Surprise Party

Wifey, the Ds and I drove a few miles to our friends the budding billionaires to attend the surprise 40th party of our friend Nechama. Her husband Rabbi Yossi pulled it off -- probably 75 people were there, and his wife had no idea it was coming. Nechama is truly a treasure. She has 8! kids, and loves and guides them amazingly, and runs 5 major programs at the shul, most of which benefit special needs kids. She does all this while smiling unfailingly, and cheerleading everyone she meets. As Wifey said, while Nechama's brother was talking about how she excels at EVERYTHING --"What, if anything, is wrong with her?" I reconnected with my old friend Alan -- a retired insurance man who was one of our local Chabad's founders. Alan was married to Helene -- an older and less religious version of Nechama -- but with merely 2 kids. Alan and Helene moved to Atlanta several years ago to be close to their grandkids -- and then Helene took ill with an awful blood cancer. Alan and she fought it -- even flying to Seattle for a stem cell transplant -- but Helene died. She was Alan's life, and we all worried about him terribly. His therapist recommended he meet with an old acquaintance -- Doreen, whose beloved husband had died 8 months before Helene did. He met, and coffee turned into cocktails into an exquisite act 2 for them. Doreen is South African, and subtle in ways Queens born Helene wasn't -- but the two are wildy in love, and Alan moved back to Miami to live with her. And now they spend their lives adoring their combined grandkids -- Helene would be happy, I know. The Ds chatted happily with Nechama's sister, and played with an adorable baby. Nechama taught them in Hebrew School, and was delighted 2 of her former students were there to celebrate. I spoke with Heather -- the new director of Friendship Circle -- the group that pairs local Hebrew School kids with autistic kids in the community. Heather is the first major non Jewish hire at the Center -- she's Catholic -- and is loving learning about Chasidic life and culture. Many events related to the program take place on Saturday -- and Heather is able to do things a religious Jew can't -- so it's a great fit. We drank wine and ate great food as the weather grew more mild. It was a delightful night. Nechama's family flew down from Brooklyn -- at least some of them. Her parents were born in France, and D1 ended the night chatting with Nechama's mother in French. To the Ds, Nechama is a mentor, and they were shocked to learn that when they first met her, she was 23. The Ds are realizing more and more that childhood is in the past. They're thrilled -- I'm old. Jewish tradition speaks of finding a true woman of valor -- and Nechama is one of the finest examples. Last night was a fitting tribute to her.