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Vernor School:
A Special Place
I truly enjoyed Contributing Editor
Robert Sklar's essay "Compelling
Impact" (Dec. 19, page 24).
I, too, attended Vernor School in north-
west Detroit "from kindergarten through
the ninth grade, spanning the mid-1950s
to the mid-1960s" and remember those
years as fondly as he does.
I have lived in Philadelphia for
the past 40 years, but still stay in
touch with some of my "kindergarten
friends" Although we don't see each
other often, we keep in contact via
email and by phone.
I lived on Cheyenne, not far from
Vernor, and remember the neighbor-
hood quite well — wonderful friends
and families. And I have to add the
Jewish bakeries on West Seven Mile:
Zeman's and Star. Seven-layer cake is
still a favorite of mine today, although
quite an indulgence now!
Thank you again for the special essay,
recalling those special times. I would
love to see Detroit make a real come-
back, becoming the great city it was in
my youth once again.

Angela Hospice
Provides Grief Support
I wanted to commend you on the heart-
felt story you published regarding the
overwhelming and complicated grief
response experienced by survivors of
suicide loss ("Haunting Deaths:' Dec.
19, page 1). I was especially impressed
with the tremendous courage displayed
by those who shared their personal
stories. My father completed suicide 10
years ago, and I know how difficult it
can be to talk about.
Suicide is such an important, yet
underrepresented topic in our culture,
and stories like those that were shared
help to educate and enlighten our com-
munity while also helping other survi-
vors recognize that they are not alone.
I wanted to make sure that your
readers are aware that in addition to
the resources you listed for grief sup-
port, the Angela Hospice Bereavement
Department also provides individual
and family grief counseling free of
charge to survivors of suicide loss. If
you are interested in scheduling an
appointment or for further informa-
tion, call toll-free (866) 464-7810
and ask to speak to the bereavement
department.

Israel Has No
Peace Partner
John Kerry's proposals for a
Palestinian/Israeli accord that Toby
Citrin and his J Street cohorts so
vigorously endorse remind me of an
old joke. ("With Four Months To Go
... Where Are The American Jewish
Voices?" Jan. 2, page 24).
A marriage broker tells a Jewish
couple that he's found a bride for their
son: Princess Margaret. Astounded, the
couple protest, "She's not even Jewish"
But the enthusiastic broker is
undaunted. After no little effort, how-
ever, he manages to convince them that
this possible heir to the English throne
is the perfect mate for their boy.
Then flush with success, he mops his
brow and says to himself, "Well, that's
one side. Now to work on the king and
queen"
The delusional matchmaker of this
tale is not all that different from our
secretary of state and the J Street clan.
After six decades of rejectionism and
stonewalling by the people who call
themselves "Palestinian" the ever-opti-
mistic peacemakers still believe that if
only Israel were willing to make enough
concessions, an agreement would be
achieved. It's not going to happen.
For starters, Mr. Kerry's plan for a
resolution is nowhere near as reason-
able as it sounds. Even if Israel were
prodded by her supposed allies to
accept this set of dangerous and unfair
accommodations, Palestinians would
not cease to raise the stakes and threat-
en withdrawal — unless, of course,
Israel gives up the game entirely and
consents to move, bag and baggage, out
of the neighborhood.
It all comes down to a profoundly
misconceived central premise: the
assumption that Israel has a willing
partner. You don't have to be a genius to
understand the equation: one plus one
equals accord; one minus one equals
zero. To place the burden of peacemak-
ing entirely on Israel is, to say the least,
disingenuous and deeply prejudicial.
The "two-state solution" should not
resemble "the final solution" Genuine
agreement, genuine intention, requires,
not a fiat by outside interests, but a
partnership of mutual consideration.
Still, when failure follows upon failure,
it's easy to revert to a centuries' old
formula that, for some, is comforting
— and convenient. It's called blame the
Jews. Unfortunately, as we know all too
well, it never works.

Rebecca Margolis DeRaud, LMSW-ACSW

Mitzi Alvin

Angela Hospice, Livonia

Franklin

Susan Aisen

Philadelphia, Pa.

Yiddish Limerick

Ask Attorney
Ken Gross
about...

Your Legal
Issues

Tu B'Shevat

It's Tu b'Shevat, oy can't you see?
So gay aroys* un** plant a tree,
Far frucht*** so zaftig**** un so

zis*****
Just kum arayn****** un nem a
bis.*******
Nu, gay un plant a baym******** for

me.

* gay aroys — go outside
** un — and
*** Far frucht — for fruit
**** zaftig — juicy
***** zis — sweet
****** kum arayn — come here
******* nem a bis — take a bite
******** baym — a tree

- Rachel Kapen

Inadequate Help For Kids
With Learning Disabilities
As an education advocate, parent leader
for the National Center for Learning
Disabilities and parent of a son with a
reading disability, I applaud Caleb and
Adin Kleinfeldt for speaking out on
their diagnoses of dyslexia, and writing
"The Dyslexia Song" (Jan. 9, page 3).
They are two of the lucky ones with
supportive parents able to put them
into private schools, support their aca-
demic needs and encourage them to
become their own advocates.
Unfortunately, most Michigan chil-
dren diagnosed with dyslexia and other
reading disabilities are suffering and
struggling in public school districts
across our state. Michigan has one of
the most regressive and restrictive cri-
teria across the entire U.S. that school
districts use to determine the existence
of a learning disability. Children in our
state have to fall below the bottom 9
percent on standardized achievement
tests to even begin to qualify for special
education.
Between 2006-2011, there were
21,500 fewer Michigan K-12 students

Happy New Year!

What should
I do different
in 2014?

A. We begin each year anew

'th stated goals and the
romise to attend to those
lingering matters that we
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year you need to follow through
on what you need to do. Goal #1
- Create the Plan for your Future.
Goal #2 - Begin Implementation. For
your financial future, there are two
key issues - saving for retirement
and making sure your estate is in
order. To save - you must evaluate
your income and spending. If you're
carrying too much debt, saving can
be impossible. If that is your problem
then you should explore options to
shed debt - particularly credit card
debt - what I call financial cancer.
To put your Estate in order, you
must have an estate plan in place
- a revocable living trust, wills and
durable power of attorney. You also
need to look at Medicaid planning
options for your parents and you - to
cover your later years. Step #1 - call
us at THAV GROSS - we'll get you on
the right track this year. If you wait,
it will 2015 too soon!

THAV GROSS

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January 16 • 2014

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