6 | JULY 20 • 2023 1942 - 2023 Covering and Connecting Jewish Detroit Every Week To make a donation to the DETROIT JEWISH NEWS FOUNDATION go to the website www.djnfoundation.org The Detroit Jewish News (USPS 275-520) is published every Thursday at 32255 Northwestern Highway, #205, Farmington Hills, Michigan. Periodical postage paid at Southfield, Michigan, and additional mailing offices. Postmaster: send changes to: Detroit Jewish News, 32255 Northwestern Highway, #205, Farmington Hills, Michigan 48334 MISSION STATEMENT The Detroit Jewish News will be of service to the Jewish community. The Detroit Jewish News will inform and educate the Jewish and general community to preserve, protect and sustain the Jewish people of greater Detroit and beyond, and the State of Israel. VISION STATEMENT The Detroit Jewish News will operate to appeal to the broadest segments of the greater Detroit Jewish community, reflecting the diverse views and interests of the Jewish community while advancing the morale and spirit of the community and advocating Jewish unity, identity and continuity. DETROIT JEWISH NEWS 32255 Northwestern Hwy. Suite 205, Farmington Hills, MI 48334 248-354-6060 thejewishnews.com Publisher The Detroit Jewish News Foundation | Board of Directors: Chair: Gary Torgow Vice President: David Kramer Secretary: Robin Axelrod Treasurer: Max Berlin Board members: Michael J. Eizelman Larry Jackier, Jeffrey Schlussel, Mark Zausmer Executive Director: Marni Raitt Senior Advisor to the Board: Mark Davidoff Alene and Graham Landau Archivist Chair: Mike Smith Founding President & Publisher Emeritus: Arthur Horwitz Founding Publisher Philip Slomovitz, of blessed memory Editorial Director of Editorial: Jackie Headapohl jheadapohl@thejewishnews.com Contributing Editors: David Sachs, Keri Guten Cohen Staff Reporter: Danny Schwartz dschwartz@thejewishnews.com Editorial Assistant: Sy Manello smanello@thejewishnews.com Digital Manager: Elizabeth King eking@thejewishnews.com Contributing Writers: Nate Bloom, Rochel Burstyn, Suzanne Chessler, Shari S. Cohen, Louis Finkelman, Samantha Foon, Yevgeniya Gazman, Stacy Gittleman, Esther Allweiss Ingber, Barbara Lewis, Jennifer Lovy, Rabbi Jason Miller, Alan Muskovitz, Karen Schwartz, Robin Schwartz, Steve Stein, Nathaniel Warshay, Julie Smith Yolles, Ashley Zlatopolsky Advertising Sales Director of Advertising: Keith Farber kfarber@thejewishnews.com Senior Account Executive: Kathy Harvey-Mitton kmitton@thejewishnews.com | Business Office Director of Operations: Amy Gill agill@thejewishnews.com Operations Manager: Andrea Gusho agusho@thejewishnews.com Operations Assistant: Ashlee Szabo Circulation: Danielle Smith Billing Coordinator: Pamela Turner | Production By Farago & Associates Manager: Scott Drzewiecki Designers: Kaitlyn Iezzi, Kelly Kosek, Deborah Schultz, Michelle Sheridan guest column ‘A Day in the Life (Over Nine Years) on the Jewish Family Service Board’ I received this letter from a board member to share with the Jewish Family Service Board, and I want the community to read it, too. Volunteering on a board is a selfless act that doesn’t get enough attention, and done well, is priceless! Dear Jewish Family Service Board of Directors: I’ve had the good fortune to be involved with Jewish Family Service for 25 years — first as a Foundation funding partner and then as a board member. During that time, I witnessed growth and change, worked with great lay and professional leaders to oversee, create (like the Jewish Coalition Against Domestic Abuse), change and even eliminate programs, as well as to plan for the future, i.e., strategic planning. I had opportunities to discuss governance issues with fellow Executive Committee members. Two very patient CFOs gently guided me through volumes of finance spreadsheets and instructed me on accrual accounting concepts, greatly expanding my bandwidth. Mostly, I worked with two amazing development professionals to support their building of a well-oiled, successful development program, starting with almost no fundraising outside patchy board giving, growing our annual Friends Campaign and participating in inspiring Spotlight Events (I, and others, rolled up my sleeves not just to raise money, but also to schlep a lot of pink geraniums). All of this has been ably led by terrific board chairs, development staff and, of course, Perry! As an Executive Committee member, I had the opportunity to participate in supporting and evaluating our CEO (now in his 12th year). I helped guide the agency through multiple challenges involving Human Resource matters, interagency relationships and financial hiccups. We engaged in merger talks (and decided to stay independent) and helped the community rebuild after the disastrous flooding of 2014. Together, through the COVID pandemic and its ongoing fallout, we’ve supported and continue to support all the hard work that JFS does and continues to do to ensure the highest quality of uninterrupted service possible to the people we serve. Over these last three years, we have also learned a thing or two about offering incentives and rewards for Herculean staff efforts. We should feel really proud of that, knowing that the community just assumed it would be done. Isn’t that PURELY COMMENTARY continued on page 7 Perry Ohren