Editor's Letter
29th Annual
FALL
NDRAISER
The Aronson Imprint
T
here we sat exactly 101/2 years ago, in the nerve cen-
ter of Jewish Detroit: the Max M. Fisher Federation
Building in Bloomfield Township. We talked about
our Jewish community — its strengths, its needs, its agencies,
its heritage, its people.
As we talked, I variously was motivated and intrigued by
the vision, charisma and insight of my host, Robert Aronson,
then executive vice president of Federation, the Detroit Jewish
community's top strategic planner and
central fundraiser. I was newly named
as editor of the Detroit Jewish News,
although not new to this community;
my family roots here go back to at
least the 1890s.
I recall that winter morning get-
together in Aronson's second-floor
office as I ponder his nearly 20 years
of service as Federation's chief execu-
tive officer. A search committee will
select a new CEO over the next year.
Aronson, still a man in constant
motion, will stay on as senior fund-
raising adviser while spending more
time as a premier consultant to some
of American Jewry's most-important
givers.
All of which is why, from the instant
the North American Jewish federated
network was formed in 1999 through
the merger of three major appeals
organizations, Aronson was wooed to
lead the United Jewish Communities
— largely dysfunctional during its
early years. He was passed over for UJC
president in 2004 — that was Detroit's
gain — but such interest in Aronson
was not surprising.
Aronson, who came to Detroit from
the Milwaukee federation in 1989, is
a superstar fundraiser who knows his
way around the convoluted federated
world. On-the-job training gave this
third-generation Milwaukee native the skill to run the Detroit
Federation as a business with objectives, strategic planning
and fiscal accountability. He's an authority on Israel-diaspora
bridge building, having spent months at a time in the Jewish
state as a young adult. It was the 1973 Yom Kippur War that
inspired him to embrace Jewish communal service despite an
art background.
And it was Aronson, working with top-notch lay leaders
and professional staff, who guided Jewish Detroit to national
stature. We're the 21st-largest U.S. Jewish community in popu-
lation but we rank fourth among federations in total cam-
paign giving. That's a stunning achievement given Michigan's
troubled economy. It's a tribute to our mega-donors as well as
regular and new givers.
synagogues are intertwined. He, more than anyone, has kept
our community interactive — so vital to providing programs
and services that matter.
Aronson has heeded the wisdom gleaned from his men-
tor, Max Fisher, Jewish Detroit's beloved patriarch who died
in 2005 at age 96. Franklin's Jane Sherman, Fisher's daughter
and a world Jewish leader in her own right, confirmed that
Aronson would seek her father's counsel on major decisions
locally and involving Israel. Aronson felt Fisher not only
enhanced his expertise, but also his growth as a Jew.
Aronson clearly has integrated himself into the fabric of
our community: its issues, its history, its leadership. His con-
cern extends to Jews of all backgrounds and beliefs.
His non-confrontational style is a proven winner.
Money Managing
In 2003, when faced with the worst fiscal crisis since he
arrived in the Motor City, Aronson won Federation Board of
Governors approval for across-the-board budget cuts to solve
a projected $6.2-million revenue shortfall in the general fund,
which feeds allocations. The crisis invigorated Federation's
pursuit of planned giving options to
create endowed support for urgent
and planned community needs.
Aronson and his staff learned the
hard way that Federation had to be
more disciplined; that it no longer
could be the source for any and all
financial relief.
Later, Aronson spurred Federation's
hugely successful Millennium
Campaign for Detroit's Jewish Future.
The Jewish Community Center, des-
perately in need of improvements to
both of its buildings, emerged the
biggest winner.
During the Aronson era in Detroit,
larger Federations became more
professional. The days of face-to-face
solicitations by peers gradually gave
way to campaign and development
professionals who shepherded major
givers, endowment development and cultivation of the next
generation of donors.
Aronson comes off as a quiet diplomat with real focus,
much like Max Fisher. He's also politically savvy. He knows
how to grease the skids to keep all parties to an initiative or
dispute engaged enough to get the job done. He's a master at
building coalitions and consensus not just by the force of his
personality, but also the trust that he engenders.
After almost 20 years in a demanding, and at times gruel-
ing, position, Aronson still finds the time to provide Michael
Steinhardt, William Davidson, Eugene Applebaum and other
mega-philanthropists with leadership, guidance and direction
— no small task.
Make no mistake about
it: Bob Aronson pos-
sesses the skill to develop
and articulate a local,
national and world
vision that resonates
with big givers, com-
munal professionals and
grassroots volunteers.
A Trailblazer
Make no mistake about it: Bob Aronson possesses the skill
to develop and articulate a local, national and world vision
that resonates with big givers, communal professionals and
grassroots volunteers. He has a knack for connecting the dots.
He understands how our agencies, organizations, schools and
Successful Drumbeat
Locally, Federation successes under Aronson's watch are com-
pelling.
For example, Federation got more involved with syna-
gogues, from the buyout of the B'nai Moshe building in Oak
The Aronson on page A6
THE UNTOLD STORY OF THE WITCHES OF Oz
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October 23 2008
A5