MARCH 14 • 2024 | 29
J
N
S
ometimes a mutual pas-
sion can bring couples
together. In Patty and
Steve Ceresnie’s case, it was music.
Steve grew up in Detroit and
Oak Park. He played clarinet in
the high school band, “my best
subject,
” he likes to say, and was a
tenor sax player in a jazz band.
In 1967, when his buddy (and
guitar player in the jazz band)
Marc spent a week at a resort in
South Haven, Michigan, the resort
owner asked Marc if he could put
together a band for the following
year. Marc asked Steve to join, and
he eagerly agreed.
Meanwhile, Patty Grund grew
up in Des Moines, Iowa, attended
Drake University in Des Moines,
moved to Los Angeles and pur-
sued acting and singing at the
Pasadena Playhouse. Two years
later, she moved to Chicago, hired
an agent and began singing in
nightclubs. One weekend, Patty’s
agent recommended she go to
Mendelson’s Resort in South
Haven and perform daily with the
house band.
And it was at Mendelson’s, in
South Haven, aka “the Catskills
of the Midwest,
” that a certain
woman from Des Moines first
caught the eye of a certain man
from Detroit.
Steve thought he didn’t stand
a chance. “There was this other
guy — tall, blonde, a surfer dude,
and I thought I’m just a little guy
playing sax. If there’s anyone that
pretty girl’s gonna like, it’s gonna
be him,
” he said.
“He wasn’t my type!” Patty
exclaimed now.
“I was mistaken … in a very
good way!” Steve said happily. “I’m
5’3” — that’s when I stretch! —
and there aren’t many girls who
are shorter than me. Patty was
small and cute, she laughed at my
jokes and, best of all, she liked me,
too!”
Patty said, “I’
d met a lot of dif-
ferent guys by then and Steve was
like a light in the tunnel. He was
different from the other men I’
d
met. He was easy to talk to, caring,
honest …
”
“I’m still all those things!”
laughed Steve.
Even though Patty was 23 and
Steve was 19, something clicked.
The summer was a blast. The
two played in the band together,
had fun with the guests as social
directors and enjoyed the resort’s
gourmet menu. After the summer,
Patty moved back to L.A. and
Steve resumed his college educa-
tion at Wayne State, majoring in
psychology.
Then the ground shook — lit-
erally. After experiencing a major
earthquake in 1971, Patty decided
to relocate and move to Detroit,
where her parents, Bobby and
Lorene Grund, had settled. Steve
and Patty immediately resumed
their relationship.
Steve’s parents, Sol and Sophie
Ceresnie, adored Patty. As Sol
said, “Finally, those music lessons
paid off!”
Steve started graduate school
in psychology and Patty started
singing with a local band that per-
formed at parties, weddings and
bar mitzvahs.
Steve didn’t have a lot of
self-confidence, and his father
eventually stepped in, recom-
mending he propose.
“My dad told me, ‘Look, getting
married is not like taking out a
mortgage,
’” Steve said. “
And then
years later, when I did take out my
first mortgage, he told me, ‘Look,
taking out a mortgage is not like
getting married!’”
In 1973, they married at Raleigh
House on Telegraph Road in
Southfield — and their wedding
band consisted of many of Patty’s
musician friends.
The Ceresnies are blessed to
have two daughters. Sharon and
her husband, Dan Sorkin, live in
Ann Arbor with their two chil-
dren, Mia, 10, and Charlie, 12.
Barb lives in Los Angeles and is
getting married in Detroit next
month to Joey Cohen.
Patty was the singer for The
Patty Grant Orchestra and soon
became the band leader when the
original band leader retired. Her
band played more than 80 jobs a
year while Steve — now a psychol-
ogist — was her roadie.
“I knew every single rabbi in
town,
” laughed Steve.
The couple live in Commerce
and have belonged to Temple Shir
Shalom since 1989. Back then, it
was in an office building on Maple
and Orchard Lake.
Last year, the couple celebrated
50 years of marriage. When asked
for the secret to their long and
happy marriage, Patty answered,
“Music.
”
“Definitely music …
” agreed
Steve. “
And humor, but honestly
a lot of it is just luck, too. Lots
of luck. When I look back, the
chances of our meeting seem
infinitesimal … but we did. It’s all
beshert!”
This column will appear biweekly. If
you’d like to share your ‘meet-cute’ story,
please email burstynwithjoy@hotmail.com.
ROCHEL BURSTYN CONTRIBUTING WRITER
HOW WE MET
‘Those Music
Lessons Paid Off!’
Patty and
Steve
Ceresnie a
few months
after they
married in
1973
Recent Ceresnie
family picture