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and approaching his next victim to
perform a coin trick. In 1943, during
WWII, he joined the Army at age 19
and was in active duty for more than
two years. One of his favorite stories
was about riding in an elevator with
General MacArthur. He was present
during D-Day and V-J Day. He met
many people from Europe and the
Pacific and kept in touch through-
out the years. Anyone he met was a
friend for life.
When Ben returned from the war,
a family friend stopped by to intro-
duce his fiancee, Janet. Ben came
to the top of the stairs in his boxer
shorts and hat to greet them. Janet
went home that day and told her
mom she met the man she was going
to marry. They got married soon
after and bought their first home in
Oak Park. They built a beautiful life
together with four children: Elaine,
Marlene, Robert and Howard; they
recently celebrated their 70th anni-
versary.
During this year’s Michigan/
MSU football game, Ben was to be
honored as the Hero of the Game.
But the reality is that he has always
been the family’s hero. He was sweet,
gentle and kind. He treated every-
one with respect and always viewed
the world with a sense of grateful-
ness. When driving, he would look
around and comment how beautiful
Michigan was. He appreciated nature
and regularly took the family fishing
into White River, Canada, to enjoy
a simpler way of life. He would
comment that he felt so lucky that
all his kids got along and that they
married wonderful, caring people,
saying that overall he did pretty good
with his life. His grandchildren and
great-grandchildren gave him so
much nachas.
His entire family feels blessed to
have had this exceptional man in
their lives and he will be missed
beyond words. He was loved dearly.
May his memory be for a blessing.
Ben is survived by his wife Janet;
children, Elaine and Victor Levin,
Marlene and David Wolf, Robert,
and Howard and Susan Korn; grand-
children Daniel and Mackenzie
Levin, Adam Wolf, Jamie and Jordan
Cutler, Erin and Kyle Warren,
Jennifer and Chris Gradone, Tracy
and Sam Mallory, and Julia Korn;
great-grandchildren Travis, Megan,
Hazel, Nora, Ari, Maddie, Liv and
Owen; sisters- and brothers-in-law,
Rita and Bernie Castleman; many
nieces, nephews and cousins; special
friend, Irv Friedman; compassion-
ate angels, Amanda and DeAngelo
Damphie.
He was the brother-in-law of the
late Marilyn and Marty Glovinsky.
Interment was held at Adat Shalom
Memorial Park Cemetery in Livonia.
Contributions may be made to the
American Friends of Magen David
Adom, the Zekelman Holocaust
Center, the Foundation for Fighting
Blindness or to the Jewish National
Fund. Arrangements by Dorfman
Chapel.
LORRAINE “KITTY”
LIPIN, 87, of West Palm
Beach, Fla., died peace-
fully on Nov. 8, 2024.
Born and raised in
Detroit, Kitty was a con-
noisseur of fine jewelry and collect-
ables. She enjoyed giving to others
and was known for her big personali-
ty and beautiful smile.
She was the beloved wife of the
late Max Lipin; She is survived by
her children, Leslie Lipin, Randi
(Rob) Valerious, Don (Paula) Lipin,
Bob (Beth) Lipin; grandchildren,
Sam and Jorie Kachergius, Max and
Carly Valerious, Courtney (Kenny)
Kendal and Sara (Cedric) Gamble,
Sunny (Jimmy) Paramo, Hallie (Jed)
continued on page 60
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