APRIL 15 • 2021 | 45
DR. JEFFREY L
BRUDNEY
, of
Wilmington, N.C.,
passed away sur-
rounded by family
on April 4, 2021,
after a brief and sudden illness.
He was born May 2, 1950, in
Oakland, Calif., to Lillian and
Alfred Miller. After Alfred’s
passing, Jeff was raised by
Ernest Alexander, his uncle
who lived next door, and later
by stepfather David Brudney.
Jeff’s undergraduate degree
was from the University of
California Berkeley and he
earned his Ph.D. from the
University of Michigan.
In 1979, Jeff married Nancy,
the love of his life, and was
fond of declaring that while
he “did the professing,
” she did
“everything else.
” The couple
moved to Norman, Okla.,
where Jeff started his career at
the University of Oklahoma as
a professor of public adminis-
tration. In 1984, Jeff accepted
a position at the University of
Georgia in Athens, Ga., where
he studied volunteerism and
nonprofits.
During their 24 years in
Athens, the couple raised
three children. As a father and
ultimately as a grandfather as
well, Jeff was enthusiastically
involved with his children’s
activities and eagerly supported
all endeavors.
After leaving UGA, Jeff
spent five years as a distin-
guished professor at Cleveland
State University in Cleveland,
Ohio. In 2012, he became the
Cameron Family Distinguished
Professor of Innovation in the
Nonprofit Sector at UNCW
,
where he continued to work
with his trademark intensity
until his untimely death.
Jeff will be dearly missed by
his family, friends, colleagues
and students around the world
as the consummate mentor
and a prolific researcher and
publisher.
Dr. Brudney is survived
by his beloved wife, Nancy
Brudney; daughter, Rabbi
Megan Brudney (Zach Berg) of
Birmingham, Mich.; son, Philip
Brudney (Rachel) of Atlanta,
Ga.,; son, Evan Brudney of
Raleigh, N.C.; grandchildren,
Adelynn Brudney, Nathan
Brudney and Dov Berg; aunt,
Frances Alexander (the late
Ernest Alexander).
He was preceded in death
by his parents, Lillian Brudney,
Alfred Miller; stepfather, David
Brudney; and brother, Avery
Miller.
The family welcomes charita-
ble contributions made in Jeff’s
memory to Temple of Israel
of Wilmington, N.C., Nourish
North Carolina or an organiza-
tion of your choice.
ALEXANDER BYKAT, 80,
passed away at his home on
March 25, 2021, following a
short illness.
He was born in Nalchik,
Russia, and lived in multiple
countries prior to moving to
the United States, including
Poland, Israel and England.
He was a lifelong avid read-
er and lover of learning. Alex
was a scholar in mathematics,
statistics and computer sci-
ence; and he earned his Ph.D.
at University of London in
England.
Alex served as a universi-
ty professor at East Carolina
University, Emory University
and later became the direc-
tor of computer science at
University of Tennessee-
Chattanooga, endowed chair
at Armstrong University, now
Georgia Southern, and Salzbury
University.
He was an impressive
handyman, always able to fix
household items, even in his
last days. He enjoyed being
in nature, especially working
in his yard and planting fruit
trees. He was talented in art and
created many pieces he proudly
displayed in his home. A man
of many talents, Alex always
continued on page 47
D
r. Ben Paolucci
operated quietly
behind the scenes
while he was the team
physician for the Detroit
Pistons from the early
1970s until he retired in
2015.
The players who were
Paolucci’s patients — including
NBA champion Pistons teams in
1989, 1990 and 2004 — grabbed
the headlines and the spotlight.
Long before he became a doc-
tor, in the 1950s, Paolucci again
did something few knew about,
but was equally as important.
Paolucci, who died April
7, 2021, in Florida at age 84,
joined an otherwise all-Jew-
ish fraternity at Wayne State
University, then known as
Wayne University, where he
played football.
At the time, there were Jewish
and non-Jewish fraternities
and sororities at Wayne. When
Paolucci joined Gamma Kappa
Chi, he broke that barrier.
He didn’t do it to makes
waves, according to a close
friend. He did it to help him
pursue a dream.
“Benny — that’s what every-
body called him — had aspira-
tions of being more than a foot-
ball player,
” said Sheldon Miller,
a Gamma Kappa Chi member.
“He wanted to be affiliat-
ed with Gamma Kappa Chi
because our fraternity always
had a lot a future doctors and
even a few future lawyers as
members. We were happy
to have him,
” said Miller, an
attorney with an office in
Farmington Hills.
Gamma Kappa Chi no longer
exists. In 1958, the local frater-
nity merged with Tau Epsilon
Pi, a mostly Jewish national
fraternity.
Back in the 1940s and 1950s,
Gamma Kappa Chi was the
largest fraternity on the
Wayne campus, with close
to 100 members.
It was known as the
“docs and jocks” fraternity
because it had many medi-
cal students and athletes as
members and dominated
intramural sports competition.
Paolucci didn’t play sports for
Gamma Kappa Chi, according
to fraternity brother and close
friend Harvey Miller, because
he didn’t think it was fair for
a varsity athlete to compete in
intramural sports.
Gamma Kappa Chi frater-
nity brothers have stayed close
through the years. That includes
Paolucci.
“Benny was one of the guys.
An outstanding guy,
” said Miller,
a West Bloomfield resident and
retired manufacturers rep.
Miller said he was friends
with Paolucci mainly because of
their mutual love for tennis and
involvement in the game.
Pistons vice chairman Arn
Tellum issued a statement about
Paolucci.
“Dr. Paolucci formed mean-
ingful and long-term relation-
ships with many players and
staff members across multiple
eras of Detroit Pistons basket-
ball,
” Tellum said.
“We’re grateful for his years of
service to the organization as he
devoted much of his time and
energy ensuring each player was
provided the best possible care.
Our thoughts are with his family
and loved ones.
”
A Cleveland native who grew
up in Detroit, Paolucci gradu-
ated from Wayne State in 1958.
He was inducted into the Wayne
State Athletic Hall of Fame in
1992.
Selected by the Detroit Lions
in the eighth round of the 1958
NFL draft, Paolucci played for
the Lions for two seasons.
‘Benny Was One
of the Guys’
STEVE STEIN CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Dr. Ben
Paolucci