OUR COMMUNITY
continued from page 13
ON THE COVER
14 | NOVEMBER 9 • 2023 J
N
MEET THE NEW
FEDERATION PRESIDENT
After earning a law degree at
Wayne State, Gary Torgow
began his career in the law,
then real estate, where he
began a family enterprise
called the Sterling Group. He
then turned to the banking
profession and is now the
chairman of Huntington Bank.
Torgow serves on the board
of DTE Energy Company and
as a director of Blue Cross
Blue Shield of Michigan.
Additionally, Torgow serves
on the Executive Board of
Business Leaders of Michigan,
Steering Committee at Mosaic
United and as board presi-
dent of Yeshiva Beth Yehudah
and the Detroit Jewish News
Foundation, which publishes
the Detroit Jewish News. He’s
been a trustee on the board
of Federation and has served
in numerous roles, including
Annual Campaign chair.
Torgow was inspired to
his lifetime of service by
his maternal grandfather,
Manual Merzon, who came
to America from Russia in
1918 as a 16-year-old orphan.
He worked hard and became
a lawyer, becoming the first
lawyer to wear a yarmulke in
the courts in Michigan in the
1940s.
“But his real avocation
was helping people,” Torgow
said. “He was deeply involved
in assisting the community,
always with an eye on the less
fortunate. He served pro bono
[for no fee] as a lawyer for
communal organizations in
Detroit, and I grew up watch-
ing his kindness. My grandfa-
ther had a strong influence on
every area of my life, including
my communal career.”
After Gary’s grandfather
passed away, he authored
a book about him called
Raising the Bar.
After moving back from
school in New York, Gary
met another mentor, Rabbi
Avrohom Abba Freedman,
whose work ultimately led to
the establishment of Yeshiva
Beth Yehudah.
“What I learned from my
grandfather and my rab-
bis was that the success we
enjoy in this world comes
directly through blessings
from Heaven,” he said. “The
Almighty puts you in the plac-
es you need to be, and achieve-
ments come from Heaven,
directing us to the places we
need to be to enable us to do
some good in the world.”
Torgow and his wife, Malke,
also have a passion for Israel
and have led many missions
over the years, taking commu-
nity, business and government
officials to the Holy Land,
including many non-Jewish
people, with a goal that the
participants should love Israel
and love the Jewish people.
MEET THE NEW
FOUNDATION PRESIDENT
Michael Berger is also a life-
long Metro Detroiter. He grew
up in Southfield and attended
high school at Cranbrook. He
did his undergraduate work
at the University of Michigan
and then headed to Boston
University Law School. After
graduation, he practiced law in
Chicago for four years before
returning to Michigan to join
the family business, the Berger
Realty Group, which deals
mainly with apartments and
self-storage as well as con-
struction. His father, Stanley
Berger, started the company
in the 1970s, and Michael is
now partners with his brother
Steven in the business.
“ONE OF THE WONDERFUL
THINGS ABOUT THE
DETROIT JEWISH
COMMUNITY IS OUR UNITY
OF INTEREST AND PURPOSE,
OUR CAMARADERIE
AND OUR COMMON
GOALS TO STRENGTHEN
THE JEWISH PEOPLE,
SUPPORT ISRAEL,
UPLIFT EACH OTHER
AND TAKE CARE OF
THOSE WHO NEED
OUR SUPPORT.”
— GARY TORGOW
Gary Torgow