40 | JULY 23 • 2020
Soul
of blessed memory
T
homas I. Klein, 85, of
Bloomfield Hills and
Longboat Key, Fla., died
July 3, 2020.
Tom was a joy to everyone
who knew him. He was tall,
handsome, smart, sweet, kind,
funny, loving and an all-around
wonderful guy.
He was born and raised in
Toledo, Ohio. At the age of
18, as a popular high school
senior and an all-state athlete
in basketball and football, he
contracted polio. He was on his
way to Princeton to play basket-
ball when he was stricken. But
after a year of recovering, he
went instead to the University
of Michigan. He always said
that was OK because otherwise
he and Linda would never have
met. They were married in 1961
after both of their graduations,
and he went on to live a very
normal, healthy life for many
years.
He had so many joys in his
life: a happy marriage to Linda
for almost 59 years; three loving
children and their wonderful
spouses; six healthy, thriving
grandchildren whom he loved
more than life itself and who
returned his love. “Poppa” was
a cool dude whom they adored
and could talk to about all
things.
Tom enjoyed playing golf. He
loved his house in Michigan,
where he celebrated every
possible occasion with friends
and family and hosted many
community events. Most of
all, he loved life on Longboat
Key in Florida. He would sit
on the porch drinking a scotch
and looking out at the Gulf of
Mexico. From that porch, with
a Dewars in hand and enjoy-
ing the sunset, he wrote love
notes to his kids and grandkids,
telling them his philosophy of
life and mostly how proud he
was of them. He treasured the
“
new” friendships he made
during the 20 years that he
spent in Sarasota and Longboat
Key.
Tom had two brothers; he
was extremely close to them,
their wives and children. He
often proudly said they had
never had a fight in their
lives. He was especially close
to his niece Deborah Klein of
Washington, D.C. Last summer,
Linda and Tom hosted a family
reunion at their house for the
children, grandchildren and
great-grandchildren of Chick
and Shon Klein, Tom’
s parents.
Relatives came from as far away
as Frankfurt, Germany, for 2½
days of fun and being together.
He reveled in Linda’
s family,
too, first cousins and their kids
who were good friends as well
as family and with whom many
lifecycle celebrations and holi-
days were spent.
Tom loved a microphone and
looked forward to celebrations
of any kind, which gave him
the chance to create a routine to
honor whatever was being cele-
brated. Many friends and family
looked forward to these “
stand
ups” where, with his twinkling
eyes and big dimples, he would
make them laugh until they
cried. Anyone who was lucky
enough to count him as a friend
considered themselves gifted.
He was a great listener and
touched people he met even
once or twice in life with his
interest in them and his wise
council. Many of his deepest
relationships were with people
who worked for him through
the years and who respected
him for his loyalty and caring.
He received his B.A. and law
degree from the University of
Michigan. He loved all sports
and was an active fan of U-M
football and basketball. He
began his practice of law in
Toledo and soon continued in
Detroit with the law firm of
Levin, Levin, Garvett and
Dill. He later left the law and
joined the Zuckerman family
business of Velvet O’
Donnell
Corporation, manufacturing
famed Detroit brand Velvet
Peanut Butter and distributing
beer, wine and liquors.
He enjoyed traveling. The
many family trips he and Linda
took with their children were
treasured highlights. In midlife,
they traveled the world, plan-
ning their adventures them-
selves and most always traveling
alone. Their trips, of course,
included many to Israel, which
was a place of love, solace and
pride to both.
One huge thrill of his life was
a beautiful family trip to South
Africa. It was exciting, and each
of the kids and grandkids had
their own special ways of mak-
ing sure Tom was attended to
and cared for, making sure he
could get the most benefit from
everything they did. He loved
that the whole family gathered
at the house in Michigan and
at the condo in Longboat Key
to celebrate occasions and just
be together. The fact that they
wanted to come was treasured
by him.
In recent years, he began to
suffer from late effects of the
earlier polio, but he didn’
t let it
lessen his good spirits. Whether
on his walker or, very recently,
after he had decided a wheel-
chair was the most comfortable
seat in any restaurant, he was
still the best company at the
table and the most charming
and fun person in the room.
In the last weeks of his life, he
participated in a weekly Zoom
call with his brothers and their
spouses and niece Deborah just
to stay in touch in these times
of COVID. He was also proudly
and enthusiastically a partici-
pant in a newly formed weekly
civil rights/social action Zoom
study group with the two oldest
families of his children and
grandchildren.
He was active in the
Jewish community, having
served as president of the
Jewish Community Center of
Metropolitan Detroit and an
officer of the Jewish Federation
of Metropolitan Detroit. He
served on the board of the
United Jewish Foundation and
the Community Foundation
for Southeast Michigan. He
was a recipient of the Frank A.
Wetsman Young Leadership
Award from the Federation and
was on the Young Leadership
Cabinet of the then United
Jewish Appeal. He was the
recipient with Linda of the 2015
Yad Ezra Annual Award and
supported many other charita-
ble and political causes. Most
recently, he was deeply involved
with Linda in the Zuckerman
Klein Global Unmet Needs
Centennial Fund at Federation
and with all the family in
directing the Zuckerman /Klein
Family Support Foundation.
He had a life well lived and
one which will be held dear
and treasured by everyone he
touched. Up to the last, he kept
a delightful manner despite the
health issues that brought him
down. He was an adorable man
in the literal sense of the word.
Tom is survived by his wife
A Life Well Lived