OUR COMMUNITY

TOP: Dedication of the Eugene and Elaine C. Driker Trail on the east 
end of Belle Isle in April 2022. MIDDLE LEFT: Eugene and Elaine were 
avid bicyclists. Six weeks before he died, Eugene completed a 15-mile 
bike ride in Glen Arbor, Michigan. MIDDLE RIGHT: Stephen Driker with 
his dad. BOTTOM: The entire Driker clan in Israel on the occasion of 
Eugene’s 80th birthday.

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16 | OCTOBER 13 • 2022 

ON THE COVER

DEDICATED TO FAMILY
Although many Jewish families 
were abandoning Detroit and 
moving to the suburbs, Eugene 
and Elaine opted to stay in the 
city, buying a house in Palmer 
Woods that became the family 
headquarters for holidays, birth-
day celebrations and numerous 
gatherings large and small.
“Their home was a refuge, full 
of laughter, welcoming warmth 
and yummy treats,
” said Shelley 
Kroll. “Eugene and Elaine were 
always fun to be around, energet-
ic, defying the sobering stereo-
types of aging with their energy, 
their wit, their curiosity and their 
unceasing interest in new ideas 
and new ways of being.
”
While he received immense 
gratification from his work and 
philanthropic activities, nothing 
matched his love for his family 
and the pleasure he got from 
spending time with them. 
 His children have fond memo-
ries of going to baseball games at 
Tiger Stadium, visiting Belle Isle 
and the Detroit Zoo and playing 
catch in the driveway of their 
Detroit home.
“
As a child, I didn’t understand 
the magnitude of his professional 
and community involvement 
because none of us ever felt he 
was too busy for us,
” said his 
daughter, Elissa. “He showed 
us how to live a meaningful life 
full of friendship, family, beauty, 
nature and connection.
”
While he had high standards 
for himself and his children, his 
advice and even his admonish-
ments were dispensed lovingly.
“When I needed him, he was 
there with full attention; he made 
problems seem less overwhelm-
ing and more manageable,
” said 
his son, Stephen.
Eugene lit up in the presence 
of his grandchildren, and he 
enjoyed a special relationship 

with each one. He respected 
them as individuals regardless of 
age, teaching them about politics, 
the importance of clear and con-
cise writing, humility, compas-
sion and hard work. 
“Each of us is called to live 
more deeply, more ethically and 
more joyously because of the 
example he provided,
” said his 
grandson, Charlie. “He taught us 
there are no short cuts to being a 
good person.
”
He attended their school and 
sporting events whenever pos-
sible and expressed his playful 
side building sandcastles on the 
shores of Lake Michigan during 
family vacations in Glen Arbor. 
“He taught me the quickest 
way to solve a problem is not to 
care who gets credit for the solu-
tion,
” said his grandson, Caleb.

A MASTERFUL 
PROBLEM-SOLVER 
That philosophy served Eugene 
well when he was asked to join 
the mediation team tasked 
with helping the City of Detroit 
emerge from bankruptcy. He was 
instrumental in negotiating the 
agreement known as the “Grand 
Bargain,
” a solution that restored 
solvency to the city while ensur-
ing the DIA stayed open and the 
pension funds of city employees 
remained intact.
Eugene loved art and music; 
visiting the DIA often and hold-
ing season tickets to the Detroit 
Symphony Orchestra. He liked 
maps, potato chips, Coney 
Islands and telling jokes with 
Yiddish punch lines.
He took pride in being one 
of four life trustees of the Ralph 
C. Wilson Jr. Foundation, an 
organization that helps com-
munities and individuals in 
Southeast Michigan and Western 
New York. Earlier this year, he 
expressed his gratitude at the 

