Individuals
John and Joan Herlitz
Joan Herlitz’s spirit and sunny disposition
can best be described by one of her favorite
mottos, “Live, Love, Laugh.” She had a
genuine passion for life and believed in living
each and every day to its fullest. She greeted
everyone with a smile and a hug. To know
her was to love her. She enjoyed playing tennis,
shopping, and, most of all, brightening
other people’s days. Joan dedicated her life
to being a wonderful mother, grandmother,
friend, and wife. She had a great career as
a “domestic executive,” as she liked to call
herself, but was very happy to become semiretired
once both of her sons, Kirk and Todd
had gone off to college.
Her husband, John, had an inherent love
for cars from a very young age. As early as
age thirteen, he was sending car designs to
Chrysler, his favorite car company. He was
ecstatic when people at the design office actually
sent feedback on his designs and gave
him advice on the type of education that he
would need to become a car designer. He
kept drawing and dreamt of one day working
at Chrysler.
John followed this dream and
started his career at Chrysler
beginning in 1964 after
receiving a Bachelor of Fine
Arts degree from Pratt Institute
in Brooklyn, New
York. In 1969, he married
Joan Elizabeth Neinas.
His first goal at Chrysler was realized
when one of his designs,
the 1970 Plymouth Hemi ‘Cuda, went to production.
This was followed up shortly
after by his design of the
1971 Plymouth Roadrunner.
These are now two
of the most highly regarded and sought after
muscle car designs of the era.
Extremely talented, personable, and driven,
John worked his way up through the ranks
of the company, eventually retiring as Senior
Vice President of Design for Chrysler Corporation
in January 2001.
It was at about this
time that Joan and
John were preparing
to start the next
chapter of their lives
together that Joan
was diagnosed with
lupus, a chronic
autoimmune disorder
that causes the
immune system to
mistakenly attack the body’s own tissue and
organs. Lupus can be mild or may cause
serious complications. The disease did not
affect Joan significantly on a daily basis, but
it provided a few life-threatening episodes,
the most recent of which occurred in the
fall of 2004. Her treatments involved chemotherapy,
hospitalization, and many types
of medication. She fought this disease with
everything that she had and it never beat her.
Her primary source of care had been
with Dr. W. Joseph McCune, the
Michael H. and Marcia S. Klein Professor
of Rheumatic Diseases at the University of
Michigan’s Department of Internal Medicine.Dr. McCune and his colleagues continue to
research and study diseases such as lupus.
Inspired by their work, John and Joan had set
up a charitable fund in 2004 called the Herlitz
Lupus Research Fund, which provided funding
for Dr. McCune and his colleagues’ research.
Joan was so excited about the potential of the
fund that she even started a personal letter
writing campaign all on her own to encourage
friends and family to get involved. Through the
generosity of John and Joan, as well as their
friends and family, this fund has provided several
thousands of dollars for lupus research,
as well as other internal diseases.
In early 2008, after thirty-eight years of marriage,
John and Joan Herlitz both passed
away suddenly two months apart. Because
of their passion to find a cure for lupus,
Joan and John, had included the University
of Michigan’s lupus program in their estate.
Once realized, their sons, Kirk and Todd
established the John and Joan Herlitz Endowment
for Lupus Research to continue to
support lupus research at the University of
Michigan in order to continue the search for
answers their mother had so eagerly wanted
to help find.
Kirk explains, “We can only hope that the subsequent
gift to U-M as a result of our parents’ premature passing will somehow provide
comfort and, ultimately, a cure for Lupus sufferers.
We would love to see something great
happen as a result of this gift to somehow justify
these circumstances. In addition to helping
Lupus sufferers, we hope that this will also
help to preserve our parents’ legacy and help
their spirit of strength, generosity and their
love of life to live on for many years to come.”
“We are very grateful to Joan and John Herlitz
for creating the Joan and John Herlitz Lupus
Research Fund and their generous support of
lupus research at U-M,” explains Dr. Joseph
McCune. “As we use their gift to intensify our
work to discover the causes and cures of lupus,
we also remember the privilege of getting
to know Joan and John. Joan graciously
faced a devastating illness that threatened
to take away her mobility, enduring numerous
therapies and maintaining her good humor,
warmth, and the excellence of her tennis
game throughout. John, a gentle and
soft spoken man was a tremendous source
of support for his wife. Despite his quiet demeanor,
it was readily apparent that this was
a decisive individual with powerful intellect
and capacity for understanding complex issues.
We see these attributes reflected in their
children, Kirk and Todd Herlitz, who continue
their parent’s support of the University of
Michigan and the lupus program through the
John and Joan Herlitz Endowment for Lupus
Research. We share with Todd and Kirk the
loss of this wonderful couple and remember
them with great fondness.”
“Our Mother’s goal with her fundraising efforts was to find a cure for Lupus in her lifetime. Unfortunately, that was not possible. I am hoping that this gift to the University will help to find a cure in the lifetime of their grandchildren,” adds Todd Herlitz.
Michael H. and Marcia S. Klein Professorship in Rheumatic Diseases
Seven years ago, a diagnosis of both rheumatoid arthritis and lupus in the family of Michael and Marcy Klein led them to the University of Michigan and the work of W. Joseph McCune, M.D.
As the Kleins learned about Dr. McCune’s research — and about the 3.6 million Americans affected by the pain, inflammation and debilitation of rheumatoid arthritis and lupus — they decided to establish a research fund in their names to advance the work being done at Michigan. The Klein Research Fund is also supporting a long-term study to determine the causes and treatment of premature heart disease in women with lupus. As they saw an increased need for lupus and other rheumatic disease research, Mr. and Mrs. Klein decided to make a new, significant gift from their family foundation and transform the research fund into a professorship bears their name.
“Their significant philanthropic commitment by the Kleins is a testament to their resolve to make a strong impact on the diagnosis, treatment and eventual cures for rheumatic diseases, especially lupus. Their gifts will make a difference for a great many patients not only in Michigan, but around the world. Most of these patients will never know the names of Michael and Marcia Klein, but their suffering will be mitigated by the medical breakthroughs made possible by their generosity.”
Arlene Licht and her Family
Arlene Licht and her family have a great
fondness for the University of Michigan. It’s
not just because all of her children graduated
from here and three of her grandchildren are
currently students. It’s due in part to the care
and compassion that her family has received
from two U-M Department of Internal Medicine
clinicians: cardiologist Melvyn Rubenfire, MD, and nephrologist Richard Swartz, MD — vital
care that allowed them to enjoy life with their
husband, father, and grandfather a little longer.
Ronald Licht initially received care for his heart condition from Dr. Rubenfire at Sinai Hospital in Detroit and followed him when he moved to U-M. It was at Michigan, that he was eventually put under the care of Dr. Swartz as well. “We felt great security in the care Ronald received at U-M from each of these doctors and all of the nurses. The nephrology clinic was amazing. Anytime you called, they were available. Even when they were closed, someone would meet us there if we needed them. They made us feel like we were their only patients. Ronald’s illness was heart wrenching for our family but U-M really felt like a safety zone for us,” explains Arlene.
The cardiac care that Ronald received from Dr. Rubenfire added more than five years to his life. He was on dialysis for the last year and a half. As his condition worsened, Arlene was able to give him dialysis at home due to the training and confidence that Dr. Swartz gave her. This allowed Ronald to continue working and to spend more time with his family. It also helped their day-to-day lives feel more normal and less disrupted. In late June 2008, Ronald passed away. The Licht family is extremely grateful that he was able to stay well enough to enjoy his grandchildren as a result of his care from Drs. Rubenfire and Swartz.
To express their gratitude, Arlene and her family decided to donate to two professorships that are currently being established in the Department of Internal Medicine to honor each doctor’s exceptional career and patient care at U-M:
The Melvyn Rubenfire, MD, Professorship in Preventive Cardiology is being developed to provide ongoing financial support that will allow a U-M faculty member to focus on the development of preventive cardiology programs, clinical care, research, and education.
The Richard D. Swartz, MD, Collegiate Professorship in Nephrology is being developed to provide funding for a series of nephrology faculty members to focus on developing new methods for treating patients and shaping fellows into the outstanding clinicians of tomorrow.
Maureen McSweeney
When brainstorming ideas for her senior project at Franklin Road
Christian School in Novi, MI, Maureen McSweeney’s grandmother,
Genevieve McSweeney, suggested that she raise money to support
Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF) research. Maureen’s grandfather,
Thomas McSweeney, had been diagnosed with IPF, a form of
pulmonary fibrosis that involves the progressive scarring of lung
tissue, six years earlier.
Maureen did some research and found out about the work being
done by the Martin Edward Galvin Research Fund for IPF in the
Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care in the Department of Internal
Medicine at U-M and decided to conduct a letter writing campaign to
raise funds for their work.
With the help of her grandmother, Maureen mailed out 100 letters to their friends and family to raise awareness and funds for IPF research. This effort resulted in more than $3,500 raised for the Martin Edward Galvin Research Fund for IPF. Maureen even sent each donor a handwritten thank-you note after her campaign was complete. When asked about her first foray into fundraising, she explains, “I was shocked by how generous everyone was. I did this because I really love my grandpa. It showed me what could be accomplished when you bring the power of love and the power of giving together.”
