Aaah, spa!
OK, so maybe the National Jewish Medical and Research Center’s annual feel-good event, InSPAration, doesn’t offer relaxing mineral baths or detoxifying turns in a steam room. But neither does it require guests to be up at the crack of dawn for an excruciating workout or bone-crushing massage.
As Denver Post fashion editor Suzanne Brown observes, InSPAration “has to be one of more comfortable events to attend, considering you can wear terry tracks suits, as Andrea Gray did in pink Juicy Couture, and Marie Treihaft (clothing designer Tommy Hilfiger’s sister) did in bright green. Co-chairs Deborah Asarch Landy and Debbie Zucker, along with staff coordinator Helene Steinberg, chose white warm-up pants and hoodies with purple T-shirts.”
It’s also quite a profitable venture, with approximately 370 women paying a minimum $150 each to take part in the day-long session that included a products-and-services expo, lunch with keynote address by Joan Borysenko, silent auction, and workshops on subjects ranging from women’s issues to plastic surgery.
The panelists at this event, held at Invesco Field at Mile High, included dermatologists Brent Sigler, Adrienne Stewart and Laura Thomason; Shanwen Gao, an authority in Chinese medicine; Rachel Greenwald, a New York Times best-selling author; psychotherapist Veronique Mead; yoga therapist Mukunda Stiles; and reiki master Marnie Vincolisi.
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Relax and Rejuvenate
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The silent-auction tables saw plenty of action, with items ranging from an adorable female black Labrador puppy from Sunset Ridge Kennels (Carol Brooks took the wiggly little critter home) to a Red Mountain Spa getaway.
9News anchor Kim Christiansen emceed, and was in the company of such colleagues as Libby Weaver (Fox-31) and Bertha Lynn (7News) at a table hosted by Lisa Herzlich, marketing director of the sponsoring Cherry Creek Shopping Center. Other sponsors were Clear Channel-630 KHOW, The Denver Post/Rocky Mountain News, Quintess, and Denver-area Mercedes-Benz dealers.
Also at Herzlich’s table were Michele “Mel” Gibson, who served on InSPAration’s publicity committee; Sylvia Atencio; Ginnie Kontnik; Gretchen Bunn; Ellen Bruss; and Patti Whittier.
Several men showed up for lunch, and one of them confessed to being a little intimidated by the prospect of addressing so many women.
Jim Kellogg of the Colorado Rockies Charity Fund, which matched money raised at InSPAration, said he went to an all-boys high school and was “terrified” to speak to the mostly female crowd. Also speaking was David Engleberg, chairman of the National Jewish board of trustees.
Epicurean Catering provided the spa luncheon of gazpacho and Southwestern chicken salad, followed by a peach-pastry dessert.
Borysenko, a medical scientist and licensed psychologist, is the co-founder and former director of the Mind/Body clinical programs at the Beth Israel/Deaconess Medical Center in Boston. She also is a former instructor of medicine at the Harvard Medical School.
Her presentation included poetry from the ancients and some current favorites, as well as suggestions on how women can de-stress their daily lives. She encouraged them not to be “psychic sponges,” soaking up everyone else’s troubles and recommended they spend time each day reflecting on what they’re grateful for.
Her audience included Elaine Asarch, Julie Gelfond, Kit Leventhal, Nancy Sevo, Jennifer Workman, Laurie Esserman Nowak, Ellen Gray, Robin Chotin, Tammy Schiff, Jan Nelsen, Wendy Glazer and Cyndi Hilb.
Of growing concern
Some arrive with carefully thought-out lists, others buy the first thing that catches their eye. And whether they’re in the market for rose bushes, vegetable seedlings, hanging baskets of colorful blooms, or even hardy cactus plants, Denver-area green-thumbers know that the place to buy is the Denver Botanic Gardens Plant Sale, which was held earlier this month.
Thousands flock there during its weekend run, but those who prefer a more intimate setting do their shopping at the preview party. They pay a little extra for the privilege, but are rewarded with first dibs on the merchandise and some lovely refreshments served in a garden-party setting.
Society editor Joanne Davidson can be reached at 303-820-1314 or jmdpost@aol.com.
