28 July 25 • 2019
jn
LOUIS FINKELMAN CONTRIBUTING WRITER
S
unny Segal has been performing
and dancing since age 7. She has
been teaching Israeli dance in
Metro Detroit and leading the Israeli
Dancers group since shortly after she
moved here 60 years ago. When she
decided to retire, her students gave
her an 80th birthday and retirement
party, inviting participants from all
past decades of the group.
Twenty-six current and past danc-
ers came to a recent potluck lun-
cheon at the Southfield Civic Center,
where the group has met in recent
years.
Sandra VanLeeuwen was born in
London, England, in 1939. Her Dutch
parents returned to The Hague in the
Netherlands when she was 6 weeks
old. When Germany invaded, the
family went into hiding. Betrayed by
Nazi-sympathizing neighbors, Sunny,
her parents and a younger brother
were sent to Bergen-Belsen. Liberated
three years later, they returned to
The Hague. Sunny’
s father died in
1947 at age 38, shortly after the birth
of a second son. In 1951, the family
moved to Toronto. In 1959, Sunny
married Detroiter Meyer Segal and
moved to Detroit.
She began teaching dance at the
Beth Jacob School, a post she held
for 20 years. In the early ’
80s, she
began teaching Israeli dance, first
at Southfield High School and then
at the Jewish Community Center in
Oak Park. That group continued,
with a changing cast of characters,
through all these years. Most recent-
ly, the dancers met at the Southfield
Recreation Center.
The dance classes also featured
Sunny’
s home-baked pastries, affable
conversations, friendships and, on
three occasions, courtship leading to
marriage.
Gail Berkove of Southfield, a pro-
fessional psychologist and an amateur
Israeli dancer, recalls Sunny’
s skill
with the bulky equipment and cas-
sette tapes required for dance classes
in past years: “Nowadays, if you want
to listen to a particular tune, you can
easily upload it onto your computer
or phone,” Berkove said.
“You are the ‘
mother’
of Detroit
Israeli dancing!” Berkove wrote in a
tribute to Sunny. “More importantly,
you have been my dance mentor and
friend since 1981. You brought Israeli
dancing to the community over 40
years ago. I started learning Israeli
dances in your basement, along
with a wonderful group of women,
many of whom are no longer with
us, including Manya Feldman, Drora
Kleinplatz, Nanette Kapustin, Hanna
Silverstein and Ethel Baumer … I
haven’
t stopped dancing since.”
Phillip Litt, former Detroit Israeli
dance instructor, now living in
California, wrote:
“We all participated in Sunny’
s
dance sessions because it was a fun
place where our lives where enriched.
Not only did we exercise, socialize
and make lifelong friendships, but
also some of us found there our soul-
mates. Sunny was the matchmaker
for Cheryl and me that resulted in
a successful marriage for which I’
m
grateful. What a wonderful life we
all had because of Sunny’
s dance
sessions. She encouraged happiness
by reminding us often to smile. We
always went away from the dance ses-
sions feeling satisfied and filled with
joy and happiness.”
Cheryl Feit of West Bloomfield,
now an instructor of Israeli dance,
writes, “I want to express my grati-
tude toward Sunny as she patiently
guided me and other beginners
in our first attempts to do Israeli
dance. That was the beginning of so
many of my closest friendships.”
Students recall favorite sayings of
their teacher: “Your feet can learn the
steps, but only your spirit can dance”
and “Dancing feet are happy feet.”
Janelle Teger of Southfield recalls
that, when necessary, she would get
a babysitter to make sure not to miss
Sunny’
s class. Teger notes that Sunny
made the class so vital — “like her
name, upbeat, smiling. You’
ve so
enriched all of our lives.” ■
jews d
in
the
LEARN ISRAELI DANCE
Although Sunny Segal’
s Israeli Dancers
group has now ended, two Israeli
dance groups remain open, with a fee
for each session.
• Tuesdays 7:30-9 p.m. at CelyFIT,
3308 Northwestern Hwy., West
Bloomfield, led by Rochelle Morais
and Melissa Ser. The second and
fourth Tuesdays are for women only.
Check the Metro Detroit Israeli Dance
Facebook page for more information.
• Wednesdays 8-9:30 p.m. at the
Sports Club of West Bloomfield, 6343
Farmington Road, north of Maple. This
group does intermediate and advanced
Israeli dancing, led by Cheryl Feit
and Gordon Smith. Contact Gordon at
our4feet@dentabyte.com or Cheryl at
(248) 613-7526.
COURTESY GAIL BERKOVE
Sunny Segal retires after 60 years, but her dance legacy lives on in her students.
LEFT: Celebrating Sunny:
Former dancers and guests
gathered recently for a birth-
day/retirement celebration.
BOTTOM: Israeli Dancers
group, 1994: Jack Adler, Gita
Raymer, Monya Feldman,
Elaine Casson, Jenni
Blustein, Sunny Segal, Cheryl
Feit, Gordon Smith, Sonny
Lipenholtz, Gail Berkove and
Jan Penny.
CREDIT: GORDON SMITH
Israeli Dance Master
Meyer and Sunny Segal
CREDIT: GORDON SMITH