looking back

In 1948, Milton “Bud” Marwil and his wife, Lenore, opened a bookstore in Detroit at 33 W. Warren Ave., between Woodward
and Cass, just a few blocks from Wayne State University’s Old Main. In the 1950s, Milton and Leonore Marwil celebrated the
expansion of their Downtown location with a tea party for family and customers. In 1982, Bud and Lenore retired from the
business, selling it to the Kramer family, who retained the name Marwil’s. The store closed permanently in 2013. •

Daniel, David, Joel, Milton and Leonore Marwil. Photo courtesy of the Marwil
family for the 2009 edition of Michigan Jewish History, published by JHSM.

Historic photos are curated by the
Jewish Historical Society of Michigan.

From the DJN

Davidson Digital Archive

O

n Thursday, Feb. 9, the 85th annual Inter-
Congregational Men’s Club dinner was held at B’nai
Moshe in West Bloomfield. The main speaker this year
was, well —me. I was very honored when Don Cohen asked me
to address the Men’s Club, one of the oldest Jewish brotherhood
clubs in Detroit and Michigan.
I related some of the most interesting sto-
ries I’ve found over the years in the Detroit
Jewish News and Jewish Chronicle as the archi-
vist for the Detroit Jewish News Foundation.
Naturally, I dove into the William Davidson
Digital Archive to research the history of the
Men’s Club, which dates to 1932, and I found
63 pages with stories that mention the club.
Mike Smith
The first report of a dinner was in 1947, when
Detroit Jewish News eight men’s clubs met at Temple Beth El on
Foundation Archivist
the eve of Purim. Julius Gordon, rabbi and

58

February 16 • 2017

jn

noted scholar from St. Louis, was the featured speaker.
As I read through the stories, I became a bit nervous as I real-
ized that I was following in the footsteps of some very promi-
nent people over the past 85 years. Speakers at the annual din-
ner have included national figures such as Aaron David Miller,
who was the U.S. Deputy Special Middle East Coordinator for
Arab-Israeli negotiations in 2000; local Jewish statesman and
community leader David Hermelin; and many, many noted rab-
bis and Jewish scholars. I knew I had to be on my toes!
Oh, and the Men’s Club has one other most important task
every year — its summer softball league. Competitive, but
collegial. •

Want to learn more? Go to the DJN Foundation archives,
available for free at www.djnfoundation.org.

