NOVEMBER 9 • 2023 | 47
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and earned a master’s 
degree in journalism from 
Ohio State University. 
Her career goes beyond 
magazine writing and 
into cable television and 
nonprofit work before 
opening Gramercy Books, 
a local, independent 
bookstore in Bexley, Ohio.
The author’s personal 
life includes marriage 
for 36 years to Frank 
Kass, an urban real estate 
redeveloper who currently 
has a project around 
Lansing. They have a 
combined family that 
includes four children and 
five grandchildren. 
Membership at Temple 
Israel in Columbus is 

important to the family, 
as are the Jewish 
organizations they support 
in the area. The author has 
had book launches at the 

Jewish Community Center 
near her home.
“The new book is about 
identity, antisemitism 
and mid-20th-century 

America,” said Kass, 
who will be interviewed 
in the West Bloomfield 
program by Lauren Marcus 
Johnson, assistant director 
of cultural arts at The 
J-Detroit.
“Bess Myerson had been 
poor as a youngster in the 
Bronx, and yet she grew 
up to have a voice to make 
a difference,” Kass said. “I 
think the idea of using 
your voice for social justice 
is a message we can all 
learn from.
“We live in a world that 
is parallel in many ways 
to the world she grew up 
in, so we have to continue 
to use our voices as she did. 
Bess Myerson is inspiring.” 

IMDB

Bess 
Myerson

CARVING STATION 
Ham • Fresh Turkey
PASTITSIO
GRAPE LEAVES
SPINACH TRIANGLES
CHICKEN
MASHED POTATOES
YAMS
STUFFING
CRANBERRY SAUCE
CORN
GREEN BEANS
PASTA
COCONUT SHRIMP
GREEK STUFFING
SALAD
SOUP
FRESH FRUIT
ASSORTED PIES 
& BAKED GOODS