Women kick off new year with book talk, board meeting

The Women’s Philanthropy will begin its new campaign year on September 7 with a board meeting to include the newly elected members, followed by a talk by community member Amy Oselkin about her recently published poetry book. This will be Laurie Wax’s first meeting as new president.

The book event is for “The Story Behind the Poem: A Reflection on Mommyhood, Miscarriages and Marriage,” which Oselkin released in time for Mother’s Day. The idea to publish the book was her husband, Martin’s: poems, along with the stories behind them, plus family photos.

pain and help you heal.”

The book’s underlying narrative starts with Oselkin meeting Martin in 2001 at Emory University in Atlanta. After graduation, they moved to Los Angeles. When a medical residency took Martin to New York City, they were stuck on opposite sides of the country. That was 2006.

The next stop was Philadelphia, together. That’s when she suffered her two miscarriages. “I don’t even like going to that area anymore,” she said.

2,500-year-old amphitheater on the Mediterranean Sea in Caesarea. More than 3,500 people attended. “There were nine or 10 of the top artists in Israel,” Cherie said. “The acoustics there are phenomenal.”

Of course the group tour stopped in Jerusalem. And at the very end of the trip, the Zettlemoyers got to return to the city on their own to see additional sites. Again Zimmerman and Gorodzinsky were involved in the planning. Cherie said the combination of stops with the group and the later special additions was just right.

“Jeri and Aaron worked very hard on all this,” Cherie said. “We’re very appreciative. They really came through.”

One of Oselkin’s main goals with the publishing project was to connect with other women who have been in similar situations. “Your experience is unique,” she said, “but there are other women, when you’re ready, who are able to share in your

Soon Martin took a job as a physician in diagnostic radiology and neuroradiology with St. Luke’s University Health Network. They moved outside Allentown, which is where they live now with their three children. Amy has been the Clarks Shoes spokesperson on QVC for the last decade.

Today there’s the poetry book, which not only has given Oselkin a way to con- nect with other women but also will serve as a family document when her kids are grown up. In a happy coincidence, some of her own favorite poems also happen to be her kids’ favorites. “The ones they like best are the ones about them,” she said.

The Women’s Philanthropy board meeting will begin at 6 p.m. on the 7th and the book program immediately afterward at 6:30. All women in the community are invited to attend.

Beth

Beth

Rachel