OUR COMMUNITY

I

n 1983, Jewish community 
leader and philanthropist 
Larry Wolfe experienced 
a major change in his outlook 
and attitude toward Jewish life.
While on a mission to Israel 
with his wife, Andi, Larry, 
despite not wanting to go ini-
tially, had a revelation as to 
what being Jewish truly meant.
It was the mission leader, 
David Hermelin, and Larry’s 
father-in-law, D. Dan Kahn, 
both of blessed memory, who 
had encouraged him to go.
“Going to Israel changed my 
outlook on my Jewish identity 
and how important it was to 
understand our Jewish tradi-
tions and values,
” Wolfe, 73, 
says. 
“It was a legacy that was 
brought to us over thousands 
of years,
” he explains, and even 
more so when the State of Israel 
came into existence in 1948.
Back home in Michigan, 

Wolfe became seriously 
involved in Jewish life and vol-
unteer work. Since then, he’s 
been to Israel more than 100 
times and continues to help 
lead Jewish culture in Metro 
Detroit.
Now, nearly 40 years later, 
he’s made such an impact on 
the local community (and 
national and international 
Jewish life) that Wolfe will be 
receiving this year’s Fred M. 
Butzel Award from the Jewish 
Federation of Metropolitan 
Detroit to honor his lifetime of 
service, impact and commit-
ment.
“Since 1951, the Fred M. 
Butzel Award has represented 
the community’s highest honor 
for volunteer leadership,
” says 
Steven Ingber, Federation CEO. 
“I cannot think of anyone more 
deserving of this award than 
my friend and mentor, Larry 
Wolfe.
”

Born in London, Ontario, 
and growing up in the old 
Dexter-Davison area, a Jewish 
enclave in Detroit that his fam-
ily moved to when he was 5 
years old, Wolfe was immersed 
in Judaism from a young age. 
He attended a Yeshiva Beth 
Yehudah afternoon school for 
Hebrew, later moving to Oak 
Park in the 1960s, where a 
strong Jewish community also 
existed.

LAW AND BUSINESS
In 1970, he married Andi, 
whom he dated in high school. 
Wolfe attended Wayne State 
University and then Detroit 
College of Law to pursue his 
dream of becoming an attorney. 
 He and Andi have two chil-
dren: son Jeremy and wife, 
Liz, who live in Huntington 
Woods, and daughter Ericka 
and husband, Matt, who live in 
Chicago. The Wolfes have six 

grandchildren. For a little over 
seven years, Wolfe practiced 
law with a mid-sized firm in 
Detroit before a new opportu-
nity presented itself.
When Andi’s father, philan-
thropist D. Dan Kahn, invited 
Larry to join his business of 
distributing industrial supplies, 
tooling and machinery, he 
accepted the proposition. In 
fact, he remained with the com-
pany until 2017, when Larry 
ultimately sold it. Yet in those 
in-between years, Wolfe began 
his steady involvement in local 

For a lifetime of service, Larry Wolfe will 
receive Federation’s Butzel award.

‘A Most 
Dynamic 
Leader’

ASHLEY ZLATOPOLSKY CONTRIBUTING WRITER

18 | SEPTEMBER 30 • 2021 

