Obituaries

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A 'Buddy' To All

David Sachs
Senior Copy Editor

erome "Bud" Singer, 90, of
Bloomfield Hills and Boca Raton,
Fla., died on Jan. 14, 2011.
Mr. Singer was the longtime, respected
owner and president of Aetna Industries
Inc. (later AZ Automotive), a tier-one
automotive supplier of metal stamping
and welding assemblies.
He later became an
industrial real estate
developer and manager
in the Detroit metropoli-
tan area.
Mr. Singer was born
March 17, 1920, in St.
Paul, Minn. During
World War II, while in
his early 20s, he was one
of the youngest busi-
nessmen and industrial
producers in Detroit. At
the war's outbreak, he attempted to enlist
in the armed forces but was rejected.
Mr. Singer, who had been working in
a machine shop, went out on his own,
opening Singer Machine Products Co.,
which produced thousands of parts for
aircraft, tank and gun manufacturers.
In 1945, Mr. Singer's company merged
with Aetna Metal Products Co., which
specialized in metal stampings for the
war effort, to become Aetna Industries.
After the war, Aetna became the larg-
est privately-held stamping supplier for
the Detroit auto manufacturers, said Mr.
Singer's granddaughter Jennifer Raznick
who spoke at the funeral.
Rabbi Paul Yedwab of Temple Israel
in West Bloomfield, who delivered the
eulogy, quoted praise from an automotive
colleague: "Bud had a great reputation
and was highly respected in the automo-
bile supplier industry, both by peers and
customers."
When Mr. Singer retired from Aetna
in 1994, he continued his pursuits in the
industrial real estate field with Singer
Investments — and kept working even
at age 90.
The rabbi described him as an emo-
tional, loving man, a husband of almost
65 years. He gave generously to Technion,
Karmanos Cancer Institute, Israel tennis,
Crohn's and Colitis and Juvenile Diabetes
charities.
He was an avid fisherman and tennis
and card player who loved dancing to big
band music. "His children, his grandchil-

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dren and his wife were the stars of his
life — his jewels:' said Rabbi Yedwab.
"My father was known as 'Buddy' to all
who knew him," said son Steven Singer.
"'Buddy' is synonymous with the word
`friend. He wasn't just a father; he was
our best friend, our best buddy. Our
whole family is so blessed to have had
such a great buddy and such a positive
role model."
Rabbi Yedwab, described
Mr. Singer as the "Moses
figure" of his family, and
the rabbi fashioned "Bud
Singer's 10 Commandments
for Living a Blessed Life"
from his life story:
1.Love your family.
2. Be madly in love with
your spouse.
3. Dance — in your own
personal style.
4. Give generously.
5. Do not take your work
home with you.
6. Empower your grandchildren with-
out spoiling them.
7.In business, always treat others with
integrity.
8.Be a mentor.
9. Be a man of your word.
10.Don't be afraid to show your
emotions. When your family is sitting
around at a holiday table and you are
overwhelmed with the beauty of it all, go
ahead and cry. After all, what else is life
all about?
Jerome Singer is survived by his
wife, Zenia Singer; children, Steven
and Elisabeth Singer of Bloomfield
Hills, Susan and Kenneth Raznick of
Bloomfield Hills, Gary Singer and fiancee
Christine of West Bloomfield; grandchil-
dren, Jennifer Raznick and fiance Brad
Morganstern, Rena Singer, Sara Singer,
Elizabeth Singer and friend Michael
Baetzel, and William Singer; sister,
Geraldine "Dolly" Fishman. He is also
survived by loving longtime friends Virga
and Thornell Downs.
Mr. Singer was the devoted son of the
late Robert and the late Rena Singer.
Interment was at Clover Hill Park
Cemetery. Contributions may be made
to Crohn's and Colitis Foundation, New
York Chapter, 386 Park Ave. South, 14th
Floor, New York, NY 10016, www.ccfa.
org; or American Technion Society,
30230 Orchard Lake Road, #155,
Farmington Hills, MI 48334, www.ats.org .
Arrangements by Ira Kaufman Chapel. L

DAVID ALPERT, 80, of Oak Park, died
Jan. 4, 2011.
He was born and grew up in Mexico
City, immigrating to the United States
with his family at the age of 16, where
he embraced American Values.
He had many interests and enjoyed
socializing. With his unique back-
ground, he could talk about any topic
with his loud, Latin passion in a "melt-
ing pot" accent of Yiddish, Spanish and
English.
Mr. Alpert is survived by his brother,
Simcha "Steven" Held; nieces, Helen
Held, Tina (Edward) McGough; many
other loving family members and
friends.
He was the dear companion of the
late Lillian Rosender; son of the late
Michael and the late Rachel Alpert;
brother of the late Betty Held.
Contributions may be made to
the Make-A-Wish-Foundation.
Arrangements by Dorfman Chapel.

GEORGE CRANDALL, 87, of Oak Park,
died Jan. 16, 2011.
He is survived by his sons, David
Crandall of Royal Oak, Jeffrey Crandall
of Los Angeles, Calif.; daughter, Rachel
Crandall of Warren; sister and brother-
in-law, Thelma and Dr. Paul Kerwin of
West Bloomfield; many other loving
family members and friends.
Mr. Crandall was the beloved husband
of the late Barbara "Bebe" Crandall.
Contributions may be made to the
Jewish Federation of Metropolitan
Detroit or to a charity of one's choice.
Arrangements by Dorfman Chapel.

HENRY FELDMAN, 96, of Farmington
Hills, died Jan. 10, 2011.
He is survived by his sons, Dr.
Bernard Feldman of Hollywood, Fla.,
Steven Feldman of Birmingham; also
survived by Manya Feldman; stepsons
and stepdaughters-in-law, Dr. Barry
and Marcia Auster, Dr. Steven and
Valerie Auster; grandchildren, Alan
and Yesy Feldman, Shawn Feldman,
Benjamin Feldman; loving nieces and
nephews.
Mr. Feldman was the beloved hus-
band of the late Alice Feldman; dear
brother and brother-in-law of the late
Martin and the late Gertrude Feldman,
the late Leona Zissman.
Contributions may be made to B'nai
B'rith Foundation, 6735 Telegraph
Road, Ste. 304, B, Bloomfield Hills, MI
48301 or to a charity of one's choice.
Services and interment at Machpelah
Cemetery in Ferndale. Arrangements
by Hebrew Memorial Chapel.

MORTON FIELDING,
82, of Las Vegas and
formerly of Potomac,
Md., died Dec. 6, 2010.
Born in New York,
he served at Walter
Reed Army Hospital
during the Korean
Fielding
War and went on
to be appointed to
President Eisenhower's White House
Medical Staff.
Dr. Fielding authored nine books on
podiatric surgery. He practiced podia-
try for over 50 years. He was also a
horse breeder and owner of standard
bred and thoroughbred horses.
Dr. Fielding is survived by his
beloved wife, Jane; daughters Mona
(Don) Shane of West Bloomfield, Dana
(Jeff) Newman, Wendy Lang, and Jody
(Gary) Sklar; loving grandchildren,
Justin and Lindsay Shane, Garrett,
Tyler and Darryl Lang and Miles and
Travis Fielding Sklar; brother, Stuart
(Maralyn) Fielding; former wife,
Phyllis.

ARTHUR
FINKELSTEIN, 82,
formerly of Detroit
and past owner of
Academy Electronics,
passed away on Jan.
5, 2011, in San Diego,
• Calif., where he had
Finkelstein
resided since 1984.
He was a loving husband, father,
grandfather and friend.
Mr. Finkelstein is survived by his wife,
Muriel; daughters, Janet and Cheryl;
sons, Mark and Ron; grandchildren,
Gavriel, Matt, Shaina, Josh and Genoa.

LAURA GRANDON, 63, of Commerce,
died Jan. 13, 2011.
She is survived by her son and
daughter-in-law, Steven and Carey
Grandon of Howell; daughter and
son-in-law, Julie and Chris Mison of
Commerce; grandchildren, Hunter,
Noah, Alexandra and Ava; sister-in-law,
Laurie Dyja; many other loving family
members and friends.
Mrs. Grandon was the beloved wife
of the late Richard Grandon; daughter
of the late Max and the late Esther
Rubin.
Interment at Clover Hill Park
Cemetery in Birmingham.
Contributions may be made to
the American Cancer Society, the
American Lung Association, to FAAN
or to Autism Speaks. Arrangements by
Dorfman Chapel.

Obituaries on page 58

January 20 2011

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