Dating During a Pandemic

JEWSIN THED

COURTESY OF LISA CHABEN

Local matchmaker has created more than 300 successful love stories.

ASHLEY ZLATOPOLSKY CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Lisa Chaben has a special gift for making connections.

The Metro Detroit-based matchmaker has helped more than 300 people fall in love and find their perfect matches since her first matchmaking venture in the late 1990s. “I’ve always had that intuitive,” she says.

As the pandemic changes the way people date, often making it more difficult to meet others, Chaben is taking her matchmaking business official with the launch of Match with Lisa, a personalized concierge service for people looking to connect with someone for a long-term relationship. It’s a service she now believes is more important than ever as many people are feeling the strains of isolation due to social distancing.

“People are lonely,” she says. “They struggle to meet others and don’t know what to do.”

Because of this, Chaben says, her phone has been ringing off the hook with people looking to find a romantic match. For the matchmaker, though, helping others fall in love is something she has become an expert at over the last 40 years.

Chaben, 57, who attends Temple Israel, first noticed a talent for matchmaking when she was 16. She would go out with her girlfriends and point out who they should date. This led to successful relationship matches, some of which resulted in marriage.

She continued matching people up through college and into adulthood even as she worked in real estate full time. Now she’s ready to take her business national by rolling out services to California, Arizona and Florida.

“I love making people happy,” she says. “It’s the best feeling. You’re creating a story.”

Chaben now attends the children’s bar and bat mitzvahs of people she matched up early on in her career. Others she matched up now have grandchildren.

Chaben makes matches based on personality traits, hobbies, goals and mutual values. Interested clients submit an application through her website, where they’re asked to share what they’re looking for and more about them.

Chaben will then look at other applications to determine who could match up or tap into her personal network to see what potential matches exist.

She’ll then set up first dates via Zoom, which, although different from traditional dating, can often be less stressful for people, she describes. “Before, people would go meet in a restaurant,” Chaben says. “And you’d always feel so awkward.”

Through Zoom dates, people can meet from the comfort of their own homes and have more say in the direction of how the date goes, without having to worry about making it through a date that just might not be going so well. It’s that awkwardness, Chaben says, that often makes it obvious to onlookers when people are on their first date.

Zoom isn’t the only option, though. With winter coming up, Chaben has already planned out a variety of date ideas for those who do want to meet in person. Snowshoeing, igloos and sleigh rides are just a few items on the agenda for people who use her matchmaking service, which sees everyone from young adults, to divorcees and widowers, to people who have never been married.

For those who have experienced loss, though, Chaben believes there is always an opportunity to find a different love, even if it’s in a new form. “You’re never going to find another love like that,” she’ll tell people. “But you are going to find a soulmate or someone that you can connect with. Someone you could go to the movies with or someone you could spend time with. You’re going to find a different avenue of love.”

Matches are possible for everyone, she says. “I tell people this all the time,” Chaben continues. “There’s a pot for every lid.”

Visit matchwithlisa.com to learn more. Insurance Help Do you need health insurance? Enrollment for the Affordable Care Act begins Nov. 1, and you can talk to a certified healthcare navigator at Jewish Family Service through Zoom or over the phone to help you.

If you’re signing up for health insurance for the first time, learn about coverage options, subsidies and tax breaks. If you’re already enrolled, update your information and review your plan to ensure it’s still a good fit.

The help is free and available to everyone. For more information or to schedule an appointment, contact Olga Semenova at (248) 592-2662 or osemenova@jfsdetroit.org.

Thank God for Israel — Online Join the Jewish and Christian communities as they unite to honor Israel on an online webinar presented by the Friends of Israel Gospel Ministry, Michigan Jewish Action Council and Adat Shalom Synagogue 7 p.m. Nov. 1.

Participants will hear from expert panelists on the newfound peace agreement between Israel and the UAE, ways you can get active in supporting Israel in your local community, and the rise of antisemitism and ways to combat it from special guest speakers.

Registration is required at gofoi.org/thankgodforisrael.