26 | JULY 13 • 2023

I

n June, West Bloomfield
native Rachel Morof joined
Americans for Ben-Gurion
University (A4BGU) as the
organization’s new associate
director of development for
the Midwest. She will work
to engage Midwestern Jewish
communities in joining a
movement that supports a
21st-century unifying vision for
Israel by rallying around Ben-
Gurion University’s (BGU) work
and role as an apolitical beacon
of light in the Negev.
Morof, who is based
in Chicago, previously
served as development and
communications manager for
Northwestern University Hillel.
She has a B.A. from Michigan

State University and served on
the board of MSU Hillel for all
four of her years on campus.
By supporting an academic
institution that not only
nurtures the Negev, but also
shares its expertise locally and
globally, A4BGU engages a
community of Americans who
are committed to improving the
world. This mission is rooted in
the pioneering spirit of David
Ben-Gurion, who envisioned
that Israel’s future would be
forged in the Negev.
Today, the former prime
minister’s vision is manifested
in the cutting-edge research
carried out at BGU, resulting
in scalable solutions for all of
humanity in water conservation,

environmental science, medical
research, artificial intelligence,
cybersecurity and more.
“You’re following the
mission of David Ben-Gurion
to ensure a thriving Jewish
life in the Negev,” Morof says.
“Ben-Gurion University and
A4BGU are helping to fulfill
that mission, for not only this
generation of
students but also
for the generations
to come. Just
seeing where this
university was 50
years ago to now,
and then to see
where it can be in
50 years with that
trajectory, is really
intriguing to me.”
Although Morof no longer
lives in the Detroit area, she
remains highly involved in
the local Jewish community.
Fun fact: Her brother, Josh
Morof, was the U.S. national
Rummikub champion from

2017-2023.
Morof is drawn to the
opportunity to raise awareness
among an American audience
for an often less-
discussed region of Israel,
explaining that she has “a sweet
spot for those areas in Israel that
don’t get as much attention or
visits.
“When all my friends
were going to Tel Aviv
or Jerusalem, I wanted
to go somewhere
different,” says Morof,
who completed an
Onward Israel summer
internship in the
northern city of Haifa.
She first visited
Israel in 2014 through
Detroit’s BBYO chapter. The
day before the group landed
in Israel, Hamas kidnapped
three teenage boys in what
spurred a 50-day conflict that
summer. Rather than traveling
around the country, Morof’s
group needed to initially stay

Ben-Gurion Booster

M

idtown Art Fair in
Detroit (111 E. Kirby
St., close to the Detroit
Institute of Arts) is a free event
which will be held Sunday,
July 16, from 1-6 p.m. and is
offered by Michigan Arts Access
(MiAA). The fair features artists
and performers with mental ill-
nesses or disabilities showcasing
their talents.
For the first time, there will be
seven featured performers from
Gesher Human Services’ Creative
Expressions Program who cur-
rently attend Gesher’s Lois and
Milton Y. Zussman Activity
Center, known as Clubhouse.

There will be a solo piano per-
formance, a group project using
recorded background music from
the Detroit Symphony Orchestra
that participants helped compose,
and there will be solo singing
performances, too.
Clubhouse, located in
Southfield, provides enrichment
(including arts enrichment
with the Creative Expressions
program) and educational and
employment opportunities for
people with mental illnesses such
as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder
and severe depression. Creative
Expressions offers everything
from photography, painting and

sculpture to music and singing
classes and more.
At the Midtown Art Fair, a
number of talented artists who
take part in Creative Expressions
will be creating live portraiture
and paintings, and there will also
be artwork displayed by artists
with disabilities who have taken
part in Gesher’s Choices and Skill
Building programs.
Motown legend and MiAA
Ambassador Martha Reeves will
be signing autographs from 3-6

p.m.
“The fair provides us with a
wonderful opportunity to share
the outstanding talents of our
members,
” said Craig Nowak,
program manager of Creative
Expressions. “For the artists, it is
an extension of their professional
practice to be able to sell their
work and display it for a broader
community. Many of the artists
are very excited and have been
working hard on their portfolios,
whether that is animation-based,

OUR COMMUNITY

Singers, pianists, artists and photographers
from Gesher Human Services’ Creative
Expressions Program to perform.

Midtown Art Fair

JN STAFF

In new role, West Bloomfield native
will rally Midwesterners around the
vision of David Ben-Gurion.

JN STAFF

Rachel Morof

PHOTO COURTESY OF RACHEL MOROF

Creative Expressions
participant Michael
singing at a recent event.