frontlines

Redheads May
Have More Fun

Zekelman Named To
Bar-Ilan Chairmanship

R

ed is the pregnant belly of hair color; everyone
has something to say about it.
It's a recessive trait, so even if both parents carry
the gene, just one in four of their kids are likely to be a red-
head. It's also the reason why red hair skips generations and
can suddenly pop up in the delivery room to a shocked pair
of brunette parents.
Worldwide, red hair is quite rare, with about 0.5 percent
of the population being natural redheads. Scotland is head
and shoulders above the rest, according to the Daily Mail; 13
percent of Scots are "Reds."
In general, the color red doesn't have great implications. It's
Red hair was considered a stereotypical Jewish trait prior
unfortunate if you're seeing red, caught red-handed, in the
to the 20th century, which is why Shakespeare and Dickens
red, plugging through a ton of red tape or seeing red flags. So identified their Jewish characters by making them redheads.
it's great that redheads are hardly ever actually red.
Red hair was proof of being a witch in Salem
The term "redhead" covers everything from straw-
(then again, what wasn't?) and some cultures
berry blonde to orange to copper and every shade
believed redheads were vampires (well, they
between. It invites nicknames like "Ginger" and
didn't have sunscreen back then ...)
"little orphan Annie:' "Carrot top" makes no sense
Rumor has it that Reds are on the endangered
because carrot tops are green, but "carrot-bottom"
species list, but don't worry your head, it's not
doesn't have the same ring to it. Other nicknames
true. Because so many carry the recessive gene,
include fireball, flame brain, rusty knob or the
it's here to stay.
ever-creative "matchstick" (red on top, white body).
Some people are dying to be red. Bonni Liebow,
Red hair is typically associated with very fair
a hair stylist at Bianchi's West in Troy, who does
skin that tends to soak up more vitamin D, great
a lot of red highlights, says, "Red is beauti-
Rochel
for bone health and preventing osteoporosis.
ful, vibrant, fun and shouts personality; it can
Burstyn
Researchers believe this fair skin helped protect
enhance everything about a person:'
Special to the
redheads against rickets throughout history.
Reds, hold your head high; you've got a stun-
Jewish News
Scientists have studied redheads. Heads up: Reds
ning mane, sassy expectations and some great
are more likely to have lighter-colored eyes, freck-
characters to your credit: seven U.S. presidents,
members of the British royal family and King David, plus
les, sensitivity to ultraviolet light, require greater amounts of
anesthetic and are more resistant to some pain medications,
many more on the red carpet. You're easier to spot in a
often resulting in more dental-office phobias. Some people
crowd, brighten up a room and are plain nice to look at. The
also believe that redheads get stung by bees more often.
world is your oyster — if only you're red-dy! ❑

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Shabbat Lights

Shabbat: Friday, Jan. 24, 5:18 p.m.
Shabbat Ends: Saturday, Jan. 25, 6:23 p.m.

Shabbat: Friday, Jan. 31, 5:27 p.m.
Shabbat Ends: Saturday, Feb.1, 6:31 p.m.

Times are from Yeshiva Beth Yehudah calendar.

Columnist

Danny Raskin

44

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A

Ian
Zekelman,
an
accomplished local
businessman and
philanthropist,
has been elected
the new chair-
Alan Zekelman
man of the board
of overseers of
the American Friends of Bar-Ilan
University (AFBIU).
"We are fortunate to have a Jewish
communal leader of Alan Zekelman's
stature to be our organization's board
chairman," said AFBIU CEO Matthew
J. Maryles. "He follows a long line of
highly respected chairpersons who
have greatly contributed to the suc-
cessful partnership between Israel's
fastest-growing university and its
American Friends"
Zekelman is a longtime AFBIU
board member, serving as its treasur-
er before being selected chairman. In
2009, he received an honorary doctor-
ate from Bar-Ilan University in Ramat
Gan, Israel.
"I am honored to be leading an
American Friends organization that
supports a university with a core mis-
sion to strengthen Israel," Zekelman
said. "It takes action every day to
accomplish this goal by making sure
that every student graduates with
a greater knowledge of Jewish and
Zionist values. Only in this way will
Israel have the character of leadership
it needs for decades to come:'
Zekelman serves on many Jewish
communal boards, including Yeshiva
University's Yeshiva College, the
Menachem Education Foundation,
the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan
Detroit, the United Jewish
Foundation, the Jewish Hospice
and Chaplaincy Network, and the
American Friends of Yahad-In-Unum.
He is a director of the Birmingham
Bloomfield Chai Center, which
honored him with its Community
Pillars Award. He is a former presi-
dent and current board member of
the Holocaust Memorial Center in
Farmington Hills.
In his business career, Zekelman,
a native of Windsor, is a director of
JMC Steel Group, the largest indepen-
dent tubular products manufacturer
in North America. He is the former
president of Atlas Tube, a company
founded by his late father, Harry, in
1984 in Harrow, Ontario. He and his
wife, Lori, live in Bloomfield Hills. ❑

January 23 • 2014

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