MARCH 7 • 2024 | 21
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CRC/AJC Executive 
Director Rabbi Asher 
Lopatin announced that 
he is leaving the organization 
to become the director of com-
munity relations for the Jewish 
Federation of Greater Ann 
Arbor, effective March 4. 
 JCRC/AJCAssistant Director/
Director of Media 
Relations Sam 
Dubin has been 
named interim 
executive director.
“Rabbi Lopatin is 
leaving his five-year 
tenure at the Jewish 
Community Relations Council/ 
AJC with a legacy to be proud 
of,” Dubin said. “He’s the ulti-
mate bridge builder and is pas-
sionate in standing up for Israel 
and the Jewish people. I’m eager 
to continue the same bridge 
building and advocacy work our 
community has come to expect 
from JCRC/AJC. I’ve enjoyed 
learning from Rabbi Lopatin and 
am excited for his new endeav-
or at the Jewish Federation of 
Greater Ann Arbor.”
According to a statement 
from the JCRC/AJC executive 
committee, Lopatin has “sig-
nificantly advanced our mission 
in strengthening the voice of 
Detroit’s Jewish community, 
leaving a lasting impact on our 
region.”
 Under Lopatin’s stewardship, 
the JCRC/AJC: 
• Forged a vital partnership 
with the Coalition for Black and 
Jewish Unity.
• Established a meaningful 
collaboration with the Hindu 
Community Relations Council.
• Advanced peace, supported 
Israel, and combatted antisemi-

tism with steadfast dedication.
• Increased the number of 
grant dollars to the JCRC/AJC.
• Opened a dialogue with the 
archbishop, expanded contacts 
with the diplomatic corps, and 
improved relationships in the 
community, including within 
the Muslim com-
munity, fostering 
understanding and 
cooperation.
Lopatin told the 
Jewish News his deci-
sion to take on this 
new role reflects his 
desire for growth, 
and that although he is chang-
ing jobs, he plans to continue 
his work with the Coalition for 
Black and Jewish Unity as well as 
continue as rabbi and leader of 
Kehillat Etz Chayim, a Modern 
Orthodox synagogue he founded 
in Huntington Woods.
“The work of community 
relations and advocacy never has 
been more important, and I am 
eager to continue it at a critical 
time for a community that is 
home to University of Michigan, 
one of the nation’s most sig-
nificant universities, as well as 
Eastern Michigan University, an 
important academic institution 
in its own right, and a diverse, 
dynamic Jewish community,” 
Lopatin said.
According to the JCRC/
AJC, a nationwide search for a 
new executive director is under 
way. “We are fortunate to have 
Sam Dubin step in as interim 
executive director. Under Sam’s 
leadership, we are confident in 
our organization’s success and 
momentum during this transi-
tion period,” JCRC/AJC said in a 
statement. 

Rabbi Lopatin heading to Ann Arbor; Sam 
Dubin named interim executive director.

Leadership Transition 
at JCRC/AJC

Sam Dubin

Rabbi 
Asher 
Lopatin

JN STAFF

JFS Receives Grant 

Jewish Family Service received a grant from the Byron and 
Dorothy Gerson Innovation Fund to develop Up60+, a new 
initiative that will offer training to community members as they 
prepare for retirement.
It is now common for adults to live 20 years or more past 
retirement. Most are eager for that stage of life, but all too often 
people are unprepared for the lack of structure to their days.
“There’s the loss of a central component of their identity and, 
most importantly, a loss of a sense of purpose in life,” says Evie 
Lynn Breuer, LMSW
, CDP, senior director of community out-
reach and wellness at JFS. “In addition to emotional and finan-
cial stress, those reaching retirement age often do not have the 
tools to cope with the health, social and financial challenges that 
surface in later years, leaving them unprepared to make deci-
sions about their future and day-to-day lives.”
Up60+ will empower both pre- and post-retirees with the 
tools, knowledge and awareness to ensure a financially secure 
and emotionally resilient post-retirement period. 

Billboards Fight Antisemitism
JewBelong, a national nonprofit organization that fights 
antisemitism and makes Judaism accessible, put up three 
new billboards in Detroit to raise awareness of nationally 
skyrocketing antisemitism and spark conversations about the 
ongoing problem and the very real dangers associated with 
anti-Jewish prejudice. 
The billboards will remain up through March 10. The 
three billboard locations and slogans are as follows: 
• “There were once six million people who didn’t think a 
few hateful comments would lead anywhere.” — E. I-94 Fwy. 
and Quinn Road 
• “We’re just 78 years since the gas chambers. So no, a bill-
board calling out Jew hate is not an overreaction” — E. I-94 
Fwy. and Morang Ave. & I-75 Fwy. and Sire St. 
“It shouldn’t be scary to be openly Jewish in America, but 
for so many of us across the country that is our reality right 
now,” says JewBelong co-founder Archie Gottesman. “We 
can’t be afraid to speak up and fight back. Reach out to your 
Jewish friends. We need allies. Sparking the conversation is 
just the beginning.” 

