Cultural Forum from page
Cultural Forum from page 36 Staying alive from page 37 dent of ArtServe Michigan; ma, president of the Chaldean Ladies of Charity; and Jeannie Weiner, past president of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Metropolitan Detroit (JCRC); ucator; and Nancy Welber Barr, vice president of the JCRC. The two newspapers will continue to provide guidance, access and other means of support to assist the workgroups. Economic development co-chair Howard Rosenberg of Bloomfield Hills sees his workgroup not only helping Chaldean and Jewish businesses get off the ground and grow, but also solving sticky problems. He also hopes to solicit financing from the U.S. government for Michigan companies willing to be involved in rebuilding war-ravaged Iraq. Rosenberg said Building Community is important because it shows how organizations like the Detroit Jewish News and the Chaldean News aren’t limited to reporting the news. They also can interact with community leaders to make things better for Michigan. “All Michiganders need to work together to reduce fear, hate and distrust between people of different faiths and ethnicities,” Rosenberg said. “Business is one way to do that.” Creative director, Deborah Schultz Senior copy editor, David Sachs Our sixth two-page monthly spread, developed by the Farmington Hills strategic communications firm Tanner Friedman, appears on pages 40-41. E’rootha dance troupe members include Joe Arabbo, left, Samantha Arabbo, Ranna Abro, Sali Kesto, Noor Toma and Steven Yousif. school and college students are paired with professionals in their areas of interest. The group especially needs physicians because of the high number of Chaldeans studying medicine. E’rootha’s successful Youth Refugee Mentoring Program focuses on study skills and socialization. “We want to cultivate future leaders in every field,” said Kalasho. “We want E’rootha to be proactive. We want to be doers.” Another group of doers are the members of the Chaldean American Student Association (CASA). Launched by two Chaldean students at the University of Michigan-Dearborn in 1993, the group has been emulated at six other universities — the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan State in East Lansing, Wayne State, Oakland University in Rochester, Lawrence Technological University in Southfield and U-D Mercy. CASA’s mission is to not only advance the Chaldean community professionally, but also to give back through public service and charity work. Ziad Yousif (Shounia), president of U-M Dearborn’s chapter, has great expectations for the upcoming school year. “We’re going to try to collaborate with other CASAs and keep our name present on campus,” said the senior engineering student. That chapter donated and held fundraisers for the pro-life group, Life Matters, based at the Crisis Pregnancy Center in Southfield. On Sept. 26, the chapter is cosponsoring the Mother Theresa Day of Service with the Albanian American Student Organization for the second year. This event will bring hundreds of people working together on projects around Metro Detroit. Some chapters have their own popular functions, like Ann Arbor’s Live from Babylon and State’s Chaldean Day. Notably, they collaborate with each other to show who Chaldeans really are. William Mansour, president of the Michigan State chapter, said he wishes more Chaldean students would become involved in CASA. “My estimate is that there are about 50 Chaldeans at MSU, but we hardly have 10 active members,” he said. Mansour said the group helps Chaldean students fit into a new environment. “Being in CASA really helped me to adapt in an area out of my comfort zone. By living in an area with so many different cultures and not many of your own, it helps to be able to connect with other Chaldeans who understand you,” said Mansour. “It personally helped me during my first year at times when I was homesick.” Laura Abouzeid contributed to this report. Chaldean Contacts Contact E’rootha CEO: Wisam Naoum wisamnaoum@yahoo.com Contact CASA: Lawrence Technological University, Southfield President: Adrian Kizi (586) 994-0217 adrian.kizy@gmail.com VP: Randy Najjar, (248) 925-9074 Michigan State University, East Lansing President: William Mansour (586) 215-9433 mansourw@msu.edu VP: Nikki Atchoo, (248) 933-1554 atchooni@msu.edu Oakland University, Rochester President: Tamara Shayoka Shayoka.tamara@gmail.com University of Detroit Mercy President: Christine Numan (248) 884-0468 Numanchristine@yahoo.com University of Michigan, Ann Arbor President: Chanel Sarhan (248) 672-6653 Csarhan@umich.edu VP: Chris Asmar, (248) 722-5454 University of Michigan, Dearborn President: Ziad Yousif (Shounia) (248) 417-4902 zyousif@umd.umich.edu VP: Zina Karana, (248) 425-7703 zkarana@gmail.com Wayne State University, Detroit President: Paul Shamoon (248) 515-1582 VP: George Kassa, (248) 880-8801 Georgekassa@gmail.com. ConneCting from page 37 tan Detroit in Bloomfield Township and other smaller Jewish federations across Michigan. Additional opportunities are provided by the Israel Campus Coalition (ICC), comprised of 33 national Jewish organizations to provide resources and programs promoting pro-Israel education and activism. Taglit-Birthright Israel provides the gift of firsttime, peer group, educational trips to Israel for Jewish young adults ages 18 to 26, mostly college students. Decades ago, when Jews were not welcome in the Greek system, Jews formed sororities and fraternities nationwide. While many are no longer exclusively Jewish, fraternities Alpha Epsilon Pi (AEPi), Sigma Alpha Mu (SAM) and Zeta Beta Tau (ZBT) and sororities Alpha Epsilon Phi (AEPhi) and Sigma Delta Tau (SDT) still exist on some larger campuses. Currently U-M, MSU and WSU have active Jewish/Judaic Studies programs with newer programs recently developed at EMU and OU. Some campuses, such as MSU, also have a Jewish Students Union that’s a voting member of the university’s student government. Additionally, the University of Michigan also has two Orthodox outreach organizations: Chabad House, part of the worldwide Lubavitch movement, and the Jewish Resource Center of Machon L’Torah, based in Oak Park. At smaller colleges, such as Grand Valley State, students involved in Hillel work closely with local synagogues. The interaction is mutually beneficial. And many synagogues in Metro Detroit send their clergy to the larger Michigan campuses to meet for a meal with students whose families belong to their congregations. Often, synagogues also will send holiday packages to these students. 38 CHALDEAN NEWS SEPTEMBER 2010
Recognizing our most precious resource: The people in our community. A healthy, vibrant community banks on the participation of its members. Bringing a neighborhood together to bring about positive change is no small accomplishment. Bank of America is proud to support the Building Community Initiative sponsored by The Chaldean News and The Detroit Jewish News for its leadership in creating common goals and a long-term vision for the community. Visit us at bankofamerica.com ©2010 Bank of America Corporation SEPTEMBER 2010 CHALDEAN NEWS 39
