20 | OCTOBER 28 • 2021

was a frequent Kay family trip.
Chesed Shel Emes has several
memorial benches dedicated to
the Jewish residents of commu-
nities that were decimated by
the Nazis. Kay wanted to install
a bench, but cemetery rules
permitted memorial benches
only for entire Jewish commu-
nities, not individual families.

Undaunted, Kay designed an
addition to the existing mon-
ument — one that highlighted
the 800 Jewish families from
Wloszczowa who were killed by
the Nazis. A stone bench was
then installed at the plot and
there was a dedication for the
expanded monument in 1990.
Next to the Kay monument

is a burial plot for a fellow
Holocaust survivor, a man
whom Kay knew in Detroit.
Despite some rancorous busi-
ness dealings between them,
when the man died, destitute
and with no friends or relatives
to bury him, Kay paid for his
burial and held shivah for him
at the Kay family home in Oak
Park.
This was one of many
of Louis Kay’s good deeds
remembered by family, former
employees and friends. He
helped individuals in need,
regardless of their religion, race
or personal circumstances. In
1989, he was recognized as a
Jewish News Mitzvah Hero. Kay
sold 10,000 trees for the Jewish
National Fund through Detroit
B’nai B’rith and was active in
many charitable organizations,
especially those supporting
Israel. He received the State of
Israel’s New Life Award that

honors Holocaust survivors for
major achievements.
The death of almost an entire
family leaves an unimaginable
burden of loss and sadness.
But Louis Kay’s survival meant
that his four children (Rhonda,
Marc, Avi and Stuart), their 10
children and four grandchil-
dren will sustain the family
name and help ensure the con-
tinuity of the Jewish commu-
nity.
Marc Kay’s son, Joshua,
helped to bring about a state
law mandating Holocaust
education in Arizona. It was a
difficult three-year effort led
by local Holocaust survivors to
ensure that the horrors of the
Holocaust are known now and
in the future.
Louis Kay died in 1999 at
age 73. He and his wife, Gladys,
are buried in graves that are
adjacent to the Kay memorial
monument.

OUR COMMUNITY

Stuart Kay of Franklin visits his father, Louis Kay’s grave

continued from page 19

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