FEBRUARY 13 • 2020 | 31
mers at Tamarack, Alyah recently joined
Tamarack’
s Youth Advisory Board and is a
Moishe House Without Walls host.
Alyah was born and raised in Metro
Detroit. Thanks to her late mother, Irene
Al-Azem, she was immersed in the Jewish
community from the beginning. “Without
her, I wouldn’
t have the incredible sense
of community I do today,” she said. “I
continue to live everyday with her in
mind. I know how proud she would be.”
JENNIE LEVY
Jennie Levy is the director
of business development
at Henry Ford Health
System, where she works
on major strategic initia-
tives for the health system
and health plan. She is a
California-girl-turned-Michigander and a
proud resident of Detroit with her husband,
Shimon, and dog, Boten.
Her most important Jewish communal
activity is building a Jewish home that
is welcoming to everyone, a place where
people eat a lot of food and drink a lot
of wine as they meaningfully and delib-
erately engage. She participates in events
with just about every Jewish organization
across Metro Detroit, including the Jewish
Federation and The Well. She is very inter-
ested in being a lifelong learner, combating
anti-Semitism and supporting Israel.
At her Shabbat dinners, you’
ll see new
and complicated menus such as Czech
or Texas BBQ. “I have also, after years of
research, finally perfected my brisket reci-
pe,
” she says.
Jennie is nearly fluent in Spanish and
knows about 200 words in Hebrew that she
puts in different combinations. “It’
s enabled
me to get by surprisingly well in Israel and
with my husband’
s family.
”
DANIELLE DEPRIEST
Danielle DePriest, 29, of
Berkley is a commercial
litigation attorney, who
is dedicated to effectively
and efficiently achieving
the best possible results
in the cases she handles.
Danielle’
s practice consists primarily of
insurance defense cases in which she rep-
resents insurers and individuals in state
courts throughout Michigan. She also
offers guidance by presenting at indus-
try events like the Insurance Alliance of
Michigan’
s annual seminar and authoring
surveys in the area of insurance law, pub-
lished in the Wayne Law Review. She was
selected by Michigan Lawyers Weekly as
an Up & Coming Lawyer in 2017.
In addition to her active legal practice,
Danielle devotes considerable time to
the Jewish community, where she has
engaged with organizations and commit-
tees that allow her to strengthen a young,
vibrant Jewish community in Detroit. She
is passionate about ensuring the future of
our Jewish community in her capacity as
a community campaign chair and exec-
utive committee member of Federation’
s
NEXTGen Detroit. Additionally, Danielle
serves on the board of directors of Jewish
Family Service of Metro Detroit, where
she sits on the Leadership Development
Committee to help encourage board
engagement.
In her free time, Danielle enjoys
spending time with her husband, Matt
Newman, and checking out new restau-
rants.
GABE EDELSON
Gabe Edelson is a part-
ner in the corporate
department at the law
firm Honigman LLP,
where he focuses his
practice primarily on
private equity merg-
ers and acquisitions. In his spare time,
Gabe is active with the Detroit Institute
of Arts, where he sits on the board
of directors of the Founders Junior
Council.
Since moving back to Michigan from
Chicago in 2014, the West Bloomfield
native has prioritized involvement in
Metro Detroit’
s Jewish community. He
has been a proud member of the orga-
nizing committee for ORT Michigan’
s
annual Rub-a-Dub fundraiser since
2015 and the Ben Gurion Society
through NEXTGen Detroit since 2017,
and he also regularly attends events and
supports causes for organizations such
as JARC and Jewish Family Service.
Gabe graduated from the University
of Michigan in 2006 (where he served
as a sportswriter and editor for
The Michigan Daily) and New York
University School of Law in 2009. He
lives in Bloomfield Hills with his wife,
Stephanie, and two daughters, Isla and
Milly.
He likes to spend as much time as he
possibly can at the DIA, but you’
ll also
find him exploring Detroit’
s newest
restaurants and older hidden gems. He’
s
been managing a growing sneaker col-
lection since law school with an empha-
sis on retro models from the 1980s and
1990s.
JACKIE ISSNER
Dr. Jackie Issner, a
licensed clinical psy-
chologist, strives to
bring light to others
in her roles as psycho-
therapist, community
volunteer, supervising
psychologist at Children’
s Hospital of
Michigan and mother of two beautiful
boys. She uses her skills to motivate,
empathize and equip youth, parents and
teachers with tools to build resilience
and to shine their unique light onto
others in our complex world.
With youth anxiety and depression on
the rise, Jackie has been astounded by
the innovative ways that Detroit Jewish
teens and fellow community leaders
have decreased stigmas and increased
knowledge. She’
s on the steering com-
mittee for the teen-based UMatter pro-
gram and serves as clinical adviser for
Sib4Sib, a teen-created nonprofit. She’
s
involved in Federation’
s “We Need to
Talk” Youth Mental Health Initiative.
Jackie has been an Adat Shalom
Synagogue board member for seven
years and serves as membership chair-
person. Through her outreach and
multi-generational engagement, she
facilitates relevant programming and
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