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those connected through family. Also,
many members are Jewish. When asked
when Jews were welcomed to the club,
or if there were ever restrictions, no one
remembers.
FUN AT FISH LAKE
In the 1940s, RAAD obtained about 40
acres on Fish Lake in Rose Township, in
the very north of Oakland County. In
1946, they built a pavilion at Fish Lake
that became the center of activities for
RAAD and where today regular events
are held.
On the land are multiple cottages
owned by some RAAD members.
Members and their guests come to
barbecue, swim, fish, kayak and hunt
mushrooms on the RAAD property,
and many have children who have built
lifelong friendships at the lake.
Even today, RAAD members love
to spend the warm months of the year
enjoying the rustic splendor of Fish
Lake. Zhenya Ostrovsky, the current
serving RAAD president, shared that he
felt an instant connection and sense of
belonging when he first came to a RAAD
picnic. Having lived in a few cities around
the U.S, he was surprised something like
RAAD existed in Metro Detroit. Now, he
and his family enjoy spending much of
the summer at their cottage on Fish Lake.
Yury Voldman, who immigrated as a
Jewish refugee from the Soviet Union,
recalls being invited to a party on Fish
Lake 25 years ago, and he and his wife,
Natalie, loved the experience and became
members. Voldman says he believes
Soviet Jews sought out RAAD looking for
Zhenya
Ostrovsky
Yury
Voldman
Mushroom art collection at
Natalie and Yury’s cottage
Yury Voldman and Zhenya
Ostrovsky outside the
banya, a traditional sauna