24 | AUGUST 12 • 2021 

K

eith Schonberger 
has developed an 
impressive resume: 
From teaching a computer to 
solve a Rubik’s Cube on his 
way to a bachelor of science 
degree in computer science 
at Michigan State University, 
including a brief software 
engineering internship with 
the Boeing Company, on to 
MSU College of Law, where he 
earned his J.D. and found his 
calling in patent law.
With almost nine years in 
practice — including almost 
six years with Troy-based 
Young Basile — Keith is now a 
shareholder in the law firm.
A two-career family today, 
Keith and Tara met at MSU in 
what Keith briefly describes as 
sorority girl meets fraternity 
boy in a Battle of the Bands 
during Greek Week. “Tara is 
the real brains in the family,” 
says Keith. With a master’s 
degree in clinical laboratory 
science and more than a dozen 
initials behind her name 

that certify her hard-earned 
credentials, Tara has worked 
in the Blood Bank and HLA 
Laboratories at Beaumont 
Health for 12 years. 
Reflecting on the challenges 
of work in balance with family 
homelife, Keith describes 
coming through COVID as 
a remarkable year of growth 
and reawakening. “COVID 
has tested every aspect of what 
we consider to be normal, but 
the concept of togetherness 
and community — doing 
something greater than 
yourself with other people — 
has always been a focal point 
of my life. Today, I can say 
that I’ve seen my family, my 
colleagues and our community 
grow stronger, more resilient 
and more creative together.”

ON FAMILY LIFE IN THE 
TIME OF COVID
Q: Keith, please give us a 
snapshot of your family over 
the past year. How have you 
fared?

Keith Schonberger: Honestly, 
we’ve been wonderful — 
blessed to be healthy and 
happy — but we crave the 
same things everyone craves: 
getting back together with 
family and friends. 
I’ve been working from 
home for more than a year, 
spending loads of time with 
Tara and our children. Eli is 
5 and will enter kindergarten 
in the fall; Adam is 3; and 
Leah — born shortly before 
the pandemic began — is 
a year and a half. Our boys 
were physically in school at 
Somerset Academy in Troy 
last year and did well. Eli is 
learning to read and write and 
is doing such an incredible 
job on both, and his brother is 
quickly becoming a reader, too. 
We also recently moved 
to a new home in Rochester 
Hills in a beautiful area 
that is strategically nearby 
grandparents. With Tara’s 
parents in Romeo and my 
folks in West Bloomfield, we 

have some daycare support, 
and everyone is vaccinated at 
this point.
It’s easy to dwell on what 
we’ve missed this … but when 
I think about it, there’s so 
much I’ve gained in the time. 
Time is the one resource we 
all have. And you never get 
time back. Being home with 
Tara and the kids gave me the 
time to catch more of those 
precious little moments we 
might ordinarily miss. 

ON JEWISH FAMILY 
BACKGROUND AND 
EDUCATION
Q: You have been an active 
community volunteer with 
Federation for more than a 
decade — additionally serving 
on the boards of MSU Hillel 
and Tamarack Camps. In what 
ways has the Jewish community 
been a strong part of your 
upbringing?
KS: My family’s involvement 
with Federation and its 
partner agencies starts back 

OUR COMMUNITY

All
He’s
In

Keith Schonberger 
welcomes all to Federation’s 
NEXTGen Detroit.

VIVIAN HENOCH SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS

JOHN HARDWICK

