Buckhead - The Jewish Georgian

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Page 2 THE JEWISH GEORGIAN September-October 2007 THE Jewish Georgian The Jewish Georgian is published bimonthly by Eisenbot, Ltd. It is written for Atlantans and Georgians by Atlantans and Georgians. Publisher Marvin Botnick Co-Publisher Sam Appel Editor Marvin Botnick Managing Editor Marsha C. LaBeaume Assignment Editor Carolyn Gold Consulting Editor Gene Asher Associate Editor Barbara Schreiber Copy Editor Ray Tapley Assistant Copy Editor Arnold Friedman Makeup Editor Terri Christian Production Coordinator Terri Christian Medical Editor Morris E. Brown, M.D. Photographic Staff Allan Scher, Phil Slotin, Phil Shapiro Graphic Art Consultant Karen Paz Columnist Andi Arnovitz (Israel),Gene Asher, Jonathan Barach, Janice Rothschild Blumberg (Washington), Marvin Botnick, Shirley Friedman, Carolyn Gold, Jonathan Goldstein, George Jordan, Marice Katz, Balfoura Friend Levine, Marsha Liebowitz, Howard Margol, Bubba Meisa, Erin O’Shinsky, Ben Rabinowitz (Israel), Lew Regenstein, Roberta Scher, Jerry Schwartz, Leon Socol, Rabbi Reuven Stein, Nancy Taffel, Hannah Vahaba, Cecile Waronker, Evie Wolfe Special Assignments Susan Kahn, Lyons Joel, Advertising Marsha C. LaBeaume Editorial Advisory Board Members Sam Appel Rabbi Alvin Sugarman Sam Massell Jane Axelrod Albert Maslia William Rothschild Gil Bachman Michael H. Mescon Marilyn Shubin Asher Benator Paul Muldawer Doug Teper 290 Carpenter Drive, Suite 100 Atlanta, GA 30328 (404) 236-8911 • FAX (404) 236-8913 jewishga@bellsouth.net www.jewishgeorgian.com AA's Eizenstat Memorial Lecture 32 AAA Sandy Springs/Buckhead 13 Alon's 40 Atlanta Art Gallery 2 Atlanta Jewish Experience 11 Bangkok Thyme Thai Cuisine & Sushi Bar 11 Baskin Robbins in Sandy Springs 32 Bennie's Shoes 8 Beverly Beren 10 The Breman 22 Brickery Catering 35 Buckhead Garage 15 Buckhead Plaza Shoe Service 17 The Cohen Home 12 Congregation Or Ve Shalom 37 Curry Honda 42 The Davis Academy 28 Dressler's Jewish Funeral Care 5 Dunwoody Opticians 21 EdenBrook of Dunwoody 7 Ellen's House of Sweets 13 The Epstein School 36 Fido Fido 18 Five Guys 13 Gaucher Disease 19 Goldberg's Bagel Restaurant Deli 14 Grand Hyatt Buckhead 33 Greenfield Hebrew Academy 9 Habif Arogeti & Wynne 8 Halpern Enterprises 20 Havurat Lev 7 Israel Bonds 41 Huntington Learning Center 26 Reclaim Righteousness I have written before about the soundness of the time cycles in Judaism. The Sabbath gives us a day of rest and reflection each week to put our thoughts in renewed priorities. Our daily prayers are designed to put our relationship with God and the teachings of the religion in the forefront of our lives. And for most of us, the Days of Awe, which occur once each year at this time, act as a focal point to bring all of this to bear almost as a summation. We live our lives with a microscopic view of our existence, and we tend to see the world as it affects us at this time and this place. Even during the annual Rosh Hashanah-Yom Kippur holy days, we tend to focus on the small window of life as it deals with our own personal space. And this is as it should be, for this is a time when we try to realign our existence with that which Judaism teaches us should be. But part of this introspective examination must be couched in a realization that, unlike the sun, the world does not revolve around us, nor is there only the present: there is the past and the future. The words of our prayers are guideposts, not acts. These words should stimulate us to delve deeply into who and what we are, our relationship with other individuals, and our responsibilities as Jews, Americans, and It's My Party 37 JF&CS Child Testing & Evaluation 16 JF&CS Transition Program 21 JF&CS Legacy Home Care 31 JF&CS Volunteer Program 41 Kroger 44 Landmark Diner 26 Marcus Jewish Community Center 36 Stan Milton Oasis Hair Salon 23 Nothing But Noodles 4 Oak Grove Market 27 Options for Senior America 16 Omni National Bank 24 Perimeter Clinic 18 Personal Touch Lawn Care 9 Presstine Cleaners 29 Realty First 26 Restaurant Eugene 6 Sandy Springs Pharmacy 15 Sensible Networks 15 Shield's Meat Market 26 Southern Sweets 29 Sprong - Shoes for Kids On The Go 13 Sukkot Family Retreat 36 The Temple 39 Tires Plus 38 Trader Joe's 40 Vein Innovations 34 Video Impact 17 The Weber School 6 Wilson & Sons, Ltd. 43 Wish for Wendy 32 Young Chefs 11 BY Marvin Botnick humans. Words are merely the joining of letters of an alphabet into something to which a meaning has been ascribed. Saying or reading words does not do anything but create an utterance. It is understanding and believing the words, which are being read or spoken, that is necessary, and it is the transference of these words into actions that actually gives true meaning to the words. A good, wholesome life is something that most of us seek. Part of this package is an inner peace, which seems to be one of the most elusive parts of life. Maybe this elusiveness is partially caused by a misdirection of what is important and a priority of values. Maybe we do not visualize the realistic picture that we are really only one of many dots. I have heard a number of people, some of whom may not attend services on a regular basis, say that the solemnity of the holidays, the aura arising from the services, and the extended removal from the daily routine leaves them with a feeling like no other they experience during the rest of the year. The hustle and bustle seems to give way to calm, and there is a feeling of serenity that they say envelops them. In different degrees, we all lack interpersonal skills. This is a time when we can and should try to understand our shortcomings and realize how we unintentionally may have hurt others, many times those who mean the most to us. Take this time to stop and think about this and remember, as an unattributed quote I read recently put it, “To the world you may mean just a person, but to a person you may mean the world.” Many of us are caught up in the dynamics of everyday living and the competitiveness that has become a mantra. We seem to have imputed into our value system a need for tangible rewards for our actions rather than our Jewish concept of good deeds for the sake of righteousness. In Judaism we refer to a righteous person as a tzaddik, a person who does not just obey the letter of the law but also encompasses in his actions the spirit and intent of what is required. As we enter this High Holiday season, this is a concept that should guide us in this time of introspection and prayer. Hopefully we will move forward into the new year in a spirit of tolerance and acceptance. Shana Tovah! Atlanta Art Gallery "Bistro Chefs", Robert Spooner, oil on panel, 24" x 26" 3005 Peachtree Road, NE . Suite B . Atlanta, Georgia 30305 . Tel: 404.816.7322 Tuesday - Saturday 10:00 AM - 5:00 PM www.AtlantaArtGallery.com
September-October 2007 THE JEWISH GEORGIAN Page 3 What’s HAPPENING ARTHUR BLANK, MICHAEL VICK, AND JEWISH LAW. We attended Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank’s July 24 press conference on the Vick dog-fighting kerfuffle and can tell you that he said all the right things, although many of them never got reported in the press. He stressed how much he loves dogs and hates dog fighting and other cruelty to animals, which took some courage, since his star quarterback had just been accused of doing terribly cruel things to dogs. Although Arthur had a ten-year, $130million contract with him, he clearly distanced himself from Vick. This did not please some of his fans, but was the right thing to do, and we congratulate Arthur on the integrity he showed early on in this crisis for his team. Maybe he will even help support legislation to be introduced next year to strengthen Georgia’s laws against dog fighting. Amidst all this Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank uproar, we are proud to note that Judaism has strong laws and teachings forbidding cruelty to animals, and even the Ten Commandments require kindness to creatures in our care, mandating that they, too, be allowed a day of rest on Shabbat. RENAISSANCE WOMAN ANN TITEL- MAN. Our “Most Interesting Person” this month is the always delightful, strikingly beautiful, and elegantly glamorous Ann Titelman—fashion model; commercial realtor; bond broker; art and classical music aficionada; web entrepreneur; founder of the Concorde Group, a brokerage firm for tenants specializing in leasing—and full-time animal lover and rescuer. Ann’s family founded the famous Puritan Sportswear company and moved here from Pennsylvania a few years back. At Emory, Ann majored in anthropology and business, with a minor in French, and she has had an exciting and successful career in real estate and bonds. She’s even dated real estate tycoon and U.S. News & World Report owner Mort Zuckerman, the lucky guy. Ann also has a heart of gold. After Hurricane Katrina left tens of thousands of pet dogs and cats stranded in New Orleans, BY The multi-talented Ann Titelman Reg Regenstein many trapped in their aband o n e d homes, Ann spent almost three months there, wearing wading b o o t s (designer, of course) up to her hips; breaking down doors with axes and crowbars; wading through filthy water; rescuing, feeding, and rehabilitating stranded pets; and getting one or two hours sleep a night. One of her rescued cats, a veterinarian told her, had only about a ten percent chance of survival, but now is her “angel in heaven”—happily living with Ann in her home. Ann is very private, and the only reason she is letting us write about her is to plug her animal rescue group, Camp Rescue, with which she now spends much of her time. As long as there are animals that need help, her business ventures will have to share her valuable time. Check out her group at www.camprescue.org, and contact them if you’d like to get involved. Just getting to meet Ann would make all your effort worthwhile. Ann is an amazing person—she told us that once, in Africa, she ate a peanut butter and jelly sandwich while hanging from a tree limb in Kenya, but that’s for another column. A NIGHT IN BARCELONA. If you can’t take a trip to Spain this year, the next best thing is the William Breman Jewish Home’s upcoming gala, “A Night in Barcelona,” November 17, at the Grand Hyatt Atlanta. Celebrating the romance of Spain, the gala will feature stirring flamenco dancers, classical Spanish guitar, a mime performance, singers, a dance band, a European-style market, fabulous food prepared by Chef Billy Skiber of the Grand Hyatt Atlanta, plus live and silent auctions. The gala honors two of our community’s most dedicated and respected members, Sandy London S a n d y London and F r e d Halperin, who volunteer for the home on an almost daily basis. Publicity Chair Randi Levy, of Resume- Works (more about her later), promises “a sensory feast, with the heady scent of blooms wafting through the outdoor European market, full of unique items…..The evening’s excitement builds, as the exquisite aromas and delicious tastes of our culinaryextrava- Fred Halperin ganza are unveiled.” We can hard- ly wait. Hasta la vista! The muy sympatica, bonita Co-Chair Janet Selig says, “The 2007 Fall Golden Gala promises to be a most unique and exciting celebration,” with a live auction that includes a brand-new 2008 ES 350 Lexus and a silent auction featuring swanky dinners and trips. For complete info on the gala, contact Adria Wiggins at the Jewish Home, 404- 351-8410. To everyone involved in this wonderful evening, we offer congratulations and muchas gracias for all your hard work. HELPING ISRAEL’S DISABLED. No group does more good work or is more deserving of our support than the Israel Sport Center for the Disabled, which helps rehabilitate disabled Israeli kids, wounded soldiers, and others. Executive Director David Koren was in town a few days ago, meeting with some Atlanta Friends of the Center—including Mark Euster, Lois and Larry Frank, Beverly Greenwald, and Lori Halpern at the lovely, woods-surrounded home of Marcia and Michael Schwarz. Right now, the center serves 550 kids, teaching them swimming, table tennis, and wheelchair basketball. As David says, it’s a wonderful feeling to see the kids go from total helplessness to being useful members of society; many have even won numerous competitions in tournaments around the world. The Friends of the Center in Atlanta are encouraging kids who get bar/bas mitzvahed to take on the center as a project, especially in helping them purchase wheelchairs. For information on how to contribute and help out, contact Marcia and Michael at msmrs@mindspring.com. From October 14-17, the center is sponsoring “Good Wheel 2007,” a four-day, 265-mile bike ride, through the lovely scenery of the Galilee and the Golan, to support the ISCD. For details, contact info@iscd.com, or visit http://bikeride.iscd.com. SENIOR CITIZENS’ BEST FRIENDS. Jill Berry and Jade Sykes have for years been making life more enjoyable for our senior citizens, entertaining them during the holidays, providing them with gifts, and spending time with folks who sometimes get lonely from a lack of visitors or family. The mother-daughter team is so beautiful, just seeing and being with them would be enough to cheer up anyone. It sure lifts our spirits. Recently, Jill and Jade helped organize a cocktail party at the magnificent home of two of Buckhead’s most gracious and charming hosts, Danielle Berry and Mark Squillante. The party benefited Santa for Seniors, which gathers gifts all year long, to be delivered to seniors during the winter holidays. Some 150 hungry, schmoozing, gift-bearing guests showed up, and it was a delightful evening. “Senior citizens are probably our loneliest and least considered group,” Chairperson Jill Filler Saul Berry explained. “A little bitty gift makes them smile like the days when they were young.” Reg with Jade Sykes (left) and Jill Berry Santa for Seniors, a program of Senior Citizen Services of Metropolitan Atlanta (which is probably best known for its Meals on Wheels program), is collecting new, unwrapped “senior-friendly” items, such as large-print books, bath or personal hygiene products, small blankets, slip-resistant slippers, personal fans, flashlights, and stationery. Items can be dropped off at SCS, 1705 Commerce Drive NW, between 9:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m. For more information, contact Steve Hargrove at hargrove@scsatl.org or 404-605-8450, or visit www.scsatl.org. MISS AMERICAN PIE OUT IN PAPER- BACK. Margaret Sartor’s acclaimed book about growing up in Louisiana in the 1970s, Miss American Pie, is just out in paperback. Better get one—or several for gifts—before they sell out. The New York Times and Washington Post bestseller was included in O, The Oprah Magazine’s “What to read this summer”; the Chicago Tribune said it was “the best book of the year”; and, of course, we here at The JG gave it our highest praise, which we’re sure helped it soar to the top. See HAPPENING, page 4
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