metro >> on the cover

A sapling from Anne Frank's
famous tree now grows as an
uplifting symbol at the HMC.

Esther Allweiss Ingber I Contributing Writer

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

Now, a special link to Anne Frank
resides in Farmington Hills. A sapling
from the same majestic tree that inspired
Anne was planted Aug. 27 on the grounds
of the Holocaust Memorial Center
Zekelman Family Campus. The HMC is
one of only 11 sites in the United States
chosen for the honor by the New York-
based Anne Frank Center USA, a non-sec-
tarian, nonprofit educational organization.
"Everyone knows Anne Frank, from
at least the sixth grade on, when kids
read her diary in school:' said Stephen
Goldman, HMC executive director.
"Having her tree grow here is really going
to touch people:'
The young tree will flourish in the new
Viola and Garry Kappy Anne Frank Tree
Exhibit and Garden, named for the proj-
ect's major funders. The public dedication
is scheduled for Sunday, Sept. 22. (See box
on page 9 for details.)
The Anne Frank Sapling Project started
as Anne's chestnut tree was nearing
the end of its nearly 180-year lifespan.
Diseased and rotted through the trunk,
the massive tree was a safety hazard, slated
to come down in 2007. A last-minute
reprieve in court and funds obtained for a
steel frame kept the tree in place until high
winds toppled it in August 2010.
Fortunately, before the tree's demise,
stewards at the Anne Frank House in
Amsterdam had the foresight to take grafts
from the tree to create saplings. The plan
was to offer new "Anne Frank" trees to
worthy recipients around the world.
On June 12, 2009, the HMC received an
invitation to apply to receive ownership of
a tree sapling, said Feiga Weiss, the HMC's
librarian and archivist.
Weiss and local artist Gail (Rosenbloom)
Kaplan immediately began pursuing the
idea for the HMC. Among her past efforts,
Kaplan created the mosaic in the HMC
lobby as a community project and led the
Kindertransport quilt installation.
"The mission of the Anne Frank Center
is to teach Anne Frank's story and contin-
ue her message of hope and tolerance for
all people Kaplan said. "It was a beautiful
idea to take saplings from the tree in crisis,
so the tree's message could live on:'
The women received full support for the
project from Dr. Guy Stern, director of the
HMC's Institute of the Righteous. He also
was interim director of the HMC at the
time, following the death of its first leader,
Dr. Charles Rosenzweig.
Recalling his visit to the Anne Frank

8 September 12 • 2013

A new plaque honors the Anne Frank

sapling in its new home at the HMC.

Garry and Viola Kappy with the sapling

House, Stern said, "I thought then that
anything that could be done to commemo-
rate her life story and overwhelming talent
would be a blessing."

A Fitting Home
In the Request for Proposal, Anne Frank
Center USA informed interested muse-
ums, botanical gardens, human rights
organizations and cultural or education
institutions that the "Anne Frank tree
sapling should be used by the institution
as a living icon of tolerance and must then
be related to the 'story' that the proposing
institution wishes to tell:'
Kaplan thought the HMC could easily
fill the bill.

"The sapling project not only teaches
about the Holocaust, it dovetails with the
HMC's Institute of the Righteous mission
of teaching tolerance she said. "The Anne
Frank tree speaks to who we are as an
institution:'
Weiss submitted the maximum three-
page description of educational goals, a
site plan for planting the tree and a list
of persons who would be responsible for
the establishment and maintenance of an
exhibit featuring the Anne Frank tree.
Kaplan, the project manager, visited
Yvonne Simmons, executive director of
Anne Frank Center USA, "to put a face to
our name:'
Later in 2009, the HMC was thrilled

to learn it would receive a sapling and
be forever part of an exclusive group
that includes the White House, Liberty
Park near the National September 11
Memorial & Museum in New York City,
Boston Common, the William J. Clinton
Presidential Center in Arkansas, the
Children's Museum in Indianapolis and
five other sites. Plantings began this
spring.
Stern praised "these two fine women
[Weiss and Kaplan], the ball carriers for
the [sapling] project. Their drive and the
excellence of their proposal carried it over
the goalpost:'
Fundraising was full-speed ahead with
the approval. Garry and Viola Kappy are
Holocaust survivors who were "looking to
do something for the community" when
their daughter-in-law, Barbara Kappy,
approached them to be part of the Anne
Frank Tree Sapling Project.
"I didn't hesitate said Garry Kappy.
"I like that when young people come to
see the tree, the name of Anne Frank will
never be forgotten"
Other team members for "The Anne
Frank Sapling Project: A Tree Grows
in Michigan" were Joel Smith, presi-
dent, Neumann/Smith Architecture in
Southfield; Randall Metz, principal,
Grissim, Metz, Andriese Associates
Landscape Architecture in Northville;
and Gary Roberts, president, Great Oaks
Landscape Associates in Novi.
Neumann/Smith Architecture, designer
of the HMC, helped determine the best
location for the tree and garden, outside
an Anne Frank exhibit. Grissom Metz
designed the new setting and surrounding
area; Great Oaks Landscape installed it.
After the mandatory quarantine of tree

