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41
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Planting
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$1 million gift
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donated $1 million to Hebrew Free
Loan to help fund small business
loans.
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8
February 9 • 2012
0
ne man's success will lead
to the success of countless
others.
Marvin Danto, 95, of Bloomfield
Hills, who died Jan. 24, was the found-
er of the Michigan Design Center.
He was also the founder and CEO of
Danto Investment Company and the
Broward International Commerce
Center.
The Danto family and its foundation
have donated $1 million to Hebrew
Free Loan to establish the Marvin I.
Danto Small Business Loan Program,
which will allow Hebrew Free Loan to
make larger-than-usual loans of up to
$100,000 for Jewish entrepreneurs to
open or expand their businesses.
The loans will be given out over five
years, according to David Contorer,
executive director of Hebrew Free
Loan, who expects the nonprofit to
make five to 10 loans a year from the
fund.
Growing up in Detroit, the child
of Russian and Polish immigrants,
Marvin Danto and his family were hit
hard by the Great Depression. During
those hard years, he sold neckties on
the street corner to help his family
survive. According to his daughter
Gail Roffey, who spoke at her father's
funeral service, this early experience
had a profound impact on his entre-
preneurial drive.
Danto's parents had been given $200
by Hebrew Free Loan in 1932 during
the Great Depression, and Marvin had
never forgotten about how that loan
helped his family, said his daughter
Joanne Danto, a member of Hebrew
Free Loan's advisory board. "He spoke
often about it and called it a 'lifesaver
for his family:" she said.
Now, his family is paying that grati-
tude forward.
"As our family foundation evolved,
it became clear to me that my father
would want to help Hebrew Free Loan,"
said Joanne Danto, who added that the
spirit of the program is to "jump-start
ambition" and help young people stay
in the community.
According to Contorer, this pro-
gram is "putting the rubber to the
road" when it comes to keeping young
Jewish talent in Detroit.
Hebrew Free Loan is keeping the
rules to a minimum on this program.
To qualify, you must be Jewish, in
Southeastern Michigan and either
starting up a new business or expand-
ing a current one. Jews of any age are
welcome to apply.
Accepting Applications
To apply, call Hebrew Free Loan for a
phone consultation. "We want to make
our decisions on a case-by-case basis,"
Contorer said. Those who qualify will
be sent all the necessary documents.
The first two applicants made their
case to a committee of community
experts and businesspeople on Feb. 7,
where they shared their business plan,
financial summaries, co-signers and
other documentation and were inter-
viewed by HFL committee members.
As of press time, no decision had been
made on their applications.
Hebrew Free Loan will assign at
least one mentor to each loan recipi-
ent, Contorer said. The mentors will
provide legal, financial and other types
of business guidance. Entrepreneurs
also can provide strategic assistance to
each other.
"We are looking forward to seeing
many things happen," Danto said.
"More mentoring, more jobs cre-
ated and, of course, more economic
growth — and what better way to do
that than through the creativity of new
business:'
Danto cited her father's creativ-
ity as integral to his success. "What
excites me most is the example my
father might be to others, particularly
to young people in our Jewish com-
munity:'
❑