Walking For Sarah
Heartfelt Celebration
Event seeks cure for mastocytosis.
Vintage fest aids female cardiac health.
0
n Feb. 21, 2004, life changed dra-
matically for Barbara and Ted
Gittleman.
Their daughter, Sarah Gittleman, had an
anaphylactic reaction to medication and
almost died. During the recovery stage,
they found out that she had systemic
mastocytosis; they did not know what that
meant but found out quickly.
Within the next four months, her symp-
toms were rapidly increasing. By July,
Sarah was diagnosed with mast cell leuke-
mia. She died Dec. 21, 2004.
Sarah Gittleman was 23.
Her parents, and sister Laura, are host-
ing a walk-athon in Sarah's memory. They
established a memorial fund through
the Mastocytosis Society in Sarah's
name. Walk proceeds go directly to the
Mastocytosis Society/Sarah Gittleman
Research Memorial Fund (tmsforacure.
org). Donations are 100-percent tax
deductible; 100 percent of all funds go
directly for research.
"We are working to bring awareness to
the community about mast cell diseases','
Barbara Gittleman said."Very little is
known about this disease. It is our hope that
we can support research that may some day
save lives. Presently, there is no cure:'
Symptoms are controlled or reduced
through various medications. Mast cell
diseases are considered orphan diseases
because they affect fewer than 200,000
people a year.
Mastocytosis can be a life-threatening
disease and debilitating. Everyone has
mast cells in their body tissues; however,
people with mast cell diseases have an
abnormal increase in the number of mast
cells, which are extremely unpredictable.
Mast cells release certain mediators
or chemicals, such as histamine, into the
body in response to certain events, foods,
etc. Some people can very quickly develop
acute and potentially serious symptoms
from these mediators that may require
immediate medical attention.
❑
Steps Toward A Cure
A walk-athon to benefit the Sarah
Gittleman Research Memorial Fund
will be held Sunday, Oct.12, at the
Huntington Woods Recreation Center,
26325 Scotia. Registration is 9:15
a.m. The 1.5-mile walk begins at 10.
There will be refreshments.
For information and registration, go
to gittlemanfundraiser@yahoo.com .
For donations from non-walkers:
Mail checks to Gittleman Family,
25490 Hereford Drive, Huntington
Woods, MI 48067. Checks payable:
The Mastocytosis Society-SGF
(SGF stands for the Sarah Gittleman
Fund).
Davidson Tower Closer
H
adassah has surpassed the first
benchmark for the largest capi-
tal campaign in its history and
the largest building project in the State of
Israel: construction of the Sarah Wetsman
Davidson Tower at the Hadassah Medical
Center in Jerusalem.
The women's Zionist organization has
raised more than $210 million worldwide.
The new Tower will be dedicated in 2012,
during Hadassah's national convention in
Jerusalem, as the centerpiece of Hadassah's
centennial celebration.
The Tower is the gift of Auburn Hills busi-
nessman and mega-philanthropist William
Davidson and his wife, Karen, in memory of
his mother, Sarah Wetsman Davidson.
"The strength of our 271,000 members,
30,000 associates and supporters on five
continents around the globe have made
this milestone attainable,' says Hadassah
National President Nancy Falchuk of Boston.
"The Tower Campaign has energized our
donors and has underscored Hadassah's
commitment to the healing, teaching and
research which has been the core of our
work since 1912."
The Tower is planned to be a 14-story
structure with 500 beds, 20 operating rooms
and a 50-bed ICU. Specialised departments
include Invasive Angiography, Immune-
Mediated Disorders, Minimally Invasive
Surgery and Computerized Assisted Surgery
Cell Therapy, Molecular Medicine and the
ultra-modern Heart Institute. Hadassah
Medical Organization plans to continue its
research in stem cell treatment, heart dis-
ease, cancer, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's
disease and Alzheimer's disease.
`!As we look towards Hadassah's centen-
nial anniversary, we are reminded that this
Tower is not just in honor and celebration
of the generations that came before us, but,
most importantly, for the generations still
to come who will benefit from this building
and the cutting edge medical technology
within," Judy and Sidney Schwartz, co-chairs
of the Tower Campaign, said in a joint state-
ment from Boston.
Robyn Gorell
Special to the Jewish News
T
he Sept. 26 gala fundraiser
Heart to Heart du Vintage will
help uninsured and under-
insured women to receive care at the
Ministrelli Women's Heart Center as
well as contribute to the development
of women's heart services at Beaumont
Hospital, Grosse Pointe.
Pamela A.
Marcovitz, M.D.,
is director of the
Ministrelli Women's
Heart Center at
Beaumont Hospital,
Royal Oak.
The Ann Arbor
Florine
resident and her
Ministrelli
husband, Michael,
an anesthesiologist,
attend Temple Beth
Emeth. They are
supporters of the
Jewish Federation
of Ann Arbor. She
also is trustee of
the Jewish Women's
Foundation of
Dr. Marcovitz
Metropolitan
Detroit.
"This event is not only important
as a fundraiser, but it also serves to
increase awareness of the unique char-
acteristics of cardiovascular disease in
women:' says Marcovitz. "Heart disease
is the number-one killer of women in
this country"
She adds, "As most of us know, the
Jewish population has greater risk for
certain diseases like breast, ovarian
and colon cancer, Gaucher Disease, Tay
Sachs, Crohn's disease and ulcerative
colitis, some of which can be identified
through genetic testing.
"However, very little research has
been done at this stage to determine if
Jewish women are more susceptible to
heart disease than the overall female
population. Since heart disease is often
avoidable, this type of research would
likely be of great benefit to us!"
"Earlier identification of disease in
women, more aggressive treatment and
prevention are the keys in lowering the
risk;' said Marcovitz, a board-certi-
fied cardiologist and an advocate for
women with heart disease.
She served as an assistant professor
at the University of Michigan School of
Medicine and director of the universi-
ty's Briarwood Outpatient Cardiology
Clinic before joining Beaumont
Hospital in 1997.
The Beaumont Foundation will host
Heart to Heart on Sept. 26 at Franklin
Hills Country Club. Honorary chairs
are philanthropists Florine and Peter
J. Ministrelli of West Bloomfield. Event
co-chairs are Lois and Mark Shaevsky
of Bloomfield Hills, Marion and John
Ginopolis of West Bloomfield and
Libby Candler of Grosse Pointe Farms.
"Everything old is new again" is the
theme of Heart to Heart du Vintage.
Musical ensembles; vintage period
displays, some of which will be on loan
from the Detroit Historical Society,
and interactive entertainment will
engage guests as they move among
food stations for a strolling dinner
hallmarked by re-created recipes from
Metro Detroit restaurants.
Evening highlights include a live
auction, music by the Simon Vitale
band and a chance to view a number
of limited-edition classic cars from
Peter Ministrelli's private collection.
Vintage cocktail attire is suggested.
The Ministrelli Women's Heart
Center, which opened in June 2002, is
the first and only cardiac facility in
Michigan designed expressly for the
prevention, diagnosis and research of
women's heart disease.
"Many people give from the heart,
but I don't think enough people give to
the heart:' said Florine Ministrelli.
❑
Heart to Heart du Vintage, a
biennial event, runs from 6:30-11
p.m. Tickets are $275 per person.
Patron-pair tickets are $1,000.
Contact Tom McGannon at the
Beaumont Foundation: (248) 551-
9951.
❑
September 18 • 2008
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