30 | MAY 23 • 2024
J
N
I
t’s tough to watch your friends get mar-
ried one by one as the years pass while
wondering if your turn will ever come.
When Becky Sinai first met her husband,
she was 32 — “an older single by many stan-
dards” — and she wants to share her story to
give hope to other older singles who may be
reading this.
It was 1997 when Becky, a born-and-bred
Southern girl from New Orleans, moved to
Michigan on a temporary assignment. She
lived in Grand Rapids for three months, then
prepared to move to Metro Detroit.
“I knew exactly one person in the entire
Jewish area. She’s not Jewish, but she advised
me to move to Farmington Hills. She told
me, ‘
A lot of Jewish people live there …
there’s a bagel store and Chinese food on
every corner.
’ I thought, OK, well, that
sounds good!” Becky said with a laugh.
As Rosh Hashanah neared, Becky flipped
through the Yellow Pages to look up a shul.
Only two were listed. She called B’nai David
and explained that she was new to the area.
The secretary chuckled. “We’re a bunch of
alter kakers (old folks) … You don’t want us;
call Beth Abraham down the street.
”
So she did, and a few weeks later turned
up at Beth Abraham.
Meanwhile, Jerry Eizen was the beloved
older single on campus whom everyone tried
to set up constantly. Naturally, these two
older singles were swiftly introduced.
After several chance meetings conveniently
arranged by Jerry’s friends, Jerry and Becky
started dating.
Jerry worked 24-hour shifts as a firefight-
er paramedic, so the two got to know each
other through long phone conversations,
which would end abruptly when emergency
calls came in. They quickly discovered they
had similar backgrounds and shared values.
Twenty-six days after they started dating,
Jerry proposed. At the time, Jerry’s mom,
Nancie Eizen, only knew Becky from one
quick exchange, from a Shabbat dinner a few
weeks before. Becky had said three words to
her: “Pass the chicken!”
Jerry and Becky married six months later
in New Orleans in the same synagogue
Becky’s parents had married in.
“Jerry was shvitzing from the moment he
got off the plane. He even had to change his
tuxedo shirt at the wedding, he was sweating
so much,
” Becky laughed.
The wedding was small and haimish, with
their siblings holding up the poles for the
chuppah. It was especially meaningful that
both their fathers, who were unwell at the
time, were present at their wedding. Both
passed away shortly afterwards.
Jerry and Becky have three sons of whom
they’re tremendously proud — Sander, 26,
who lives in Washington, D.C.; Ari, 24, who
is moving to New York soon; and Micah, 22,
who attends Yeshiva University in New York.
“I never thought I’
d still be here,
” mused
Becky, who had really only planned to live
in Michigan for a few months and still hasn’t
gotten used to the winters.
The couple live in Southfield and are very
happy. “There are only two things we argue
about — finances and the temperature in the
house!”
Jerry now works in security, and Becky is
the director of the Resource Center at Jewish
Family Service. They chose to become more
observant than they had grown up and are
members of Young Israel of Oak Park.
Jerry was surprised when Becky agreed to
share their story for the Jewish News. “Why
would anyone want to know our story?!” he
asked.
“We give what we can,
” Becky explained.
“We care very much about our community
and family and friends; we live our lives in
service to others, and we can certainly give
hope … Our story is a reminder that you just
never know when you’ll meet your bashert.
Things don’t always come as easily as we’
d
like, but there’s value in knowing that you just
never know.
”
This column will appear biweekly. If you’d like to share
your ‘meet-cute’ story, email burstynwithjoy@hotmail.
Don’t Give Up Hope
“You never know when you’ll meet your bashert.”
ROCHEL BURSTYN CONTRIBUTING WRITER
OUR COMMUNITY
HOW WE MET
Jerry and Becky
Eizen and sons
Jerry Eizen and
Becky Sinai at
their wedding