Special Report
BILL DAVIDSON LEGACY
Rebounding from page A14
Karen Davidson's Perspective
Aaron spent 12 years working at law
firms or as an in-house attorney for vari-
ous companies before joining Guardian.
Aaron got married around that time
after he and Mary, both belonging to the
same circle of friends, "got serious with
each other:' he says. They have three
sons: Benjamin, 5; Oliver, 3, and Hugh,
18 months.
Ronald Applebaum of Huntington
Woods, an attorney in Southfield, has
known Aaron since their law school days.
Applebaum calls him "the most honest,
sincere and generous person I ever met.
"When I went through an illness sev-
eral years ago, he was there in my time
of need," Applebaum says. "He would
do anything for you. He's just a genuine
guy, who's also great with his family and
synagogue."
Enduring gnilluence
Aaron's thoughts returned to his father-
in-law, the humble billionaire, the man of
few words who rarely granted interviews
because, as Davidson put it, "I just don't
see any point in being a public figure."
Aaron disclosed that Davidson's health
began to decline when he underwent a
heart valve replacement three years ago.
"When they took the vein from his legs
for the heart procedure, it left him with
a lot of pain and loss of mobility," Aaron
says. "He was still playing tennis until
that surgery. Then he had to use a motor
scooter to get around, and, of course,
finally a wheelchair.
"Even though he was in ill health, his
death still was unexpected," Aaron con-
tinued."Because of his lack of mobility,
he contracted a form of pneumonia, but
he continued to get reports and talk on
the phone each day to his top managers.
A week before he died he held a meeting
at the house with family members and
lawyers to discuss succession and transi-
tion plans and the family foundation.
He wanted to make sure the foundation
would continue to support the causes
that were near and dear to him."
Aaron said his mother-in-law, the former
Karen Weidman, has been easing into the
role of Pistons owner, even going to an
owners' meeting recently
"She attends many games, but Bill's seat
Rebounding on page A17
A16
April 30 2009
S
ix weeks after the death
of businessman-philan-
thropist Bill Davidson,
his wife, Karen, of Bloomfield
Hills, reflected on his legacy, the
Davidson family transition and
foundation - and her role as the
owner of a $400 million profes-
sional basketball team.
"Bill's estate is still being
evaluated, but the result will
be something really big for
the Davidson Foundation," she
declared in an interview with the
Detroit Jewish News.
"Of course, the IRS and the
state will get their shares first -
it'll be good for President Obama
and Gov. Granholm," she mused.
"But the final outcome will
be wonderful for local Jewish
organizations and charities, like
Congregation Shaarey Zedek
that he loved so much. The
impact of the foundation also
will be felt globally, in Israel and
other places."
"Bill always believed firmly
in Jewish education; he had
a strong commitment to edu-
cational institutions, so those
groups will continue to benefit
greatly. In general, requests for
grants already have been pour-
ing in from organizations and
charities everywhere; and we'll
have to sort them all out."
Davidson, one of the world's
richest men, died at 86 of com-
plications of pneumonia March
13. Karen Davidson, to whom he
was married for 13 years, is on
the foundation's board, headed
by her son-in-law, Jonathan
Aaron. Other board members
are Karen's daughter, Mary;
Bill's son by his first marriage,
Ethan Davidson, and a longtime
Guardian Industries employee,
Rose Calcaterra, who is secre-
tary-treasurer.
"Jon will do a great job run-
ning the foundation," his mother-
in-law observed. "He has been
"Bill always believed firmly in
Jewish education; he had a strong
commitment to educational institutions,
so those groups will continue to
benefit greatly."
-Karen Davidson
intimately involved in all aspects
of it, working with Bill. They
often stayed up late at night dis-
cussing foundation donations, as
well as Guardian projects. When
Jon commits to doing something,
he goes all the way and gets it
done.
"We've known Jon since
before he even met my daughter
because of his involvement in
Israel projects; he's a high-qual-
ity young man who will do an
excellent job as he follows in
Bill's footsteps and maintains his
legacy."
Karen Davidson inherited
from her husband ownership
of the Detroit Pistons team
in the National Basketball
Association and recently
attended her first own-
ers' meeting. "It was really
great to sit there at a table
with a bunch of billionaire
businessmen from around
the country," she said. "It
was impressive and a real
lesson in American busi-
ness. Although some of them
complained how the economy
is affecting their businesses.
They all had to approve me as
an owner so a committee was
appointed to interview me.
"They even asked me if I ever
attend any Pistons games," she
laughed. "I told them I sure do,
and I sometimes went to games
when Bill couldn't make it."
The owners named her to a
labor relations committee.
Although the family now owns
Guardian Industries, Karen
declined to discuss the business
operation, saying, "I'll leave that
up to the new Guardian board
and management; I'm sure they'll
do an excellent job."
Reminiscing through papers
and photos of Bill, Karen said
he looked very tired in all of his
recent pictures. "He worked hard
all of his life to get to where he
did - and the strain showed," she
Karen
Davidson
said. "Besides his family, his life
was devoted to business and phi-
lanthropy. And he worked hard
at them until the end. He died on
Friday the 13th and all of us will
never forget it."
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