Last Sunday, we opened the doors of Jewish Senior Life and welcomed potential residents to an Open House. It was a wonderful opportunity for visitors to experience firsthand what life is like at Meer and Hechtman, right here on the Eugene and Marcia Applebaum Jewish Community Campus in West Bloomfield. There was a lot [...]

“Do you hear the people sing? Singing a song of angry men? It is the music of the people who will not be slaves again! When the beating of your heart echoes the beating of the drums, there is a life about to start when tomorrow comes….” Those words from Les Misérables have always [...]

Changing our view of life doesn’t always require a major transformation. Sometimes, it begins with stepping away from our routines, experiencing something new, and seeing the world through a different lens. We can step beyond to appreciate what has been there all along. My husband, Andy, and I recently decided to explore Pittsburgh, PA [...]

There is something remarkable about a Jewish funeral. We gather for the long goodbye, knowing that no words can undo our loss. Prayers are chanted, tears are shed, and then someone recounts a tale. The room begins to smile. Heads nod, and through the tears, the person we have come to mourn is, for [...]

We Don't Have to Do It AloneThere is something truly special about the friendships women share. As the years go by, we come to appreciate just how precious these relationships are. Our girlfriends are the women who share our laughter, listen to our worries, celebrate our milestones, and stand beside us when life becomes difficult. [...]

Jewish Senior Life residents moved in, after having left their homes partially filled with a lifetime of possessions. But they brought what mattered most with them. They brought their stories. Their memories of people they have loved and lost. The places they have been, the families they have raised, the adventures they have had. So [...]

The beautiful holiday of Sukkot comes to an end after 7 days, but the Jewish calendar asks us not to rush. Shemini Atzeret, literally “the Eighth Day of Assembly” is connected to Sukkot yet technically is its own holiday. And there is something beautiful about that distinction. We learn, after seven days of celebrating [...]

We walked out of the sanctuary of Temple Israel Sunday night after the first Yom Kippur service. I was still humming the melodies as we stepped into the crowded parking lot to look for our car, the cool darkness lit by hundreds of headlights. And in that indistinguishable sea of lights, I found myself [...]

The day after a beautiful celebration of Rosh Hashanah, 6 members of my family along with others gathered in a friend’s home for a facilitated dialogue about our current political state of affairs. Led by Rabbi Nate DeGroot and professional coach and facilitator Aaron Handelsman, we were asked to listen and pause at the beginning [...]

A week ago, Thursday, September 3, as severe weather moved through our area and tornado warnings were broadcast urging everyone to take cover, our JSL community came together in a way I will never forget. Members of our team and volunteers quickly and compassionately helped residents move to safe areas. Most were unaware of [...]

Madeline “Madge” Bindamin, my husband Andy’s mother, was a magazine editor in New York during the 1940s and later became a literary agent. She edited pulp magazines such as Amour and Private Detective Stories and even wrote a radio play. We know these details because her grandchildren, now in their thirties, searched for her name [...]

I’ve noticed that when I’m overcome by political angst or overwhelmed by life, I have the same instinct: I want to get in my bed. There’s something so comforting about it. The world can be chaotic, the news unbearable, and there we are, tucked beneath the covers, temporarily excused from all of it. Isn’t [...]