April 14, 2023

AIA NJ Past Presidents Stacey Kliesch, AIA; Jerome Eben, FAIA; and Judy Donnelly, AIA, with Archie!

Jerry Eben, FAIA; Judy Donnelly, AIA; and Stacey Kliesch, AIA, Share A Mentorship Lunch with Archie

When I stopped by my number one Mentor’s house for lunch, his dog Archie, named after architecture, greeted me at the door! Who names their dog after this great profession?? Only Jerry Eben, FAIA!! Only he would think of such a name for his X-Large, bouncy pup!  For the love of Architecture and of the AIA, I  think no one is more devoted than Jerry!  Hence he is Mr. AIA to me!

Stacey Ruhle Kliesch joined us with a beautiful bundle of flowers. Marsha served us a delicious Passover-Style lunch (we loved the egg salad much to the dismay of Jerry who does not like it at all) and great conversations began.  Stacey and I mostly listened to our fascinating, Architect, story-teller, colleague and friend, as he rolled thru interesting, fun, and deep discussions which varied from Passover Seder traditions, to how his family is doing, to United States and international (Israel) history, to his late uncle Frank Leo (brilliant engineer and street sweeper), and (of course) to international Architecture!

The next day, Jerry called me to THANK me for the visit; he said he was ‘overwhelmed’ by it, and hopes we both come back soon. He closed with a little Jerry-style pressure to attend the AIA convention, in June  (also reminding me that he has an airplane ticket to go to this event).

Thank you, Judy

By Stacey Ruhle Kliesch, AIA, AIA NJ Advocacy Consultant | Posted in AIA Newark and Suburban, AIA-NJ News, Architects League of Northern New Jersey, Women in Architecture | Tagged: #Archie, #JeromeLEbenFAIA, #JudyADonnellyAIA, #StaceyRuhleKlieschAIA | Comments (0)