On Saturday night, December 4, the Graduates Of the Last Decade (GOLD – haha, get it?) a.k.a. the Atlanta Young Alumni beat the winter blues by heading to Aurum in Midtown Atlanta for the 196.97th annual Holiday Party.

Aurum--whose doors are not coincidentally adorned with the elemental symbol “Au” (Gold, anyone? I hear Emory’s still accepting applications)--hosted this year’s group of 216 as we lounged beneath golden glitter ceilings, amongst golden chaises and against golden lame stippled walls (Yes, I thought I somehow stumbled on set of a Lady Gaga video for about five minutes, too. Overexcitement fail.)

With marketing that played off the catchy DirecTV-spurred tagline of “Opulence....I has it” (on a side note, can someone tell me where to pick up the mini-giraffe? Great stocking stuffer), the night kicked off with a vast crowd that ranged from the recently anointed-as-of-six-months-ago-alumni to those alumni whom we like to call "seasoned."

While the place was packed tighter than the Griswold house in Christmas Vacation, the best part of the night was coming across the faces I hadn’t seen for ages--it’s like the holiday party is the one magical night of the year when all the people I knew over the course of my college career come together to visit and reminisce (Hallmark, are you listening?).

All in all, the people, food & drink made the night an opulent success ... I’m just hoping I don’t get a bad voicemail from Santa in the near future.

-- Cassandra Young 07C, coordinator, alumni programs

On Thursday, July 8 the Emory Alumni Association (EAA) and the Michael C. Carlos Museum hosted a swanky, fun event for the Atlanta Young Alumni and Alumnae & Women of Emory (AWE) to explore a sparkling jewelry exhibit and enjoy wine, light fare, and jazz music from the Gary Motley Trio while mingling with friends.

The atmosphere was exceptionally great. In the area outside the ballroom and the Carlos’ third-floor ballroom itself had gorgeous stone column-like replications hanging on the walls. I personally felt like I was in the midst of the ancient Greek or Roman times (despite the painted walls and guests wearing clothes that looked like they came straight out of a SAKS Fifth Avenue catalog instead of togas).

After a glass or two of wine, delicious, gourmet meatballs and veggies from a colorful platter, the guests were free to wander through more than 150 pieces of Indian jewelry from the Susan L. Beningson Collection. This collection celebrates the amazing technical craftsmanship of the jewelry and the inspiration of nature on the designs, as well as the importance of jewelry in Indian people’s lives. The guests were eager to learn more about this, so bright-faced, informative docents were scattered throughout the exhibition to share information about the jewelry and provide answers to questions.

As I admired the dazzling earrings, necklaces, and objects fit for a deity, I noticed the audience around me was thoroughly enjoying the exhibit as well. They were ooh-ing and ahh-ing while saying things like “I have a dress that would match perfectly with this necklace!” and “I am so glad you brought me to this event.” Yes, since this was a jewelry exhibit, the majority of the guests were women; however, I noticed the men there were enjoying themselves to the fullest.

Jazz and Jewelry was the first event I staffed as an intern. I have experience working events with an internship I had in college, but this event was better than any I’ve ever worked! The registration process went smoothly and there were absolutely no glitches with the event itself. It was wonderful to meet so many Emory alumni and others who work at the University, such as Aimee Nix, the museum’s associate director of development. I also befriended the volunteers who helped work the registration table—now I can say I have friends who went to Emory! (Since I am a graduate of Samford University). I also got to explore an amazing jewelry exhibition thanks to the EAA!

Thank you, Carlos Museum for partnering with us to host this wonderful event! The guests thoroughly enjoyed themselves and it was a great way to explore the Indian jewelry exhibition before it comes to a close.

Photos to come!

--Farah Shackelford, communications intern, EAA

If you grew up in the greater Atlanta area like I did, it’s likely that your memories of the Fernbank Museum of Natural History focus on elementary school field trips, complete with sack lunches, playing with the giant bubbles in the Sensing Nature exhibit, and all the dinosaurs you can imagine.

Well, imagine Martinis and IMAX as a field trip for adults, minus all those peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. It’s a chance to enjoy live music and company under their dinosaurs, followed by a larger-than-life IMAX film, with a martini in hand.

This was the setting for a recent Young Alumni and Emory Gay and Lesbian Alumni (GALA) event. Guests were welcomed to an Emory reception area, complete with some rather tasty hors d'oeuvres. It quickly became crowded due to the large group in attendance, causing guests to disperse among the many tables the museum had neatly positioned around the dinosaurs.

Have I mentioned the dinosaurs? I may be one of those rare adults who never grew out of their childhood dinosaur phase (so what if I have a T. Rex in my apartment), but I think everyone in attendance will admit that they provided a delightful backdrop for the evening.

The band was great, the drinks were better, and after a couple of hours of mingling guests were ushered upstairs to see Arabia. I wish I could tell you what the film was about, but I spent most of it amazed/grossed out by the camels. They have two joints in their back legs, allowing them to bend in the weirdest way possible. Maybe someone else who was there can speak to the actual purpose of the film, since I may have missed the point.

All in all, it was an excellent event and a perfect way to kick off the weekend. I’m always a fan of doing something new and can’t wait to see what the Young Alumni come up with next.

-- Kelley Quinn 08B, coordinator, Emory Alumni Board

Emory's Atlanta Young Alumni typically can be found mixing and mingling at the newest hot spot or local sporting event. But this past Saturday, October 24, you could find us in a cemetery.

That's right. In the spirit of Halloween, as well as a love for Emory's hometown, we ventured to Historic Oakland Cemetery in Grant Park for their annual tour. Picture something a' la "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil" meets an afternoon at SweetWater in the 1880s.

Greeted by a gentleman decked out in 19th century garb, we were left to our own devices to walk the grounds until we stumbled upon a mini fair of beer, hot cider, and--who would have guessed--corn dogs! Being unseasonably cold (and we Emory folk dress to impress without concern for the weather), it was a nice surprise to find hot drink and beer to make you forget about the cold a bit.

Our group was led by a guide also donning 1800s-inspired regalia. We visited six specific grave sites. At each, an actor shared a monologue about the life and death of his or her character underground. Mixed with a bit of humor and a lot of history, we all enjoyed getting the back story on what lies beneath (or above, in the case of the sarcophagi and mausoleums).

After a couple hours (and some severely numb extremities), we headed to Six Feet Under across the street to warm up and enjoy some great food...mostly fried, of course. This event was a definite departure from a typical Young Alumni event, but was well worth bearing the cold for.

For anyone who's yet to go, I'd recommend a visit during normal daytime hours until the next nighttime tour. One tidbit we learned: fellow Emory alumnus Bobby Jones 27L rests there. Bring a camera, perhaps some paper, and charcoals (who doesn't love those childhood memories of making headstone etchings?), and I'll see you there!

-- Darrah Brustein 06C, co-chair, Atlanta Young Alumni Board

A stifled smile and beckoning crook of the finger is how Whitney Ivey 08C paced the models from off the runway during the first Atlanta Young Alumni and Caucus of Emory Black Alumni (CEBA) fashion benefit for children’s leukemia research, Thursday, March 26. I could see Whitney framed through the lens of my Canon Rebel XT (I was the self-appointed photog for the night), trying her best not to laugh at the intentionally over-exaggerated poses by some of the male alumni models as she sent them one-by-one, alumna by alumnus, down the red carpet in between Bill Hallman’s two ateliers in Virginia-Highland.

Montshona Edwards 07C, event-coordinator extraordinaire, confidently watched her fellow alumni strut their stuff from the end of the runway as the rest of the alumni models hid inside the back room, checking makeup, hurriedly fixing scarves, trying to hide pesky price tags, and anxiously awaited Whitney’s subtle signal.

It all started as a proposal for an event partnership between CEBA, an interest group of the EAA, and the Atlanta Young Alumni. Montshona then added the fashion twist, and Darrah Brustein 06C offered the “in” we needed—Bill Hallman’s contact information. And so, the seeds of the CEBA-Young Alumni fashion show were planted, but everyone knows that Emory alumni are never fully satisfied—why stop there?

That’s when the idea of making it a benefit came into play—we could make the fashion show into something more, something that would hopefully last longer than spring’s fleeting fashions (fabulous as they were). If we made the show benefit the Emory’s Children Leukemia Research Fund, not only could we fund-raise from alumni for a great cause, but we could double our outcome as all donations would also count toward Campaign Emory, the University’s $1.6B dollar campaign.

All our planning, excitement, lengthy email threads, and runway run-throughs resulted in a fantastic fashion show; with wine and hors d’oeuvres in hand, CEBA members, young alumni, and even some Emory staff gathered at Bill Hallman to usher in the season’s fashions—at a 15 percent discounted rate, courtesy of Mr. Hallman himself. Stationed at a faux driftwood table, DJ Mike Bradley, a friend of Jamie Chan 06C, donated his skills and spun amazing beats and mixes to keep the crowds hyped while Blue Taylor, a professional MAC makeup artist from the Purple Door Salon graciously anointed the models with signature fashion stripes—blue for the boys, white for the ladies.

After the models had made their two runs down the runway (wearing signature outfits they had picked out themselves a couple of days earlier…with some subtle post-production help from the Highlands’ fashion guardian angel, Bill) alumni mingled and entered a raffle for a free month of boot camp, courtesy of BTB Fitness, while backstage we wrapped up the night with some mini-photo shoots before closing up shop.

Click here to see pictures from the event, and if you’d like to join me and other alumni in making a gift to the Emory Children’s Leukemia Research Fund, visit www.emory.edu/give and then type in Children’s Leukemia Research Fund in the “other designation” box.

Who knew that being philanthropic could be so fashionable?

--Cassie Young 07C, program development coordinator, Emory Annual Fund