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Maggie Allesee Charity work goes far beyond writing a check
Some time in the past 18 years, you may have seen Maggie Allesee, dressed in a clown suit, marching down Woodward Avenue in Detroit's annual Thanksgiving Day parade. Or maybe you've spotted the petite philanthropist tooling around town in her silver Jaguar -- "second-hand," she's quick to point out -- en route to board meetings or fundraisers for literally dozens of arts, education, health care and charitable organizations. Perhaps you've noticed her name on doors, such as Hospice of Michigan's Maggie Allesee Center for Quality of Life (funded with a $3-million endowment) or the Maggie Allesee Department of Dance at Wayne State University, where her $2-million endowment helped develop it into a nationally recognized training ground. At 79, this Bloomfield Hills dynamo is, in the words of her assistant, Angela Chunovich, "a busy, busy woman" She's a civic leader, volunteer extraordinaire and benefactor whose unstinting energy and largesse have enriched the fabric of life in Metro Detroit for nearly four decades. Allesee has been involved in everything from the Alzheimer's and American Lung associations to the Junior League of Birmingham (where she has sung in the chorus "every Tuesday for 36 years"), Michigan Opera Theatre and Oakland University's nursing and gerontology departments. At a recent luncheon, Hospice of Michigan President Dottie Deremo called her "someone who helps change the world and make our community a better place." Indeed, Allesee (pronounced AL-ah-see), a grandmother of 12 with a sharp sense of humor, estimates that she juggles 90 monthly commitments, packing in three or more meetings and a luncheon or dinner most days. "You need a little more sleep than I get," she says. She attributes her vitality and commitment to improving quality of life for the elderly to her early years in Florida, where her grandfather built a house at age 95 and her grandmother ran a hotel. "They were such active people; their quality of life was so good," she recalls. "And then you see other elderly people just sitting around and you think, 'Well, c'mon…' Allesee is funding gerontology projects, including one at Oakland University that explores do-it-yourself devices, such as tiny fans in stuffed animals, to help boost seniors' comfort and quality of life. Susan R. Pollack
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Maggie Allesee