W

hen Susan 
Hershberg Adelman 
was growing up 
in Rochester, N.Y., she felt she 
already had a larger purpose 
in life.
“When I was a small child, it 
was my hope and belief that I 
would make great contributions 
to the world,
” she said.
Now, as a 77-year-old woman 
living in Southfield, she has 
truly made her mark on the 
world. Adelman, who retired 
from pediatric surgery in 2002, 
was among the first female sur-
geons in Metro Detroit. She was 

the first female president of the 
Michigan State Medical Society 
and has done so much more 
than just help children who 
have needed her medical care. 
Since she was 5, Adelman 
has been creating art. She 
continues to paint and create 
jewelry when she’
s not traveling 
the world with her husband of 

57 years, intellectual property 
attorney Martin Adelman. He 
is also a professor with George 
Washington University Law 
School and gives lectures on his 
specialty from Seattle to Tokyo.
Oh, and let’
s not forget that 
about a year ago, Sue Adelman 
published her second book, 
After Saturday Comes Sunday, a 

far-reaching exploration of the 
history of Christian and Jewish 
communities in Iraq, Syria 
and adjacent countries, and 
the language that unites them: 
Aramaic — today often referred 
to as the Chaldean language.
“I’
m very aware that life is 
short,
” she said. “If you don’
t 
take the opportunity to make 
the world better, you will lose 
that opportunity.
”

A DOCTOR IS BORN
Adelman came to the Detroit 
area in the late 1950s to attend 
the University of Michigan. She 

continued on page 16

14 | OCTOBER 31 • 2019 

Making 
Her Mark

“I’m not really happy unless I’m being 
creative. I’m very aware that life is short. If 
you don’t take the opportunity to make the 
world better, you will lose that opportunity.”

— SUSAN ADELMAN

Susan Adelman’
s many passions drive her 
goal of making the world better. 

ELIZABETH KATZ CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Jews in the D

TOP: Martin and Susan Adelman at home in Southfield.

PHOTOS BY SACRED OVERSTREET-AMOS