56 | FEBRUARY 20 • 2020 

Soul
of blessed memory

ALLISON JACOBS DIGITAL EDITOR
E

zra Lev Seegull, 
a 19-year-old 
sophomore at the 
University of Michigan, 
died Wednesday, Feb. 13, 
2020. He is survived by his 
parents, Larry and Diane 
Seegull; his sibling, Ronen 
Seegull; grandparents, Linda 
and Edwin Seegull, Viviane 
Cohen and Albert Lichaa; 
his aunts and uncles, Dina, 
David, Eileen and Ethan; and 
cousins, Brandon, Logan, 
Naomi and Aliza. 
Seegull was enrolled 
in U-M’
s Ross School of 
Business and had an interest 
in marketing and consult-
ing. He served in multiple 
leadership roles at U-M 
Hillel, serving on the 2019 
Freshman Retreat leader-
ship and planning team and 
as co-leader of the Hillel 
Outdoor Adventure Club, 
where he touched the lives of 
students and faculty with his 
sense of humor and insight-
ful nature. 
“Ezra was a dear friend to 
so many in our Hillel com-
munity,” U-M Hillel lead-
ership wrote in a statement 
posted to its website Feb. 
13. “Many of you knew him 
as a thoughtful, interested 
student, with a passion for 

the outdoors and business 
consulting, and a great sense 
of humor and smile.”
In his hometown of 
Baltimore, Seegull attend-
ed Beth Tfiloh Dahan 
Community School, where 
he was involved with Model 
U.N., mock trial and the 
school newspaper. He also 
was passionate about the 
outdoors and enjoyed spend-
ing time with his family.
A memorial gathering was 
held on Thursday evening, 
Feb. 13, at Hillel for students 
and staff. Hillel is partner-
ing with U-M’
s Counseling 
and Psychological Services 
(CAPS) to make counsel-
ors available to students at 
the center; and Hillel staff 
members are also offering 
ongoing support to students. 
Hillel will be setting up a 
website for students to share 
stories about Seegull. 
Funeral services were 
held at Sol Levinson & 
Bros. Levinson Chapel in 
Pikesville, Maryland, on 
Friday, Feb. 14. The family 
has asked that contribu-
tions in his memory be 
sent to Beth Tfiloh Dahan 
Community School, 3300 
Old Court Road, Baltimore, 
MD 21208. 

Student 
Active in 
U-M Hillel 
Dies
Ezra Lev Seegull

COURTESY OR VICHNIZER

In Good Hands

Catholic family has long tradition of 
maintaining Machpelah Cemetery.

P 

aul Saville, gen-
eral manager 
of Machpelah 
Cemetery in Ferndale, 
said when he was a kid, 
he and his siblings were 
always looking for a job. 
He comes from a Catholic 
family of seven boys and 
one girl, including two 
sets of twins. 
A 1977 Ferndale High 
School graduate, Saville 
felt fortunate the follow-
ing year when a family 
friend, Fred Mack, then-super-
intendent of Machpelah, offered 
him a summer job. Getting 
hired full-time brought him 
the opportunity to bring other 
family members on board at the 
nearly 108-year-old Jewish cem-
etery on Woodward. 
The Savilles have a combined 
80 years of service between 
them, guessed Paul, 61, who 
lives at the back of the prop-
erty with his wife, Kim, and 
sons, Paul Jr. “PJ” and Kevin. 
Everyone works at Machpelah, 
as did daughter Samantha for 
six years.
Romance bloomed at 
Machpelah for the Savilles.They 
met when Kim assisted her 
mother with the seasonal job of 
planting flowers and have now 
been married for 28 years. Kim 
is in the office with manager 
Martina Murphy. Several Saville 
brothers worked here, but only 
12-year employee Larry con-
tinues. After he retired, father 
Harry Saville worked 10 years 
at Machpelah before his death 
in 2000. 
During Harry’
s burial at 
Oakview Cemetery in Royal 
Oak, the Savilles took turns 

tossing three shovelfuls of dirt 
on top of his casket. It’
s a Jewish 
tradition “we carry on in our 
family,
” Paul said. The Savilles 
respect and fulfill all the duties 
and traditions associated with 
maintaining a Jewish cemetery.
“I love it here,
” said Paul, who 
also handles the cemetery’
s 
plumbing and electrical equip-
ment repairs. “Every time I walk 
around, I find history in the 
names and dates on headstones. 
If I come across a war veteran, 
I’
ll Google his name. We have 
someone who received the 
Congressional Medal of Honor.
“Machpelah is one of the few 
cemeteries that still dig half 
of the graves by hand because 
some of the areas are too tight 
to get a backhoe into,
” added 
Paul. Son PJ, 26 and 6-foot-6, “is 
taking over a lot of what I do. 
He carries the biggest part of the 
load.
” 
Paul recently told “our great 
board” that he is retiring in 
2023. That early notice should 
give the nonprofit Machpelah 
Cemetery Association “enough 
time to find someone to fill my 
shoes, so the cemetery will stay 
in good hands.
” 

ESTHER ALLWEISS INGBER CONTRIBUTING WRITER

COURTESY OF THE SAVILLE FAMILY

Larry, Kim,
Kevin, Paul and 
Paul Jr. Saville