On Helen Zell
Impeccable handwriting is only one of Helen Zell's unforgettable attributes.
Back in the old space we had a strip of an office, and I'm not kidding, it was a strip; it was really, really small and our desks were kind of built into the wall. And at the time Helen came in and she was chairing the Art of Dining. And this was really soon after I had started here. And she came in and she's chairing this event and she was doing the place cards. And if you know anything about Helen, if you've ever seen her handwriting, it is the most unique, beautiful penmanship that you've ever seen. And I really didn't know who she was at the time, and she's sitting next to me and we're chit-chatting, and then I find out she's part of our Women's Board.
I think she was our Women's Board president at the time. And she was also chairing this event, this Art of Dining event that we had. And she wanted to come in and do the place cards because she had this really great writing, and why—Helen would never have us pay a calligrapher, she'd rather just do it herself, and it really worked anyways. And, you know, over the years Helen always stayed involved with us and she eventually wasn't Helen Fadim anymore, had divorced and remarried, and now she's Helen Zell. And she is one of the most influential and caring and financially supportive trustees that we've ever had.