Madelene Francese Vice President of Development Hebrew Health Care 1 Abrahms Boulevard West Hartford, CT 06117 Dear Madelene, When my mother, Florence passed away last June, I was tasked in liquidating everything in the Perlstein family home of 44 years. Working mostly on my own, the process was challenging, to say the least. Memorabilia dating back to my birth, my mothers birth, father, Julians birth, and brother, Danas birth, not to mention previous immediate and extended family history filled a sizable portion of the home. As the sole surviving member of my family, I had to decide what to keep, sell, toss, and donate. After a courageous ten year battle with cancer, my brother, Dana passed away in 2001. His lived his last two months cared for by my mom and dad at home. Prior to his untimely passing at 47, Dana lived and worked in Los Angeles as a motion picture theater and drive-in manager, film exhibitor booking executive, film distribution marketing executive, and his most proud achievement, teaching and inspiring middle school students in the Los Angeles Unified School System. Dana was the sole teacher in the L.A. school system teaching film appreciation at the middle school level. He was a celebrated teacher who hosted class field trips to movie screenings, premieres, and presented many hundreds of films in his classrooms followed by lively discussions. In the week before vacating my family home, I had not yet found a suitable buyer nor a concern willing to accept the donation of Danas substantial VHS tape library and Laser Disc collection (I inherited the latter). No one would accept donations of video formats other than DVDs and Blue-Ray discs, despite the many thousands of excellent films and television shows Dana had lovingly collected, recorded and cataloged in great detail on corresponding 3x5-inch typed index card files. Danas passion for collecting was prolific. He sought the most rare, most unusual, and most unique films and vintage television programs, as well as popular blockbusters, game changers, and Academy Award winners. I have fond memories of my brother and I spending copious time in his apartment enjoying said films presented on what was then a state-of-the-art big screen television and surround sound system. The thought of the collection being sold piecemeal during the estate sale made me sick. At the eleventh hour, my heart soared as yourself and Hebrew Health Care enthusiastically agreed to accept and provide a new home for this extraordinary library. While VHS tape is generally considered an obsolete format, the content on those well preserved tapes are timeless. Dana is very likely smiling down from the heavens knowing his wondrous collection will live on to entertain, educate, and beguile untold staff and residents for years to come. Thank you for sharing the attached photographs of staff and residents organizing the collection. This really made my month. All Good Things, Abram Perlstein Los Osos, California
Posted on: Tue, 01 Apr 2014 19:46:28 +0000
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