
research?
By including some transplanted Detroiters among our
"Four To Watch," the Detroit Jewish News is simply try-
ing to present reality and the general need to listen more
attentively when young adults talk to us. This need isn't lost
on Federation or among Jewish organizations on Michigan
campuses. We all want to persuade young adults who do stay
or who are considering a return to plug into a vibrant Jewish
community here in Detroit. We can't guarantee jobs or always
excel at matchmaking, but we can help these young Jews find
Jewish fulfillment. If we secure the vibrancy of our Jewish
community, our post-college-age population will grow.
Joining Together
We know this is a great community for settled families to
raise their children Jewish, but you need to live here to enjoy
the benefit. Michigan's poor economy has fueled the flight and
stifled our ability to regenerate a critical mass of young adults
Federation's migration task force is exploring what
will keep more young adults here. Shouldn't finding
out what lures them away be part of that research?
Tightening The Reins
The Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Detroit's 2005 demo-
graphic survey confirmed what we already knew: too many
young adults have opted for more appealing metro regions in
search of a career, a spouse or adventure. This youthful flight
to Chicago, New York, Boston, Atlanta, Seattle, L.A., Portland
and other places must be slowed. Some relocation is the natu-
ral order of things, but Detroit seems to have experienced a
disproportionate share. You can distill the reason to limited
to promote new relationships. Thus we must transform our
metro area into a viable place to find gainful work and meet
other young people. We're risking our Jewish future if we don't
follow through.
Federation engages young adults on a career path and with
leadership skills through a variety of programs, but what
about those who are jobless? Chances are the migration task
force will push for a stronger job corps to help young profes-
sionals find jobs in their fields so fewer are forced to pull up
their roots.
Having a model to emulate and a goal to reach is always a
plus. That's why our 40- and 50-year-old communal leaders
must set the bar for our 20- and 30-somethings. It's called
intergenerational bonding.
Led by Federation, and working with the larger com-
munity and government leaders, we must strive to make
Metro Detroit equally inviting not only for young Jews, but
other young adults. Federation must help show the way, but
it requires unremitting community support. At stake is the
cherished tradition we call Jewish Detroit. 11]
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for donations of goods and services
over the past 12 months.
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00000000
A.C.E. Animal Control Experts
Kerry Streng
Action Video & Imaging, Inc.
Advance Packaging Technologies
Ronald M. Applebaum, Esq.
Danny Aronovitz, D.P.M. and
Marvin Aronovitz, D.P.M.
Artistic Outdoor Services, Inc.
Automatic Apartment Laundries
Blossoms, Inc.
Bodman L.L.P.
Cheryl Melamed Photography
Detroit Popcorn Company
Dykema
Faces in the Air, Ltd.
FASTSIGNS of Farmington Hills
Barry W. Feldman, M.D.
Forest Post Productions
Franco Public Relations Group
Full Circle Graphics, Inc.
Keith Levick — Goren & Associates
Great Lakes Building, Inc.
Great Lakes Landscape Design, Inc.
Harry's Garden Centers, Inc.
Hersch's Lawn Spray
Honigman Miller Schwartz
and Cohn LLP
House of Blinds and Drapery
Jo Bruce Corporate Training
Associates
Joe Cornell Entertainment
Lighting Supply Company
Maddin, Hauser, Wartell,
Roth & Heller, P.C.
Mattko Systems
Matt Prentice Restaurant Group
Nicole Meadows, D.D.S.
Metropolitan Heating & Cooling, Inc.
Jeffery Meyers, M.D.
Michael Jonas Photography
Mobile Dentists
Dr. Marcy Borofsky & Dr. Margo Woll
Miller Canfield
Bobbie Miller — Re/Max in the Hills
Gary D. Miller
Perfect Carpet Care
Pest Arrest, Inc.
Pitt, McGehee, Mirer, Palmer and
Rivers, P.C.
Resource Data Systems Corporation
Star Trax Event Productions
Technihouse Inspections
Tracey and Associates
Victor/Harder Productions
Vision Specialists of Birmingham
Walker Printery, Inc.
Wallside Windows
Zack and Chandler, C.P.A., P.C.
Are the stories of former residents
important to Detroit Jewry?
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What more must we do to keep and
bring back young adults?
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