Jews in the D

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36 | FEBRUARY 13 • 2020 

Masa program, Otzma. He also spent time 
living and working in Israel. Of the 30+ 
countries he has visited, Israel remains 
closest to his heart. He continues to build 
his connections with Israel by visiting as 
frequently as possible and by participating 
in the Jewish Federation’
s Israeli partner-
ships. His family hosts Israeli Tamarack 
campers every year. Danny is a proud 
board member of The Well and part of 
The Well’
s inaugural young family Shabbat 
group. 
In his free time, Danny loves spending 
time with his wife, Amanda, and running 
around with his energetic sons, Nathan 
and Noah, and his dog, Lulav.
 

JORDAN ACKER
Jordan Acker, 35, of 
Huntington Woods has 
been involved in the 
Jewish community in 
Detroit since he was a 
teenager. Active in BBYO 
and serving on its region-
al board, Jordan was a member of Marx 
AZA before heading off to University of 
Michigan, where he remained active in 
Hillel. 
After college, Jordan spent eight years 
in Washington, D.C., attending law school 
and working in the Obama Administration 
— first, at the office of Presidential 
Personnel and then at the Department 
of Homeland Security. After returning 
home to practice law with his dad, he was 
elected to the Board of Regents at U-M 
as the highest vote-getter, becoming the 
first regent to graduate college in the 21st 
century. He lives five blocks from where he 
grew up with his wife, Lauren, also a U-M 
grad and an educator, and their daughters, 
Jenna and Meredith.
 

ALLISON KLEIN
Allison Klein, 30, 
works in wealth man-
agement as an Analyst 
on the Kulhavi Wealth 
Management Team in 
Farmington Hills, where 
she has worked since 
2013. The team works with clients on 
estate, wealth and tax planning strategies. 

Allison grew up in West Bloomfield and 
graduated from the University of Michigan 
in 2012. 
During her time at U-M, Allison was an 
active member of U-M Hillel and served 
on its programming and governing boards. 
Allison has served on the Executive Board 
of NEXTGen Detroit for the last three 
years and general board for five years. She 
has also sat on the Jewish Senior Life of 
Metropolitan Detroit Board of Directors 
for the last two years. 
She feels a great connection to the 
community and loves seeing it continue 
to grow with young Jewish people like 
herself. In her spare time, she enjoys read-
ing for her book club, traveling whenever 
she can and indulging in the great food 
around Detroit. She currently lives in West 
Bloomfield with her husband, Benjie.

RYAN LANDAU
Ryan Landau is the 
founder of re:purpose, a 
recruiting platform that 
connects purpose-driv-
en people with startups 
across the Midwest. 
Prior to re:purpose, 
Ryan founded and led two companies 
— Chalkfly (acquired by Global Office 
Solutions) and Carnival Extravaganza 
(acquired by Party Assurance).
In addition, Ryan was the president 
of NextGen, a subsidiary of the Jewish 
Federation. He has also taught an entre-
preneurship class at Frankel Jewish 
Academy and volunteers at Tamarack 
Camps.
A Michigan State grad, Ryan is a 4x 
Ironman (140.6 and 70.3) and an avid 
traveler and explorer, having been to 
Africa, Asia, Europe, North and South 
America.

HANNAH KESSLER
Hannah Kessler isn’
t just 
in the next generation 
of leadership in Detroit’
s 
Jewish community, 
she’
s a mom on a mis-
sion. Originally from 
Rochester, N.Y., Hannah 
has made it her mission 

to help young Jewish families find a strong 
sense of community in Metro Detroit. A 
mother of two, Hannah is active in numer-
ous organizations, including serving as the 
chairperson of JBaby for the past two years 
and is the incoming chairperson of the 
JFamily Advisory Board. Hannah’
s lead-
ership has been instrumental in building 
innovative community-based initiatives 
that offer free high-quality prenatal pro-
grams, postpartum support and resources, 
and a full menu of programs throughout 
the community for parents and children of 
all ages.

VADIM AVSHALUMOV
Vadim Avshalumov, 
34, joined the William 
Davidson Foundation 
in 2016. He focuses on 
grantmaking, learning 
and strategic objec-
tives for cultural and 
civic vitality matters in 
Southeast Michigan.
Vadim is also active in Jewish lay lead-
ership. He serves as the president of the 
Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue. He 
also serves on the boards of the Frankel 
Jewish Academy and the Jewish Federation 
of Metropolitan Detroit. Additionally, he 
served as the co-president of the Columbia 
Alumni Association of Michigan.
Vadim was born in Baku, Azerbaijan 
(formerly part of the Soviet Union) and 
grew up in Haifa, Israel, before moving 
to Metro Detroit with his family in the 
mid-1990s. He has a master’
s degree in 
urban planning and a real estate certifi-
cate from the University of Michigan and 
two undergraduate degrees, a B.A. in 
urban studies from Columbia University 
and a B.A. in Jewish history from the 
Jewish Theological Seminary. He is also 
a proud graduate of Hillel Day School 
(class of ’
99) and the Frankel Jewish 
Detroit (class of ’
03).
Vadim and his family reside in 
Birmingham. He loves sharing tradi-
tional Azerbaijani meals at his Babula’
s 
(grandmother) and has five more base-
ball stadiums on his list to see before he’
s 
seen them all. 

