18 January 24 • 2019
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Pillars of Vibrancy

The Community House to honor those who impact
the community at annual Bates Street Society Dinner.

T

he Community House (TCH) 
— a nonprofit resource and 
destination for personal, 
professional, recreational and phil-
anthropic pursuits — will hold its 
fourth annual Bates Street Society 
Dinner, hosted by the Community 
House and the Community House 
Foundation Boards of Directors, 
on Saturday, Feb. 2, at 6:30 p.m. in 
the Community House’
s Wallace 
Ballroom in Birmingham.
The annual event, presented by 
PNC Wealth Management, is a cele-
bration of service and philanthropy. 
The evening will be highlighted by 
the recognition of TCH’
s annual 
“Pillars of Vibrancy” and an inspi-
rational keynote address by Cynthia 
Ford.
The Community House’
s Pillar 
Society is a network of exceptional 
individuals who have dedicated sig-
nificant time and talent to helping 
build a more vibrant community. 
Each year, inductees are individuals 
who have made extraordinary con-
tributions in one of four essential 
areas: culture, education, wellness 
and philanthropy. 
The 2019 Bates Street Society 
Dinner will recognize eight new 
Pillars of Vibrancy this year, three of 
whom are Jewish.
Arthur Horwitz, 
publisher and exec-
utive editor of the 
Detroit Jewish News, 
as well as found-
er and president of 
Detroit Jewish News 
Foundation, is one 
of those pillars. The Foundation, 
through its William Davidson 
Digital Archive of Jewish Detroit 
History, captures, preserves and tells 
the story of Detroit and its Jewish 
community. This free and easy-
to-search archive comprises more 
than 330,000 pages from the Jewish 
News and its predecessor publica-
tion, the Detroit Jewish Chronicle. 
The archive is part of the University 
of Michigan’
s Bentley Historical 

Library permanent collection.
Horwitz serves as chair of the 
board of Detroit Public Television, 
director and audit chair for the 
National Yiddish Book Center in 
Amherst (Mass,) and as director 
of Detroit PAL (police athletic 
league). Previously, he chaired the 
Michigan Civil Rights Commission 
and Detroit’
s Agency for Jewish 
Education. 
Another pillar 
is Mitch Albom, a 
nationally acclaimed 
sports journalist at 
the Detroit Free Press 
since 1985, where he 
became and a well-
known media figure in 
radio and television as 
well. He currently hosts a daily talk 
show on WJR radio (airs Monday 
through Friday, 5-7 p.m. EST) and 
appears regularly on ESPN Sports 
Reporters and SportsCenter. He’
s the 
best-selling author of several books, 
including Tuesdays with Morrie, 
The Five People You Meet in Heaven 
and Have a Little Faith. His most 
recent titles, The Time Keeper and 
The First Phone Call from Heaven, 
both debuted at #1 on the New York 
Times bestseller list.
Albom has founded several char-
ities: Detroit Dream Scholars, A 
Time To Help, and S.A.Y Detroit, an 
umbrella organization for charities 
dedicated to improving the lives of 
the neediest, including the S.A.Y. 
Detroit Family Health Clinic. 
The third Jewish pillar is Dr. 
Jeffrey Fischgrund, chairman of the 
Orthopaedic Department at William 
Beaumont Hospital, Royal Oak. He 
is also the physician lead of the 
Orthopaedic Clinical Care Program 
for Beaumont Health, overseeing 
an eight-hospital system. He is 
currently the associate chief medi-
cal officer for Beaumont Hospital, 
Royal Oak and the program director 
of the Orthopaedic Surgery Spine 
Fellowship. Dr. Fischgrund has 
been on the Beaumont, Royal Oak 

staff for more than 25 
years, focusing on spine 
surgery. He holds a 
faculty appointment as 
professor and chairman, 
Oakland University 
William Beaumont 
School of Medicine.
As a leader in spinal research, 
he has designed and led dozens of 
clinical trials nationally and inter-
nationally. He has authored more 
than 100 peer-reviewed papers and 
book chapters on spine patholo-
gy. He is the editor-in-chief of the 
Journal of the American Academy 
of Orthopaedic Surgeons, Global 
Research and Reviews. He is in pri-
vate practice and has performed 
more than 7,000 spinal surgeries.
Other pillars being honored Feb. 
2 include Ric DeVore, PNC regional 
president, Detroit and SE Michigan; 
Jennifer Granger, co-founder of 
Fashion x Philanthropy and com-
munity advocate; Amy and Dan 
Loepp, president of Tattrie Strategies 
and president & CEO of Blue Cross 
Blue Shield of Michigan; and Bill 
Roberts, owner of the Roberts 
Restaurant Group.
“The Bates Street Society Dinner 
offers the leadership and staff of the 
venerable Community House the 
opportunity to once a year take a 
pause from its own philanthropic 
and service endeavors to recog-
nize, be inspired and to celebrate 
extraordinary individuals, pillars 
in our community, making a true 
and lasting difference,” said William 
D. Seklar, president and CEO of 
the Community House and the 
Community House Foundation.
In addition to the evening’
s 
awards and recognitions, the Bates 
Street Society Dinner will include a 
seated three-course meal, wine and 
cocktails, and live entertainment by 
the Ben Sharkey Quartet. Tickets for 
the black-tie optional event begin 
at $250 per guest and are on sale at 
communityhouse.com. ■

jews d
in 
the

JACKIE HEADAPOHL MANAGING EDITOR

Horwitz

Albom

Fischgrund

Course Tackles 
Criminal Justice

With criminal justice reform cen-
ter stage in the U.S., Chabad Jewish 
Center of Bloomfield Hills, in 
partnership with the Jewish Bar 
Association of Michigan (JBAM), 
presents “Crime and Consequence,” 
starting Feb. 6, a new six-series course 
by the Rohr Jewish Learning Institute 
exploring 3,000 years of Jewish per-
spective on crime and criminal reha-
bilitation. 
The recent public focus on the 
“First Step Act,” signed into law on 
Dec. 21, 2018, has brought the debate 
about criminal justice into sharp 
focus. Americans are now discussing 
the value of tougher versus smarter 
reforms, fairness of mandatory mini-
mum sentencing as opposed to judi-
cial discretion, and whether prison 
accomplishes its reformative (and not 
just punitive) purpose.
“Crime and Consequence” will 
tackle these and other questions 
from a Jewish perspective, addressing 
topics such as “What’
s the purpose 
of prison: punishment, deterrence 
or rehabilitation?” “What’
s Judaism’
s 
position on the death penalty?” and 
“Can criminals ever make amends 
and, if so, how?” 
The course draws deeply on ancient 
Jewish sources, while using contem-
porary materials to give a modern 
context to the discussion. 
“The debate over the First Step Act 
shows that Judaism’
s timeless truths 
and insights about human nature, 
society and wrongdoing are as rel-
evant today as ever 
before,” said Rabbi Levi 
Dubov, course instruc-
tor. 
The course, open 
to all, is designed for 
people at all levels of 
knowledge.
The course begins 
Wednesday, Feb. 6, and runs for six 
consecutive weeks. The classes are 
offered Wednesday mornings 11 a.m.-
12:30 p.m. at Jewish Family Service in 
West Bloomfield; and Wednesday eve-
nings 7:30-9 p.m. at the Bloomfield 
Hills High School.
For more information, visit 
bloomfieldhillschabad.org/crime or 
contact Dubov at (248) 949-6210 or 
rabbi@bloomfieldhillschabad.org. ■

Dubov