Sunday, October 19, 2014 at 11:00 AM
Holocaust Memorial Center
Barbara Moretsky, President of StandWithUs-Michigan, will introduce our speakers, Celia Romm Livermore and Sylvie Salei and the project that began following the passage of a Law by the Knesset that will annually designate November 30 for commemoration of the flight of Jews from Arab lands, Iran and North Africa.
Celia Romm Livermore is a descendant of Holocaust survivors and spent much her early life with her family in Beer-Sheva. The experience of living in a community dominated by Jewish immigrants from Arab lands led to her interest in sharing their story. After serving in the IDF, she received a Masters Degree and eventually her PhD from the University of Toronto. Since 2001, Celia has been a tenured Professor of Information Systems Management at Wayne State University.
Sylvie Salei is a Sephardic Jew who was born in Tunisia. She settled with her family in Paris after their expulsion from Tunis, which is central to her story. Later, Sylvie moved to Israel, where she married an Israeli citizen of Ashkenazi background. When Sylvie moved to Michigan, she became a U.S. citizen. She is the owner of Sylvie’s Day Spa in Farmington Hills. Sylvie’s daughter lives in New York and her son lives in Las Vegas. She has expertise in French, Arabic and Hebrew.
Take a journey into the past with Judy Sima as she tells stories of her mother, Elsa Mosbach, including the compelling account of her encounter with the Gestapo on Kristallnacht, her escape from Germany during World War II and adjustment to her new life in America.
Sunday, February 9, 2014
A longtime member of JGSMI, Gayle tirelessly dedicated nearly 20 years as our Librarian, and was a regular speaker at the IAJGS International Conferences on Jewish Genealogy. There seemed to be little she didn’t know about, and she was always ready to offer her knowledge and research assistance. She had a bachelor’s degree in sociology from Wayne State University, and later joined a PhD program at the University of Chicago. She spent an academic year in India, absorbing the myriad cultures and languages of that nation. In 2010, she was diagnosed with a brain tumor. She fought bravely and never lost her upbeat outlook and sharp wit. She died in December 2012, at age 69.
A professional genealogist and the founder of JGSMI, Betty served as our first President and Editor of the newsletter, and continues to serve as a Board member. A formal social worker and counselor, she received BA and MSW degrees from Wayne State University and the University of Wisconsin, respectively. She has lectured, written and taught Jewish genealogy for over 20 years. She has visited Israel (at least 27 times), Poland, Russia, Hungary, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Great Britain, Morocco, Egypt, Tunisia, Turkey, France, and the Czech Republic in search of Jewish records. An early childhood interest in China led her to an in-depth study of Jewish communities in China. After three journeys to China, she became a member of the Sino-Judiac Institute and attended their first conference at Harvard. She has been a frequent speaker at IAJGS conferences, and with her late husband Morris (z”l) have long sponsored the Morris (z”l) and Betty Starkman Annual Genealogy Lecture and Election of Officers, our annual meeting.