Legacy building (and maintenance)
Women Of Impact
October 23, 2007
"There's a Jewish expression ‘dor le dor,' which means ‘generation to generation,'" reflects
Cathy Selig Kuranoff as she looks across five generations of community involvement and philanthropy
by her family. A project close to her heart has rekindled her appreciation for this part of her
history.
As vice president and co-owner of her family's real estate business, Selig Enterprises,
Kuranoff certainly has a long record of civic involvement through boards and committees supporting
Egleston Children's Hospital, the Atlanta Ballet and the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta.
But her enthusiasm for philanthropy and especially for legacy has found new inspiration in an
institution that has been part of her family since her childhood, the Ben Massell Dental Clinic.
Named for her grandfather, the clinic is the city's only full-service facility offering dental care
for the indigent, including HIV-positive patients. Kuranoff now chairs a $3.85 million capital
campaign to give the clinic a 7,900-square-foot, state-of-the-art new home.
The clinic, whose roots date back to 1911, opened in 1957 at its current 2,000-square-foot
location on Seventh Street after Ben Massell donated the land and the building. "My grandfather and
the doctors, they would not let it be opened until it was agreed that it would be integrated,"
Kuranoff recalls. Her enthusiasm buoys her in the tough task of fundraising. "It just takes guts to
ask someone for a million dollars," she laughs.
It is that passion that compels her, even as she has tried to be more choosy and economical
in her community involvement.
"I used to say ‘yes' to a lot more things," she says. "I'm trying to pick the things I'm
totally passionate about and believe in. When you have the passion, I think it's contagious and
it's what makes everything effective."
Kuranoff does maintain intense zeal and pride for her work with the Jewish Federation. "I
would say that would be our greatest impact," she concludes, "because we save lives.
We've done that by sending dollars to Israel and getting Jews out of Ethiopia, out of Soviet
Russia, out of Argentina."
Kuranoff has found it easy to pass that appreciation and passion on to her sons and now to
her grandchildren. "Whenever we're together as a family, we share what we're up to. Even my
grandchildren, I try to show them in small ways by, say, helping someone across the street or just
sending a birthday card. When you're fortunate, it's a self inflicted responsibility to give back,
and I think they see from me how good it feels to
give. "
