megacy Of Caring

Diverse crowd honors retiring AJC director Sharon Shapiro.

Sharona Shapiro, honoree; Erica Peresman, event chair; Judge Helene N. White
and Judith L. Cantor, event sponsors

Don Cohen
Special to the Jewish News

I

t was "Sharona Shapiro Day" in
Southfield on Aug. 15 , and a
diverse and appreciative group
of friends, family and colleagues gath-
ered at Congregation Shaarey Zedek in
Southfield for an elegant dessert recep-
tion to honor Shapiro's 20 years with the
American Jewish Committee (AJC).
Shapiro will retire at the end of
August after 18 years as AJC's Michigan
area director. Speaker after speaker
lauded Shapiro for her leadership in
the Jewish and general community,
and the personal relationships she built
throughout the area.
"The magnificent turnout we have
here speaks volumes about how you
have impacted our community," AJC
Michigan President Ken Gold told
the gathering of almost 200 people.
Speakers paying tribute to Shapiro
included leaders of the Muslim,
Chaldean, African American, Lebanese
and Hispanic communities.
David Jaffe and Erica Peresman were
the event chairs.
Michael George, chairman of the
Chaldean Federation of America, lauded
her help in providing support for Iraqi
refugees coming to Metro Detroit.
"We only know about immigrants,
not refugees',' George said, crediting
Shapiro, who he has only known for a
few months, with helping to grow the
network of supporting agencies from
three to 15.

"She is so knowledgeable," George
said. "She works with all humanitarian
people. Her representation of the Jewish
community is extraordinary"
Detroit City Council member JoAnn
Watson called Shapiro "my sister, my
friend, my confidante" and alluded to
both the vocal stand they took regard-
ing equity for women on corporate
boards as well as a recent problem they
resolved quietly. Watson presented her
with the Spirit of Detroit Award from
the city council.
"The mark of a great religious leader
is a heart of compassion;' observed
David Crumm, religion writer for the
Detroit Free Press.
Charles Anderson, president and CEO
of the Detroit Urban League, noted his
12-year collaboration with Shapiro on
the annual All Peoples Breakfast mark-
ing the Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday
in January.
"If you want to get the job done, you
need someone like Sharona," Anderson
said.

'Sharona Withdrawal'

Andrew Doctoroff, the immediate past
president of the local AJC, is "going
through (Sharona withdrawal' and
spoke about Shapiro's partnership with
her volunteers. "She's been the engine,
we have been the cars on the train track
that she's propelled up those hills," he
said.
Other speakers included John Akouri
of the Lebanese American Chamber
of Commerce, Michael Hovey of the

Archdiocese of Detroit, Horacio Vargas
of La Sed, Victor Begg of the Unity
Center and Radha Krishnan of the
National Federation of Indian American
Associations.
"Sharona understands the only way to
securing a future for our peoples is not
with a cluster of bombs, but rather with
a cluster of hope, exchange of ideas and
ideals, and with open channels of com-
munication," Akouri said.
Board member and friend Judy Levin
Cantor told Shapiro, "You have made us
strong as a people and a community:'
Then she told her that trees were being
planted for her in Israel and in Western
Michigan and a contribution was being
made for her to travel to Israel.
Shapiro began and ended her
remarks with quotes from Pirke Avot
(Ethics of our Fathers) that highlighted
the wisdom of learning from others
and actively engaging in the work of
humanity.
She thanked many people by name,
calling them "partners in my adventure
called the American Jewish Committee"
and recalled some of the many projects
she's worked on over the years.
It appears there will be many more
Sharona Shapiro days in the future.
Though she is leaving AJC, she made
it clear she will stay active in the corn-
munity."Stay
.
tuned for my next chapter,"
she said. H

New AJC Leaders
Kari Alterman of Franklin is the new
Metro Detroit chapter director and
regional leadership director for the
American Jewish Committee. Jennifer
Ludwig of Huntington Woods is the new
assistant director.
Alterman spent 11 years at the Jewish
Federation of Metropolitan Detroit,
most recently as leadership develop-
ment director. Ludwig interned at the
Abraham Fund Initiatives, worked on
racial equality and post conflict issues
in Northern Ireland and lived in Israel.
This year's opening chapter board
meeting is 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sept.
18; an open house at 7 p.m. will greet
Alterman and Ludwig at the Max
M. Fisher Federation Building, 6735
Telegraph. Bloomfield Township.

j oin us!

Celebrating a
Century of CarinE -
1907-2007

Sunday,

September 30, 2007

at the

Detroit Opera House
5:30 in the evening

Event Chairpersons
Pearlena Bodzin, Hannah Moss
Joel Smith, and Howard Tapper

Honoring

Carol Rosenberg

Executive Director

Proceeds from this event
will benefit
Acts of Loving Kindness
Gemilut Chasadim

For more information
contact JHAS at
248-661-2999 #348
www.jhas.org

n

Jewish
Federation
of Aketrweitten Gaon

WERE PART OF THE TEAM

Big]

JEWISH HOME &
AGING SERVICES

1907-2007

1128E66 I

August 30 s 2007

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