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12 April 28 • 2016 metro » continued from page 10 rienced Operation Exodus to share their stories with the millennial generation, who are too young to remember it. He said he wants them to know that "when the Jewish people unite to take on problems, we can create miracles." DETROIT EFFORTS The entire Detroit Jewish community pulled together to help resettle the Soviet immigrants, said Perry Ohren, who worked for JFS in the 1990s and has been its executive director since 2011. At the time, immigration services were handled by Resettlement Service, an inde- pendent agency of the Jewish Federation that shared resources with JFS. The two agencies merged in 1995. "We had the mentality of 'all hands on deck' and 'it takes a village,'" Ohren said. "JVS provided employment assistance. Hebrew Free Loan lent them money. The Jewish Community Center provided English language classes for the adults. Sinai Hospital offered health care. Local families befriended them through the Family to Family program. "Everything was very different from what they were used to in the Soviet Union," he said. Today, about a quarter of the JFS work- force are people who came here from the Soviet Union, he said. The resettlement of so many Soviet immigrants within such a short period of time is "a really great illustration of what JFS stands ready to do. We took a lot of people and made them part of the American dream," Ohren said. Jeannie Weiner of West Bloomfield, a past president of the Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) who was very involved in the move- ment to free Soviet Jews, said there would have been no Operation Exodus without the international advocacy effort that preceded it. The late Jerry Rogers — along with Rae Sharfman, Ida Joyrich and the late Arnold Michlin and others — founded the Detroit Committee for Soviet Jewry, a grassroots effort picked up by the JCRC in 1981. "Jerry was tireless and able to bridge the gap between the grassroots and the organized community," Weiner recalled. Leaders would send activists to picket at Orchestra Hall whenever a Russian artist appeared, "not to prevent people going in, but to raise awareness," she said. They would send delegations to meet with members of Congress and urge them to act on the issue. "It ended up being extremely effective," she said. SHARANSKY IN DETROIT The JFS event will mark Sharansky's first public address in Detroit. He will be inter- viewed by Marvin Lender. Sharansky was born Anatoly Borisovich Shcharansky in 1948 in Donetsk, Ukraine. In 1973, after his request for an exit visa was denied, he became an activist on behalf of Soviet Jews seeking to relocate to Israel. In 1977, he was arrested on charges of treason and spying for the United States. He spent 13 years in prisons and labor camps, much of it in solitary con- finement. His wife, Avital, did receive an exit visa, and advocated tirelessly on his behalf from Israel. He was finally released on Feb. 11, 1986, as part of a prisoner exchange, and immediately left for Israel. He has served as Israel's ambassador to the U.N., as a member of the Knesset and as deputy prime minister. He has been a cabinet minister for the interior, for hous- ing and construction, and for industry and trade. He is known for his "town square test" for a free society, which he described in his book, The Case for Democracy, first published in 2004. "If a person cannot walk into the mid- dle of the town square and express his or her views without fear of arrest, imprison- ment or physical harm," he wrote, "then that person is living in a fear society, not a free society. We cannot rest until every person living in a fear society has finally won their freedom." * Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres officially welcomes Natan Sharansky to Israel in 1986, after 13 years in Soviet prison and labor camps. Israel Government Press Office Jewish Family Service's annual meeting will also showcase JFS awards. Larisa Korot, Volunteer of the Year, has given more than 3,000 hours of service to JFS over the course of 10 years. She works two days a week in the transportation department, taking on additional days as needed to cover for others. She is bilingual, which enables her to help a wide range of clients. Sarah Tupica-Berard, Mentor of the Year, has been working with a girl named Emma for about seven years, far beyond her initial one-year commitment. During that time, she changed jobs, got married and had a baby, but she maintained her mentor rela- tionship. The Employee of the Year award will be announced at the meeting. The meeting will begin with an hors d'oeuvres and dessert reception at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, May 17, at Congregation Shaarey Zedek in Southfield. There is no charge to attend, but a donation of $18 is suggested, and reservations are a must. Sponsors who donate $1,000 or more will also be invited to an intimate dinner with Sharansky before the event. Reservations can be made at www.jfsannualmeeting. org. * JFS Annual Meeting Jeannie Weiner Natan Sharansky