4 | FEBRUARY 25 • 2021
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PURELY COMMENTARY
letters
It Takes a Village
My work in the Jewish commu-
nal field began when I needed a
summer job during college, and
I was looking though the Detroit
Jewish News help wanted section.
I saw that Jewish Family Service
(JFS) needed volunteer drivers
to take older adults to doctor
appointments. Thus began my
career in the Jewish communal
service field, and I never looked
back.
The following summer, I was
accepted into the JVS Project
JOIN program and placed at
Jewish Family Service volunteer
department. Upon graduation,
I worked at JFS as the Meals on
Wheels caseworker/coordinator
and have been in the field ever
since.
I am not writing today to tell
you about me, but to tell you
I have never been prouder to
work in the Jewish communal
services field as I have been
since the start of the pandemic.
Last March, as the executive
director of National Council
of Jewish Women, Michigan,
(NCJW|MI) I was invited to
join daily meetings with other
Jewish communal professionals,
under the leadership of Steven
Ingber, chief operating officer
of the Jewish Federation of
Metropolitan Detroit.
Though NCJW|MI is not a
Federation agency, the empha-
sis on these group meetings
was how can we as commu-
nity agencies work together
to ensure that needs are being
met during these difficult and
uncertain times. This group has
continued to meet since last
March, and now meets week-
ly. We have shared resources,
brainstormed ideas, collabo-
rated and provided support for
one another, all to benefit our
community.
I am honored to be a part
of this group and so proud
to work in our Metro Detroit
Jewish community. My motto
has always been, “It takes a vil-
lage …
” and this village of pro-
fessionals have worked tirelessly
behind the scenes to ensure
needs are being met. We are
very lucky to have the dedicated
leadership and staff working at
the various agencies who truly
care about our community
members.
Thank you, Steve, for lead-
ing the way, and for all of the
work our staff and volunteers
have done during these past
months in taking care of our
community.
— Susan Gertner
NCJW|MI executive director
essay
The Raven Gallery: A Family
Story of ‘Spilling the Honey’
I
n 1960, my parents Belle
and Herb Cohen (of bless-
ed memory) opened the
Raven: a gal-
lery and coffee
house on James
Couzens in
Detroit. Their
dream was to
have a beautiful
space to show-
case Michigan
and Detroit artists, visual
arts, musical arts and poetry
readings.
They wanted to cultur-
ally enrich our community
in a beautiful, intimate and
non-intimidating setting. My
parents loved the arts. Almost
every week, our family went
to the Detroit Institute of
Arts. We attended concerts,
ballets and had season tickets
for the Detroit Symphony.
Our small house was filled
with books and paintings
from local artists.
It seems extraordinary
when I look back. My parents
were unassuming. My moth-
er, a part-time model at Saks
Fifth Avenue, and my dad, a
Linotype setter, were the first
to create such an amazing
space. They respected talent
and lived to help aspiring
artists. The headline of my
father’s 1977 obituary read
“Herb Cohen was dedicated
to culturally enriching youth.”
My father created the
Raven String and Raven
Woodwind quartets, directed
by Paul Paray, the conductor
of the Detroit Symphony
Orchestra. They performed
weekly. I was mesmerized lis-
tening to their music.
My father was one of the
first to showcase Black artists,
both painters like Harold
Neal and performers from
folk music’s Josh White Sr.
and Josh Jr. When they were
in town, they were our house
guests. We became close
friends.
We also had the opportu-
nity to hear unusual talents
like Dorothy Ashby, who
introduced the harp to jazz
and was hailed as an accom-
plished modern jazz harpist.
Dorothy attended Cass Tech
and Wayne State University.
The Dorothy Ashby Trio pre-
formed monthly at the Raven,
her husband on drums.
Dorothy told me she carried a
triple burden: a woman play-
ing in male-dominated jazz,
being a Black woman in the
entertainment industry and
the Black community’s lack of
interest in the sound of harp
music.
Because we were surround-
Brenda
Naomi
Rosenberg
TOP: Brenda’s parents at the
opening of the Raven.
ABOVE: Brenda Rosenberg with
first Black model Bessie Woods
PHOTOS COURTESY OF BRENDA ROSENBERG