18 | FEBRUARY 27 • 2020 

Her family grew up at Temple Israel, 
where her great-grandparents were 
founding members. Through her hus-
band, they’
re connected with The Shul. 
But not everyone these days is choos-
ing to engage with Judaism through 
such classic routes, she noted. 
“
A lot of people my age haven’
t con-
nected the same way,
” she said. “So, 
we need some other way to connect 
us because we’
re looking for people of 
a similar stage of life to connect with 
Jewishly.
”
Megan Topper joined the Facebook 
group about four years ago when she 
had her first child. Over the years, 
it’
d been a place to search for doctors 
and get recommendations — and 
then she used it to find a house. It was 
2018 when she saw a post by someone 
whose neighbor was selling their home 
in a West Bloomfield neighborhood 
she’
d been interested in. 
“I saw the post and figured it 
couldn’
t hurt to check it out,
” she said. 
“We literally sat down for coffee and 
bought their house.
” The mom who 
wrote the post lives across the street. 
Meanwhile, Barr, who has also 
found a sense of camaraderie in Jewish 
Moms Of Metro Detroit, said being 
part of the group has built her com-

munity. For example, once when she 
responded to a post by a woman look-
ing for maternity clothes, she wound 
up with a playdate. 
“She pulled into my driveway and it 
was late summer,
” Barr recalled. “My 
daughter was playing in a kiddie pool 
on our front lawn, so her son runs out 
of the car and jumps into the pool.
” 
Years later, the families are still 
friends. Working full time and living in 
Bloomfield Hills, while the other fam-
ily lives in Commerce, Barr said she’
s 
not sure they would have met other-
wise. “It’
s kind of a spur-of-the-mo-
ment chance meeting, and we formed 
a really nice friendship,
” she said. 
Barr said she appreciates that 
Jewsish Moms Of Metro Detroit is 
always only a tap away, but also wishes 
she could meet more of the moms in 
person. 
“The same moms I talk to in the 
group, I’
d love to be able to sit down 
with them and go out for coffee, but 
the reality is that everyone is trying 
to fit so much in Monday through 
Sunday,
” she said.
“When it’
s not possible to have that 
face-to-face interaction, this is really a 
great starting point — it’
s convenient, 
it’
s quick, and it’
s sort of 24/7.
” 

Local Jewish Facebook 
Groups Gain Traction

Moms aren’
t the only ones finding their communi-
ties online. Growing Facebook groups exist around 
topics such as Detroit’
s Jewish history, area events, 
food and memories. 
 Detroit Jewish History, which has some 4,700 
members, started small but has expanded to include 
Jewish Detroiters from all over the country, who use 
it as a place to connect and share memories. 
Larry Gunsberg of Northville, a fourth-gener-
ation Detroiter, said he enjoys taking part in the 
community that is emerging and, in many cases, 
reconnecting via the group. His brother, who lives 
in Chicago, listed a bunch of pizza places from the 
1960s. “It generated literally hundreds of responses, 
and debate going back and forth about who made 
the best pizza and why,” he recalled. 
Conversations pop up around pictures, neighbor-
hoods and more, he said. “I would say this particular 
page has generated and really opened up this whole 
source of memory and information that people have 
been carrying around with them their entire adult 
lives, and gives them the opportunity to share this 
with their friends, neighbors and relatives.”
Fred Cislo of Wyandotte, who until recently was 
an admin for the group, said its membership has 
exploded in the last several months. 
“People want their children and grandchildren 
to see the memories,” he said. “They want them to 
learn what Jewish Detroit was like and what value it 
still has — that there are things in Detroit for people 
to be interested in.” 
Marty Babayov of Southfield is a moderator on 
Facebook for Jewish Detroit, which has some 1,600 
members, with a few hundred waiting for approval. 
The group, with members from across the Jewish 
spectrum, helps people stay tied to the Jewish com-
munity, even if they aren’
t otherwise affiliated. “The 
idea is to give them a connection into the communi-
ty — maybe they’
ll see a Chanukah event and pop 
by,” Babayov said. 
Jewish Facebookers of Metro Detroit describes 
itself as “a place for Jews of all backgrounds to 
meet and Shmuz.” It currently has 252 members. 
Groups like Jewish Moms Of Metro Detroit 
sometimes have so much going on that specific 
discussions lead to spinoff where conversations 
can continue unencumbered. These include Free 
Exchange-Jewish Moms & Ladies of Metro Detroit, 
Jewish Moms of Metro Detroit Swap and JMoms Do 
Weight Watchers. 

ERIN KIRKLAND

continued from page 16

This motto is perfect for the Jewish Moms Of Metro Detroit Facebook group. 

Jews in the D

