20 | JULY 29 • 2021

JOIN program, an acronym for the Jeannette
and Oscar Cook Jewish Occupational Intern
Program. This unique opportunity provides
paid summer internships for Jewish students to
gain work experience, attend educational sem-
inars and learn about the Jewish community,
developing lifelong connections.
JOIN began in 1973 and ran until 1980 when
the recession in Detroit forced its suspension.
In 1987, however, Silver and her then-supervi-
sor Gail Stewart decided the program needed
to restart.
As the JOIN program coordinator, working
with 12-15 students a year, Silver has been
instrumental in guiding a generation of young
people into careers in the Jewish community.
Local rabbis, educators, communal leaders and
board members have all graduated from the
program benefiting the Metro Detroit Jewish
community. Some have even gone far afield.
“I see JOIN alumni everywhere,
” Silver says.
“Once I was watching the Today Show and
there was a story about the King David dig in
Israel, and the man being interviewed was one
of my students!”
From August, however, Silver will be

focusing more on her family, spending time
with her three small granddaughters, and
taking frequent trips to Wisconsin to visit her
90-year-old mother.

Debra Silver with her three granddaughters, Mia
Paige Silver, 3, and Isabella Faye Silver, 10 months
(on left), and Eloise Margot Cherluck, 11 months

Jewish home, and his
education had been
traditional, studying
in yeshivahs and
gaining a degree
in Talmudic Law.
Newman, however,
wanted a career.
“Someone mentioned vocation-
al testing at JVS Human Services,
and I was lucky enough to come
across Debra. Over the course
of 10 sessions, with vocational
and psychological testing, we fig-
ured out that going to law school
would fit my temperament and
skill set,” he explains. “She gave
me clarity.”
Newman attended Wayne State
University Law School, graduating
in two and a half years. Now mar-
ried with three young children,
Newman is the founder of the
Legacy Law Firm, which specializ-
es in inheritance law.

Moshe
Newman

continued from page 16
continued from page 16

E

arlier this month, Oakland
County Executive Dave
Coulter visited the Jewish
News’ Farmington Hills office to
meet with the editorial team and
Detroit Jewish News Foundation
Board Member Mark Zausmer
and Board Advisor Mark
Davidoff.
Coulter, the former mayor of
Ferndale, said he was interested
in fostering relationships within
the Jewish community. “In many
ways, I’m still the new guy,
” he
said. “I know my own corner of
Oakland County very well, but
we have a big county, so I’ve been
engaged in a listening tour, meet-
ing with leaders from all over.

“The Jewish community is
centered here in Oakland County,
and it has a major presence. I
want to better understand the
community.
”
Coulter added that he was
in Washington, D.C., during
the recent “No Fear” rally again
antisemitism. “I thought it was
important to go and was struck
by the commitment of two young
men I met there from Oak Park,
who drove down to the rally
because they thought they needed
to be there.
”
Because of the recent surge
in antisemitism, Coulter also
addressed the issue of security
within the community. He said

he has talked to Oakland County
Sheriff Mike Bouchard, who has
been doing proactive outreach to
synagogues and other places of
worship regarding security.
Coulter also talked about “mak-
ing county government work.
”
His board of directors is split
11-10 between Democrats and
Republicans. “
And we don’t ignore
the 10 Republicans,
” he said. “We
like proposals to pass with broad
bipartisan support, which we’ve
done with our budget and federal
COVID relief dollars.
”
Coulter added efforts are

underway to build more diver-
sity into county government,
something he said was lacking.
Another new project was the cre-
ation of a Community Relations
Department to better understand
and work more closely with area
agencies and nonprofits. His
office has also set up a welcoming
initiative for immigrants, which
the Jewish Community Relations
Council is a part of.
He said the biggest challenge
the county faces is still COVID.
“No question. The pandemic is
not over,
” he said. “The challenge
is managing this next phase.
Although the health aspect is
much more manageable now, we
still need to get people vaccinated.
“There are also the affects of
the pandemic on the economy. A
lot of businesses have recovered
and are doing great, but there are
those still struggling. We want to
target our American Recovery
Plan dollars to where we can
make the biggest impact and
make significant, structural and
transformational change.
”

OUR COMMUNITY

DAVID SACHS

Dave Coulter visits the JN in his ef
orts
to better know dif
erent segments of
Oakland County.

Listening Tour

JACKIE HEADAPOHL EDITORIAL DIRECTOR

County
Executive
Dave Coulter