12 | FEBRUARY 2 • 2023 

I

’m happy to report I had a very lucky 
experience on Friday the 13th last 
month. Actually, my Sunday the 15th 
also ended up being equally lucky. Nope, 
didn’t win the Mega Millions lottery — 
something better. On both 
days, I got the chance to 
witness celebrations honoring 
two 100-year-old treasures 
of our Jewish War Veteran 
(JWV) community — Dr. 
Guy Stern and Dr. Sydney 
Harris. 
By the way, for those keep-
ing score, this will bring my 
total of writing about 100-year-old Detroit 
Jewish War Veterans in the JN to three, 
and just within the last 30 days. Just over a 
month ago, in the Dec. 22 edition of the JN, 
I shared the great centurion birthday cele-
bration of Jack Caminker.

VA HONORS DR. GUY STERN 
On Friday, Jan. 13, the Welcome Center of 
the Lt. Col. Charles S. Kettles VA Medical 
Center in Ann Arbor was renamed the 
Dr. Guy Stern Welcome Center. The cel-
ebration took place on the eve of Stern’s 

101st birthday.
Stern is no stranger to the pages of the JN. 
His incredible life story has been chronicled 
on many occasions. It is a story that has 
also been shared at the Zekelman Holocaust 
Center in Stern’s role over the years as 
the center’s director of the International 
Institute of the Righteous.
It is a journey of a 15-year-old German-
Jewish refugee who rose above the loss of 
his entire family in the Holocaust to become 
a WWII hero as a member of the U.S. 
Army’s famed “Ritchie Boys,
” the intelli-
gence service credited with gathering more 
than 60% of the actionable intelligence used 
by the Army during WWII. 
Just last year CBS’ 60 Minutes and Ken 
Burns’ PBS documentary, The U.S. and the 
Holocaust, prominently featured Stern’s role 
as a Ritchie Boy.

A BUDDING RELATIONSHIP
Guy Stern’s relationship with the Ann Arbor 
VA Medical Center was originally forged 
several years ago when he befriended Mark 
Lindke, who at the time was the director 
of the Washtenaw County Department of 
Veterans Affairs. It was Lindke who initially 

introduced Stern to the incomparable ben-
efits he earned and deserved, including the 
exceptional care that he continues to receive 
at the medical center. To this day, he chap-
erones Guy to his appointments.
“Every car ride I share with Guy is an 
educational journey,
” Lindke said. “I find 
myself immersed in his wonderful stories 
that we’ll enjoy over a meal as well.
”
Lindke eventually introduced Guy to the 
leadership of the hospital. It was instantly a 
match made in heaven. The more the VA 
learned about Stern, the more enamored 
they became with his life story. It was an 
affiliation, the VA knew, that would be a 
valuable source of inspiration. 

HEARTFELT GATHERING
On the morning of Jan. 13, Guy Stern was 
front and center, surrounded by members 
of the JWV Dept. of Michigan, along with 
doctors, nurses and administrators of the 
VA Medical Center in Ann Arbor, who con-
gregated in the main entrance way of the 
hospital to watch the official dedication. 
Also on hand was Kate Melcher, exec-
utive director of Fisher House Michigan 
where Stern is an adviser to the board of 

Veterans Honored

OUR COMMUNITY

Two esteemed centenarians celebrated special days in January. 

Alan 
Muskovitz
Contributing 
Writer

Guy Stern is flanked 
by fellow members 
of the JWV of 
Michigan on Jan. 13 
at the VA Medical 
Center in Ann Arbor.

ART FISHMAN

