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.

