What motivates people to be involved in legacy giving? Each person has a unique story. Martin B. Shichtman, Professor of English and Director of the Center for Jewish Studies at Eastern Michigan University, was willing to share his with Washtenaw Jewish News readers.
An essential component of Professor Shichtman’s story is the story of EMU’s Center for Jewish Studies (CJS). The Center came into existence only four years ago, so it is relatively young. Historically, EMU graduates stay in state, often bringing their education and experience back home to parts of Michigan where there are not many Jews. The program has brought students and community members together to sample latkes for Hanukah, taste “kosher soul food,” and dance to klezmer music. Students who may never have traveled beyond Michigan’s borders have journeyed to Germany, Poland, and even Israel through the EMU CJS.
EMU’s Center for Jewish Studies is a participant in the LIFE & LEGACY program, with Professor Shichtman as their team leader. In preparation for the program, each of the local organizations created a case statement that was included in a “Community Case Statement Booklet”. In their case statement, the EMU Team explains that “EMU’s Center for Jewish Studies is dedicated to providing a gathering place for all of Southeast Michigan’s numerous ethnic communities to learn more about Jews and Judaism, a space to build bridges, to open and engage in dialogue, to foster cooperation and inclusiveness…(the program) provides our future physicians, physician assistants, nurses, attorneys, businesspeople, social workers and educators opportunities to engage deeply with a culture and history that may not be their own; to meet members of the local Jewish community to learn from them, and to call them friends; to expand their thinking about what it means to be an ethical person in the 21st century by imagining diverse points of view; to embrace people unlike themselves and realize that our differences pale in comparison with our shared humanity.”
It is in this context that Professor Shichtman reflects, “I never imagined I would receive so much joy giving away money. Thanks to inspiration from the LIFE & LEGACY program, my wife and I created an Eastern Michigan University endowment to honor my sister, Sandra Shichtman Dabrusin. My sister is the daughter of working-class parents from the Lower East Side of New York City, and she stands as a shining example to the Eastern Michigan University community. After years working as an executive secretary, Sandra (a single mother) pursued a college degree as a non-traditional student, ultimately earning a Master’s in Human Resources and Labor Negotiation. She retired as the Director of Human Resources at a major Long Island hospital.”
The LIFE & LEGACY program is designed to increase financial security for participating programs in our community, with the goal of securing the future for the next generation and generations to come. One way this can be done is through endowment funds, where money grows over time. Professor Shichtman explains, “The intent of the Sandra Shichtman Dabrusin Endowment for Faculty Pedagogy and Research Support in Jewish Studies is to keep Jewish Studies alive at EMU by encouraging innovation and creativity in teaching and scholarship. Because this is an endowment, it will produce, in perpetuity, opportunities for faculty to discover new ways to engage our very deserving students. My sister has been a staunch advocate of Jewish education. I can think of no better way to celebrate her commitment to Jewish life and culture.”
For more information on LIFE & LEGACY, please contact Margaret Schreiber at margaret@jewishannarbor.org or 734-773-3638. She is happy to share the Community Case Statement Booklet electronically or via mail, so that WJN readers can learn more about all the organizations participating in the program. In addition to the EMU CJS, those in the program include the Ann Arbor Orthodox Minyan, Beth Israel Congregation, Chabad House of Ann Arbor, Hebrew Day School of Ann Arbor, Jewish Community Center of Greater Ann Arbor, Jewish Cultural Society, Jewish Family Services of Washtenaw County, Jewish Federation of Greater Ann Arbor, Temple Beth Emeth, and the University of Michigan Hillel.