Business & Professional
HERE'S TO
Louis Schostak,
right, with Golda
Meir, far left, and
an unidentified
classmate at the
Milwaukee High
Lawyer To Be Honored
School gradua-
tion, circa 1915
Schostak from page A29
village concept is very successful; said
Schostak. "As often happens, the most
vocal opponents of a project usually
are the first to enjoy its benefits."
The Lofts at Merchants Row project
on Woodward in downtown Detroit is
a departure from the usual Schostak
developments because it's mainly a
residential rather than a business
development. A total of 157 lofts, rang-
ing from 900 to 2,000 square feet, are
almost completely rented, mostly to
young people or empty-nesters. Retail
stores occupy the ground floor.
Looking Ahead
With slipping prices of homes and
businesses, foreclosures and other
ramifications of the economy affect-
ing the real estate business, Schostak
declines to offer his assessment of the
reasons, or to give specific advice for
the future, other than to point out that
the real estate business is very cycli-
cal. However, he philosophizes: "When
things are bad, you never think they'll
get good again. But the mistake we
make when things are good, is that we
never think they'll get bad again."
Schostak says he was "flattered"
to have received the ULI's Lifetime
Achievement Award, "especially in
view of the many prominent real estate
developers who have been honored
[including A. Alfred Taubman of
Bloomfield Hills in 2005]."
"Jerry is a shining example of the
best in both business and personal
values, and has developed many initia-
tives to better the real estate indus-
try;' observed Phillip Wm. Fisher of
Bloomfield Hills, the son of the late
Franklin industrialist and philanthro-
pist Max Fisher.
An investment specialist, Fisher
A30
May 29 • 2008
JN
has known Schostak for 15 years, and
serves on several bank boards and
committees of the Jewish Federation
of Metropolitan Detroit. "He's a great
friend and advisor to me on various
business matters, and has a wealth
of experience. I can't emphasize his
strong personal values enough."
Relaxing in an office filled with real
estate industry awards, mementos and
family photos, Schostak said he's look-
ing forward to the fourth generation
joining Schostak Brothers & Company,
Inc. Robert's son, Jeff, 25, will come
into the company after he "learns the
ropes" during a five-year stint with
a large real estate firm in Chicago.
Schostak also has a son, Tzvi, living
in Israel, two daughters, Lindsey, 24,
and Stefanie, 21, 14 grandchildren and
one great-grandchild. He and his wife,
Elyse, live in Franklin and belong to
Adat Shalom Synagogue, Farmington
Hills.
Active on various bank and business
boards and committees and as a real
estate lecturer, Schostak also is a board
member of the Detroit Jewish Fund
and the Investment Committee of the
Jewish Federation.
He previously served on the boards
of Detroit Renaissance, Inc., the Detroit
Medical Center and Sinai Hospital of
Detroit. The family and company also
are committed to stem cell research
and the Juvenile Diabetes Research
Foundation.
The Schostak Family Philanthropic
Foundation provides endowment
funds, scholarships and other assis-
tance to many institutions and causes.
An avid sailor, Schostak and his
sons have successfully raced their boat,
Fujimo, winning both the Chicago and
Port Huron to Mackinac races several
times, plus significant regattas around
the world. ❑
The American Jewish Committee
Metropolitan Detroit Chapter will
present the Judge Learned Hand
Award to Alan E. Schwartz. The annual
award is presented to an outstand-
ing leader in the legal profession who
exemplifies the principles personified
by Judge Hand.
Schwartz will be honored at a trib-
ute dinner at the Townsend Hotel 7:30
p.m Wednesday, June 4. The evening
will include a tribute to Dr. Irvin D.
Reid, retiring president of Wayne State
University in Detroit, and a keynote
speech by Michigan Supreme Court
Justice Marilyn Kelly.
A Detroit native, Schwartz is
a graduate of Bloomfield Hills
Cranbrook Schools and the University
of Michigan. After two years of service
in Guam during World War II, he fin-
ished his degree and entered Harvard
Law School, graduating magna cum
laude.
Schwartz returned to Detroit in
1952 and co-founded Honigman
Miller Schwartz and Cohn LLP.
Schwartz has been dedicated to
the betterment of both the general
and Jewish communities of Detroit.
Among the organizations that have
utilized his leadership are Detroit
Institute of Arts, Detroit Symphony
Orchestra, United Way, Jewish
Federation of Metropolitan Detroit,
New Detroit, Detroit Renaissance,
Barbara Arm Karmanos Cancer
Institute and others.
He and his wife, the former
Marianne Shapero, have three children
and five grandchildren.
The AJCommittee event chair is
Eugene Driker and the evening's co-
chairs are Robert Aronson, Madeleine
H. and Mandell L. Berman, Penny
Blumenstein, Gayle and Richard
Burstein, Lois and Avern Cohn, Frank
W. Fountain of Chrysler Foundation,
Dorothy and Byron Gerson, Roderick
D. Gillum of General Motors, Carolyn
and Hugh Greenberg, Nancy and
James Grosfeld, Ellen D. Kahn, Barbara
and Harold Marko, Suzanne and
Joseph Orley, Andrea and David Page,
Aviva and Jack Robinson, Diane and
Morton Scholnick, Sandy and Alan S.
Schwartz, Beverly and Merton Segal,
Jean S. Shapero, Sheila and Richard
Sloan, Dr. Roberta and Sheldon Toll
and George M. Zeltzer.
Tickets are $250 or $2,500 a table:
(248) 646-7686 or detroit@ajc.org.
Dr. Adam Grant,
formerly of West
Bloomfield, has won
the Weatherspoon
Award for Excellence
in Undergraduate
Teaching at the
University of North
Grant
Carolina's Kenan-
Flagler Business
School in Chapel Hill. It is the first
time in the school's history that a
first-year professor has earned this
award. The candidates were nomi-
nated by students, and the winner was
selected by a committee of faculty
members who received the award in
previous years.
Ian Mondrow of West Bloomfield
graduated from Albion College on May
10, receiving a degree in psychology
with a minor in anthropology and
sociology. He is the son of Steven and
Linda Mondrow and a graduate of
West Bloomfield High School.
Adrienne Lenhoff
Wise of the
Shazaam! LLC
agency in Southfield,
creating marketing
and communica-
tions programs, has
started a new sub-
Wise
sidiary, Buzzphoria
LLC, which focuses
on social marketing. She has served
on the mentoring and member-
ship development committees of the
Women in Communications of Detroit
program and will assume the post of
vice president of marketing on the
board of directors.
Daniel Segal of
Bloomfield Hills
participated in the
Honors Band at the
Michigan Youth Arts
Festival at Western
Michigan University,
Kalamazoo. He
Segal
scored the high-
est rating at the
Michigan School Band and Orchestra
Association Regional Solo and
Ensemble Festival followed by a
similar rating at the state level. He is a
graduating senior and the first chair
saxophone in the Symphony Band at
Bloomfield Hills Andover High School.
He plays alto sax in the Jazz Band and
is an accomplished pianist.