Meet L’Dor V’Dor Circle Donor Ellen Abramson

 

I am delighted to have made Life & Legacy® commitments for the benefit of Beth Israel, JCC, Hebrew Day School, Chabad House, and Jewish Family Services.  I chose to do this in what was the easiest way for me – including each organization as a percentage beneficiary of my IRA.

Each of these organizations has played a pivotal role in my life.

I will always be grateful for the way the Beth Israel community rallied around me when my husband David passed away suddenly in 2017.  Rabbi Dobrusin and Rebecca Kanner (in her role as liaison to the cemetery) arrived at my home shortly after David’s passing to be with me and help me in those early hours.   So many friends and community members from Beth Israel came to the funeral and shiva, surrounded me with love, and helped in so many ways in those initial days and months.  I cannot even remember all the ways they helped.  But I remember the love I was shown.  That is what I want my Life & Legacy gift to sustain – to make that loving community available to others, long into the future.

David and I wanted our daughters to have a strong Jewish identity and education.  JCC, Hebrew Day School and Chabad House each played important roles in achieving that goal.

Sending our girls to the JCC Preschool was our first step into immersing our family in the Ann Arbor Jewish Community.  It was a loving and wonderful experience being part of the Preschool and family programs.

As we traveled through the years at the JCC Preschool, we learned about Hebrew Day School.  We came to the conclusion that enrolling our children there would help provide them with the strong Jewish identities and education we desired for them.  HDS did not disappoint.   A talented singer and songwriter, music is our younger daughter’s passion.  Last year, she did a wonderful job as the High Holiday cantorial soloist for the reform temple in Flint, Michigan.  Her strong background in Hebrew and Jewish liturgy, which she gained at HDS, gave her the foundation to be able to lead a congregation in prayer.

Through her engagement in Chabad, our older daughter became Lubavitch.  She and her husband have worked as shluchim at a University-based Chabad House and a community-based Chabad center.  They now run two businesses and have created a wonderful family and joyful life, grounded in Jewish observance.  Our involvement with Chabad has enriched the lives of everyone in our family.

Jewish Family Services has impacted my life at every stage.  I grew up in Cleveland, Ohio.  My mother and I each benefitted from the JFS employment services program, as well as their counseling services.  When my mother was dying, JFS in Cleveland helped me find a practical nurse to help care for her.   At some point, each of us will need the kind of support that is available from Jewish Family Services.  Our community is fortunate to have Jewish Family Services of Washtenaw County, and I am honored to serve as its President and Board Chair.

The Jewish organizations in Ann Arbor have provided me and my family with a rich Jewish life.  I will forever be grateful.

 

Want to learn more about joining the L’Dor V’Dor Circle with a legacy gift to a Jewish organization in greater Ann Arbor? Contact legacy@jewishannarbor.org or call 734-773-3538.