FEBRUARY 2 • 2023 | 27

S

he spent a summer 
in the Catskills with 
Johnny Castle; she 
was Ferris Bueller’s little sister, 
and nobody puts her in the 
corner. Now, she’s coming 
to the Signature Event at 
Congregation Shaarey Zedek 
on Feb. 13. 
Federation’s 
Women’s 
Philanthropy 
Department is 
proud to announce 
that Jennifer Grey, 
the internationally 
known actress and bestselling 
author, will be the special 
guest at this year’s Signature 
Event. 
Grey is best known for her 

iconic portrayal of “Baby” 
opposite Patrick Swayze in 
the beloved classic Dirty 
Dancing, which earned her a 
Golden Globe nomination for 
best actress. More recently, 
she starred in the critically 
acclaimed Amazon series Red 
Oaks. In 2022, Random House 
released her memoir Out of the 
Corner.
Signature is the premiere 
annual fundraising event 
for Women’s Philanthropy, 
a group of 4,000 generous, 
motivated women who raise 
more than $6 million annually 
for Federation-supported 
programs and services. 
This women-only evening, 
with over 500 attendees, is 

a celebration of community 
and the profound impact of 
women donors to Federation’s 
Annual Campaign. 
Grey will be sharing her 
personal story, including her 
Jewish identity, anecdotes 
from her bestselling memoir 
and a behind-the-scenes 
update on the long-awaited 
Dirty Dancing sequel. 
“We’re excited about 
the 2023 version of this 
great event that supports 
Federation’s Annual 
Campaign. The money we 
raise in this one night alone 
makes a real difference 
helping people in need in our 
community,” said Nancy Glen, 
Women’s Philanthropy 
Campaign Chair. 
Adds Signature 
Co-Chair Shayna 
Levine, “And we’re 
really excited to 
have Jennifer Grey 
as our speaker. She has been 

such a touchstone in our 
lives growing up with her 
movies and TV appearances, 
and now her new memoir 
is a touchstone to her life 
personally and professionally.” 
Tickets to attend the 
Signature Event in person 
are expected to sell out and 
registration closes Feb. 7 (a 
virtual option is also available). 
Logon to jewishdetroit.org/
signature for complete details 
and to register. 
Questions? Contact Toni 
Hayes at hayes@jfmd.org or 
(248) 203-1532. 

The Time of Your Life

D

ennis Bernard, pres-
ident of the United 
Jewish Foundation of 
Metropolitan Detroit, has been 
named chair of the Security 
and Antisemitism 
Committee of the 
Jewish Federations 
of North America 
(JFNA). JFNA is 
an umbrella orga-
nization that rep-
resents 146 Jewish 
Federations and 
over 300 Network communities 
across North America.
The Security and 
Antisemitism Committee is 
responsible for advocacy, edu-
cation and training related to 

securing federal funding for 
physical security needs, sup-
porting state and local security 
funding advocacy, addressing 
antisemitism, BDS and anti-Zi-
onism, supporting Israel and 
fostering Holocaust education. 
In addition, the Committee 
collaborates with key Jewish 
security and counter-
antisemitism organizations 
such as ADL and the Secure 
Community Network and 
supports coordination at the 
local level. 
A top priority of the 
Committee is to advocate 
to Congress to significantly 
increase the Nonprofit Security 
Grant Program (NSGP) 

program, which provides 
critical security resources 
to at-risk faith-based and 
nonprofit institutions. NSGP 
funding promotes physical 
security enhancements, 
emergency preparedness 
planning, training and exercises, 
and enhanced collaboration 
between public and private 
community representatives and 
their state and local homeland 
security and emergency 
management agencies. The 
Detroit Jewish community, 
along with other local faith-
based communities, have relied 
on the NSGP grant to support 
their security infrastructure 
since 2007.

Bernard, who is president 
of the Bernard Financial 
Group, has been a longtime 
champion and representative 
for the Jewish community. His 
government relations efforts led 
to the establishment and growth 
of the NSGP program to over 
$305 million in annual funding 
for communities across the U.S.
“We have worked hard to 
develop strong relationships 
and support with all levels 
of government to ensure the 
security of Jewish communities 
around the country,
” Bernard 
said. 
“Sadly, because of the 
rising level of antisemitism, 
security has never been more 
important, and our synagogues, 
day schools and other Jewish 
institutions can’t afford the 
necessary investment on their 
own. This committee is focused 
on the critical task of increasing 
the resources available to ensure 
our safety.
” 

Jennifer 
Grey

Federation’s Women’s Philanthropy 
Department Signature Event 
stars Jennifer Grey.

Dennis 
Bernard

Dennis Bernard Named 
Chair of JFNA’s Security and 
Antisemitism Committee

