Metro HEALTH & FITNESS vat Above: The new name of the sports and fitness center is unveiled. Left: Florine Mark addresses the windswept gathering. Making ark West Bloomfield JCC dedicates new Florine Mark sports, fitness complex. Elizabeth Applebaum Special to the Jewish News Loans for Higher Education JVS, in conjunction with Hebrew Free Loan and the Jewish Federation and a consortium of benevolent organizations, such as NCJW and Temple Beth El, provides interest free loans to Jewish college students. By combining funds from many sources, the Jewish Educational Loan Service (JELS) has enabled thousands of students to complete their degrees. JVS also provides career, educational and financial aid counseling. It's a mitzvah for everybody. Need a loan for higher education? JVS can help. 29699 Southfield Rd. Southfield, MI 48076 (248) 559-5000 www.jvsdet.org 20 May 10 2007 JI N F lorine Mark stood by herself at the podium as the Jewish Community Center in West Bloomfield dedicated a sports and fit- ness complex bearing her name, but she was not alone. "It wasn't just me she said of her donation, to be used for fitness and education. "It started with my bubbie and zaydie" and extends to her chil- dren and grandchildren and the rest of the family. "My name," she said, "repre- sents all of us." The dedication of the new Florine Mark Sports and Fitness Complex was held April 24 just outside the JCC. Mark, CEO and president of the Farmington Hills-based Weight Watchers Group Inc., pledged $2 million to the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Detroit, with funds directed to the JCC's sports and fitness center, as well as the Jean and Samuel Frankel Jewish Academy, which will dedicate the Mark Family Chapel Foyer in its new facility at the JCC. "Thanks to Florine Mark's corn- mitment, the JCC will be solidified as one of the finest family fitness centers in the country',' said JCC Executive Director Mark Lit. "We are so pleased to have her honor our community and the Center in this way. Florine truly stands for what the JCC is all about: a caring and vibrant center for Jewish life." Center President Irwin Alterman called Florine Mark "one of the great- est people in the world." He described her as a woman whom Crain's Detrot Business recently labeled the fourth- most powerful person in the region, yet who remains gracious and kind, "always smiling" and dedicated to her own family and her extended family, the Jewish community. Jewish Federation Chief Executive Officer Robert Aronson called the afternoon "a beautiful coming together of the things you [Florine] have spent your life caring about." He said he admires her decisiveness (Mark, he said, always approaches him: "This is what I want to do and why I'm going to do it and how I'm going to do it.") and added, "It's an honor and truly a bless- ing for us in the community to work with you." As Florine Mark stood at the podi- um, she tenderly remembered growing up "very, very poor" on Elmhurst and Linwood streets in Detroit. And now, she said, she was honored to give this gift, in her family's name, to the Jewish community. The audience comprised numerous Jewish community leaders and many members of Mark's family, including her sister-in-law, Ruth Wright, who said of Florine, "She's a wonderful per- son. Family is very important to her." Following the brief speeches, a large blue tarp was lifted to reveal the name on the new Florine Mark Sports and Fitness Complex. Everyone received a glass of champagne, stood and called out "L'chayim!" Federation CEO Robert Aronson called Florine Mark "a blessing for us in the community." JCC Executive Director Mark Lit said Florine Mark "truly stands for what the JCC is all about."