Jonah and Sophie Erlich with the "Daven Downtown" T-shirts they are
selling to help the Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue in Detroit.
'Daven Downtown'
Entrpreneurial teens sell T-shirts
to support Downtown Synagogue.
Stacy Gittleman
I Special to the Jewish News
N
store hours m,t,w,f 10:00-6:00
th 10:00-8:00, sat. 10:5:30, sun. 12-4.
ORCHARD MALL ' WEST BLOOMFIELD, MI
ORCHARD LAKE ROAD • NORTH OF MAPLE
SHANGRI-LA
AUTHENTIC CHINESE CUISINE
(15 Mile & Orchard Lake)
248.626.8585
10 October 31 • 2013
ever underestimate the
impact of a school field trip.
Last spring, Sophie Erlich,
14, of Birmingham took a trip to the
Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue with
her eighth-grade classmates from Hillel
Day School in Farmington Hills. There,
she learned about the synagogue's past.
There, she also became inspired about
contributing to Detroit's comeback and
an urban Jewish future.
This September, Sophie, now in
ninth-grade at Birmingham Groves High
School, and big brother, Jonah Erlich, 16,
kicked off a fundraiser for the synagogue,
founded in 1921, with their "Daven
Downtowri' T-shirt fundraising cam-
paign. They sold more than 35 T-shirts
for $36 each on their website designed by
Jonah, www.davendowntown.com/
collections. All proceeds go directly to
help the synagogue.
Throughout the whole process,
which is earning them required com-
munity service credits for school, the
teens also are learning valuable les-
sons in keeping inventories, marketing
for nonprofit organizations on social
media and running a business.
"I am very energized about the idea
of Detroit coming back:' said Sophie,
who has friends with older siblings
who are moving into the city. "It's
where I hope to live and work when I
am an adult and out of college:'
Jonah echoed his sister's sentiments.
"If more Jewish young adults move
into the city, they will need a thriving
synagogue within walking distance
where they can pray and just hang out
with other Jews:' he said. "I would be
so excited to work and live in Detroit
someday:'
To create the right vibe, they asked
local designer Kathy Roessner to
donate her time and talents to create a
colorful logo with a "V" in the middle.
The T-shirts, printed in Troy, are avail-
able in crew and V-neck styles and
come in gray and white.
To boost sales, Jonah recruited some
video-savvy classmates at Frankel
Jewish Academy in West Bloomfield,
where he is a sophomore, as well as
local leaders and Detroit entrepreneurs,
to film themselves around town wear-
ing the T-shirts. The "world's most
interesting man:' a character from a
Dos Equis beer commercial, provided
inspiration for the video's only scripted
line:
"I don't always daven. But when I do,
I daven Downtown:'
Anna Kohn, the executive director
of the Downtown Synagogue and one
of only two paid staff members, said
the excitement and entrepreneurship of
the teens toward the synagogue proves
that young people can make things
happen when they are passionate about
a cause.
"We were looking for a way to mer-
chandise, and they beat us to it," she
said.
Kohn said she has used the logo
on the synagogue's website at www.
downtownsynagogue.org . The egalitar-
ian Conservative synagogue's Facebook
page has 1,000 fans. It also distributes
a newsletter with a circulation of 1,600
informing congregants and the general
public about weekly Shabbat services,
a Thursday morning minyan and a
variety of programs that provide social
outreach for Jewish urbanites and those
just curious about Judaism.
The T-shirt sales have become so
successful that they are on back order
as the Erlich siblings, children of Craig
and Renee Erlich, wait for the next
shipment. They also plan to sell the
T-shirts through area synagogues and
Jewish youth groups.
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