Michigan's Car Dealership Mogul Jay Feldman: Driven to Give Back

Over the past decade, Jay Feldman has established himself as one of Michigan’s most impactful philanthropists. Starting his career in the automotive industry at just 15, selling cars at his father’s Chevrolet dealership in Milford, Feldman demonstrated an entrepreneurial spirit early on. By age 25, he owned his first dealership. Through strategic acquisitions and partnerships, he expanded his business from a single dealership to a thriving network.

Today, the automotive mogul and Northwood University graduate combines his business acumen with a deep sense of compassion. Partnering with actor and business associate Mark Wahlberg, Feldman has raised millions for causes close to his heart, supporting children’s hospitals, abused children, first responders, and wounded veterans.

Feldman’s portfolio includes numerous car dealerships and RV centers across Michigan and Ohio, many co-owned with Wahlberg. While running his automotive empire occupies much of his time, philanthropy has become a second full-time passion.

“Jay’s generosity and philanthropy are impressive,” said Rabbi Michael Moskowitz of Temple Shir Shalom in West Bloomfield, where Feldman is a member. “We’ve had many conversations about the importance of giving back to the community. His work with the Children’s Miracle Network is truly inspiring, and we look forward to seeing the continued impact of his efforts.”

Dr. Jeffrey Ditkoff, Senior Vice President and Chief Quality Officer of Corewell Health, echoed this sentiment: “We are extremely grateful for Jay Feldman’s support. His generosity and commitment have greatly benefited our patients and health system.”

Remembering Philanthropist Mandell "Bill" Berman

I first heard the name Bill Berman at Camp Tamarack when I spent a week of winter break staying in a cabin at Berman Village during Winter Camp one year in the mid-1980s. I later had a chance to meet the iconic Jewish philanthropist and nationally known home builder at a Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Detroit event when my father served as the CFO.

That was just a handshake however. It wasn't until my first year out of rabbinical school that I actually had the honor of getting to know Mandell "Bill" Berman. I began working at University of Michigan Hillel as the assistant director in the summer of 2004. The Hillel Foundation is named for Bill and his wife in recognition of the decades of support they provided.

My first encounter with Bill Berman was at a Michigan Hillel board meeting that he attended. He usually had his driver bring him to Ann Arbor, but this time he decided to drive himself. He was 86 at the time and arrived to the meeting late. I saw him in the Men's bathroom and he told me got a speeding ticket on the way to Ann Arbor. Mr. Berman told me that calmly explained to the driver that he wasn't even driving his age and shouldn't receive the ticket. He then laughed at his own story with his memorable chuckle.

A few weeks later, Mr. Berman called to say he wanted to take me out to lunch (he had mentioned his intention after the first board meeting, but I was still pleasantly surprised to get the invitation). I offered to meet him in Detroit for lunch, but he said he enjoyed coming to Ann Arbor to see the campus. We had a wonderful lunch meeting in which he dispensed so much sage advice. I listened intently to each word. I had the distinct honor to have more private lunches with him over the next couple of years in which I got to know this legend. At that year's Jewish Federations of North America General Assembly in Cleveland, Mr. Berman graciously took the time to speak to our student delegation sharing his thoughts on the Jewish community and inspiring these future leaders. Over the next days at the GA, I was amazed that every time someone saw I was from Michigan, they shared their favorite Bill Berman story with me (everyone had at least one).

2 Bills: President Bill Clinton with Bill Berman at a Hillary Clinton Campaign event in 2016

In Metro Detroit, Bill Berman's name was everywhere. Each year a Jewish professional in the community was honored with the Berman Award. When I would take Jewish teens to a youth group Shabbaton at Camp Tamarack, I'd be sure to let them know it was subsidized by Bill and Madge Berman. The beautiful Berman theater at the JCC has become a typical place to enjoy a concert, watch a film or be entertained with a musical or play. On a national level, the Berman name is likewise everywhere. He cared passionately about the Jewish future and understood the importance of surveys and statistics about the American Jewish community. Bill Berman was a builder when it came to homes, but he was also a visionary builder when it came to the Jewish community.

His volunteer leadership roles are too many to try to enumerate. Some of the more prominent positions included serving as president of the Council of Jewish Federations of North America, a co-founder of the Jewish Education Service of North America, a board member of the Jewish Agency and of the American Joint Distribution Committee. He also funded fellowships at Brandeis University and the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York. He established the Fund for Research on Children with Disabilities at the Myers-JDC-Brooksdale Institute in Israel and chaired the 1990 and 2002 landmark Jewish Population Studies in North America. To further the study of the Jewish Community of North America he was the founder of the Berman Jewish DataBank, now at the Jewish Federations of North America, and of the Berman Jewish Policy Archive, now at Stanford University.

Israel in Nepal, Dan Gilbert's Detroit & Bar Mitzvahs for Disabled Teens: No Good Deed Goes Unpunished

As a parent, I find myself often telling my children that their benevolence will reap rewards. When they act in caring and helpful ways, especially for those in need, they will feel good about what they have done and others will appreciate it too. Sadly, we know this is not always the case. Beneficial actions can be met with outright hostility and trying to explain that sad fact to our children is difficult.

Three recent events are textbook examples of the well-known aphorism "No good deed goes unpunished." Each of these good deeds was muddled by political issues leading to criticism when praise was the more appropriate response. Consider these three cases and how the disapproval was misplaced.

Immediately following the April earthquake in Nepal, Israel acted quickly in sending a contingent of doctors and search-and-rescue specialists to the region. Israel is often one of the first nations to dispatch aid to disaster affected areas around the globe. While Israel’s response team in particular and Israel’s government in general weren’t looking for praise in response to their volunteerism, they weren’t expecting the harsh, undeserved criticism levied on them throughout social media.

One might think that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) refused to send aid to Nepal after reading the ruthless attacks from around the world. Rather than commending this small nation for sending over 260 doctors, nurses and other highly skilled rescue personnel to Kathmandu, dissenters took to Facebook and Twitter to claim this was just a charade to try to deflect attention from Israel’s occupation of the West Bank.

Ten Thoughts for the Week

It's been over a week since my last blog post, but it's not because there hasn't been anything to write about. I've just been busy lately and haven't had time to type out the various thoughts running through my mind. So, here are ten news items I've been thinking about. As always, feel free to weigh in on these topics in the comments section below.

1) Rolling Stones and Jay Leno to Visit Israel

As the BDS (Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions) movement continues to encourage musicians to boycott Israel by not playing concerts there, a fake quote attributed to Mick Jagger continues to circulate the Web. The quote, which is made to look like a tweet says that the Rolling Stones have "been slammed and smacked and twittered a lot by the anti-Israel side. All I can say is anything worth doing is worth overdoing. So we decided to add a concert on Tuesday." Well, the quote is from a Purim hoax published by The Jewish Press. The truth is that the Rolling Stones are actually going to perform in Tel Aviv in June for a reported $4.5 million, but there will not be a second concert just to spite the BDS supporters. Despite the fact that it was a Purim joke, the not-Mick Jagger pro-Israel quote will likely continue to make its way around the Internet as fact... at least until next Purim when something else replaces it. It really is a strong show of support that the Rolling Stones will perform in Israel and ignore the criticism from anti-Israel protesters.

In addition to the Rolling Stones, Jay Leno has announced that he is pro-Israel and will be visiting there this summer for the first time. The former late-night talk show host agreed to emcee the inaugural awarding of the “Genesis Prize” to former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg. In response to pressure on international artists and public figures to boycott Israel and to avoid performing there, Leno explained, “It’s a great honor. It’s a great country. It’s a great people.”

2) Detroit's the Ideal Place to Raise Jewish Children

I'm a proud Detroiter and I've long maintained that the Metro Detroit Jewish community is one of the best Jewish communities in the world. It might be a well kept secret, but Detroit's a nice combination of strong Jewish values and strong Midwest values. Well, I guess it's not such a well kept secret anymore since Matthew Casey Williams named Detroit as the most affordable place to raise Jewish children. Buffalo came in 3rd with Cleveland finishing at #2. Williams wrote of the #1 pick Detroit: "Not only was it the most affordable on the list, it was by nearly 100% less than the second place. Is the Motor City ripe for a Jewish revival or is it on its way out?" I can say with certainty that Detroit is ripe for a Jewish revival.

3) Jerry Schostak's Legacy of Philanthropy and Business Acumen

One of the main reasons that Detroit is such a great and affordable place to raise and educate Jewish children is because of Detroit's rich history of Jewish philanthropy. The list of Jewish philanthropists in Detroit who have invested millions of dollars in Jewish education reads like a Who's Who of 20th century business leaders. Max Fisher, David Hermelin, Bill Davidson and Sam Frankel, all of blessed memory, and Bill Berman, Gene Applebaum, Gary Shiffman, Bill Farber, Alan Kaufman and Al Taubman just to name a few have all made Jewish education -- both formal and informal -- affordable for Metro Detroit families. One of the pillars of Detroit's Jewish community who is part of that auspicious list was laid to rest yesterday. Jerry Schostak, the grandson of an Orthodox rabbi, had a strong ethic for philanthropic giving and many local Jewish schools and agencies benefited from his generosity.

Over the years I got to know Mr. Schostak (as I continued to call him despite him telling me to call him "Jerry") as both a long-time client of my computer company, Access Computer Technology, and as an active member of Adat Shalom Synagogue (where I taught his daughter and grandson... in the same class!). I looked up to him as a wise businessman, a patriarch who always put family first, a man who cared passionately about organization and details, and as someone who never compromised his values. His legacy will live on in perpetuity because of the way he lived his life, the way he built his family, the way he molded future business leaders, the way he competed (he was an accomplished sailor), and the way he supported the causes closest to his heart -- including Jewish education. May his memory be for blessings.

My Rabbi Myer Kripke Story

The first time I heard the name Rabbi Myer Kripke was the Wednesday before Thanksgiving in 1998. I had only begun my studies in the rabbinical school at the Jewish Theological Seminary three months prior and responded to an email message asking if any of the new students would be interested in guiding tours of the Seminary for visiting groups. My flight from New York City back to Detroit didn't leave until later that evening and I had nothing else to do before the Thanksgiving recess so I thought I'd check it out.

When I arrived to the Women's League Seminary Synagogue I met Rebecca Jacobs who at the time was in charge of arranging these tours for groups and donors visiting JTS. She gave the small group of us students a tour of the Seminary campus. Since I had done my fair share of research about the history of the Jewish Theological Seminary before applying to rabbinical school and since I had been living and studying there for the past few months, I figured there wasn't much I didn't know about it. Wow, was I wrong! Rebecca told some very interesting stories about the historical buildings that made up the Seminary campus -- the Schiff, Brush and Unterberg buildings as well as the Library building which was knows as the Boesky Library until Ivan Boesky was indicted for insider trading and the Seminary removed his name.

Rabbi Myer Kripke, of blessed memory

What really grabbed my attention was the way Rebecca told the story of the fire that ruined the Seminary's large brick tower that stood prominently on Broadway and had housed the Seminary's vast library collection. Rebecca spent a good twenty minutes talking about how the fire started, the NY Fire Department's response and the way the local Upper West community helped to save thousands of the books damaged in the fire. She explained that the fire had damaged many of the Judaica books that the Seminary had saved from Eastern Europe following the Holocaust. She concluded her story of the JTS Library fire by saying that the inside of the Seminary tower has sat vacant for the past thirty years with the charred remains of that fire inside.

Warren Buffett's Rabbi Myer Kripke

Giving tours of the Jewish Theological Seminary campus in New York City to visiting groups was certainly one of the highlights of my six years of rabbinical school. The Wednesday before Thanksgiving during my first year at JTS I attended a training session led by the director of donor relations Rebecca Jacobs. Rebecca shared the story of how the Seminary's library tower caught fire on April 18, 1966 damaging thousands of books and how thirty years later a JTS-ordained pulpit rabbi named Myer Kripke from Omaha donated the funds to renovate that same tower.

Rabbi Myer Kripke

I gave over 200 tours of the Seminary, but I never grew tired of telling the story of how a humble rabbi from the south amassed a fortune big enough to make a $7 million cash donation to name the new Seminary tower. The story is that this rabbi's wife, Dorothy Kripke, wrote a series of children's books entitled "Let's Talk About..." and another Omaha woman loved to read these books to her children. When she found out that the author lived close by she decided she had to meet her. Well, as fate would have it, this woman and her husband became dear friends of Rabbi Myer and Dorothy Kripke. This woman's husband even offered to invest the small inheritance left to Mrs. Kripke. That investment paid off big because it was invested by Warren Buffett, the second wealthiest American according to Forbes magazine.

I'll never forget the time I asked a group of school children if they knew how Rabbi Kripke became a millionaire. One of the little girls offered, "Maybe he gave really good sermons?"

Here's a JTA article about Warren Buffett who recently invested $4 billion in an Israeli company:

Long before Israeli deal, Buffett made his mark on Jewish community
By Chanan Tigay

Warren Buffett is not a Jew, and in fact describes himself as an agnostic. Still, the billionaire investment guru, who earlier this month made big news when his Berkshire Hathaway corporation bought an 80 percent share in Israeli metalworks conglomerate Iscar for $4 billion, for years has been making his mark on the U.S. Jewish community back home — though sometimes in a roundabout way.
“Proportionally, if you look at the number of Jews in this country and in the world, I’m associated with a hugely disproportionate number,” Buffett, the second richest man in the world, told JTA in a telephone interview Monday.
Among the first companies Buffett acquired after launching Berkshire Hathaway, the Omaha-based investment and insurance giant, was The Sun Newspapers of Omaha, then owned by Stan Lipsey, one-time chairman of The Jewish Press, Omaha’s Jewish newspaper.
“At the time, the Omaha Club did not take Jewish members, and the Highland Country Club, a golf club, didn’t have any gentile members,” Lipsey recalls. “Warren volunteered to join the Highland” — rather than the gentile club — “to set an example of non-discrimination.”
Buffett happily recalls the fallout from his application.
“It created this big rhubarb,” he says. “All of the rabbis appeared on my behalf, the ADL guy appeared on my behalf. Finally they voted to let me in.”
But that wasn’t the end of the story, Buffett tells JTA. The Highland had a rule requiring members to donate a certain amount of money to their synagogues. Buffett, of course, wasn’t a synagogue member, so the club changed its policy: Members now would be expected to give to their synagogues, temples or churches.
But that still didn’t quite work, Buffett recalls with a laugh, because of his agnosticism.
In the end, the rule was amended to ask simply that members make some sort of charitable donation, and the path to Buffet’s membership was clear.
“He’s an incredible guy,” says Lipsey, today the publisher of the Buffalo News. In 1973, The Sun won a Pulitzer prize in Local Investigative Specialized Reporting for an expose on financial impropriety at Boys Town, Nebraska.
“Warren came up with the key source for us knowing what was going on out there,” Lipsey says.
Buffett himself researched Boys Town’s stocks to bolster the story, Lipsey adds.
In the 1960s, Omaha Rabbi Myer Kripke decided to invest in his friend Buffett’s new business venture. Their wives had become friendly, he says, and the foursome enjoyed playing the occasional game of bridge together.
“My wife had no card sense and I was certainly no competition to Warren, who is a very good bridge player and a lover of the game,” Kripke, rabbi emeritus of Omaha’s Conservative Beth El Synagogue, told JTA. “He’s very bright and very personable and very decent. He is a rich man who is as clean as can be.”
Kripke, father of the noted philosopher Saul Kripke, bought a few shares in Berkshire Hathaway and quickly sold them, doubling his money, he says.
Recognizing a good thing when he saw it, he bought a bunch more shares in his friend’s company, shares that by the 1990s had made Kripke — who says he never earned more than $30,000 a year as a rabbi — a millionaire.
Kripke met his late wife, the children’s book author Dorothy Kripke, at the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York, the flagship institution of the Conservative movement, where Kripke was ordained as a rabbi in 1937.
In 1996, flush from their prescient investment with Buffet’s company, the couple decided to make a major gift to JTS — $7 million in cash to restore the building’s damaged tower, and a deferred gift of some $8 million, which the seminary will receive after Kripke passes away.
“Rabbi Kripke had the heart to make a donation to JTS, he had the will to make a donation, he had the desire to make a donation — but if he had not had the means to make a donation, the recreation of our tower would never have happened,” says Rabbi Carol Davidson, the seminary’s vice chancellor for institutional advancement. “It was really only possible because of their prior investment many years ago with Warren Buffett.”
Kripke — who says he’s still got a picture of Buffett’s late wife, Susan, on his bulletin board — concurs. Asked if he credits Buffett with his financial success, he doesn’t hesitate.
“Entirely, yes,” he says. “I never had much of an income.”
The Israeli government stands to reap about $1 billion in taxes on Buffett’s purchase of Iscar. Shortly after announcing the deal, Buffett says he was surprised to learn that a Berkshire subsidiary, CTB International, was purchasing a controlling interest in another Israeli company, AgroLogic.
In Israel — which Buffett plans to visit in the fall — the hope is that the deals will have longer legs: Buffett himself has not ruled out future purchases there and, considering his status as a leading investor, observers say others also may take a look at Israeli companies now that Buffett has done so.
“You won’t find in the world a better-run operation than Iscar,” Buffett says. “I don’t think it’s an accident that it’s run by Israelis.”
The Sun newspaper group was not Buffett’s only early purchase of a Jewish-owned company. In 1983, sealing the deal with a handshake, Buffett bought 90 percent of the Nebraska Furniture Mart from Rose Blumkin, a Russian-born Jew who moved to the United States in 1917.
In 1989, he purchased a majority of the stock in Borsheim’s Fine Jewelry and Gifts, a phenomenally successful jewelry store, from the Friedman family.
“He has many friends in the Jewish community,” says Forrest Krutter, secretary of Berkshire Hathaway and a former president of the Jewish Federation of Omaha.
Buffett’s former son-in-law, Allen Greenberg, is a Jew, and now runs the Buffett Foundation, much of whose work has dealt with reproductive rights and family-planning issues. Buffett’s personal assistant is Ian Jacobs, who goes by his Hebrew name, Shami.
Buffett himself counts the late Nebraska businessman Nick Newman and philanthropist Jack Skirball as among his “very closest friends.”
“He is very much honored in the Jewish community,” Kripke says.