Philadelphia 2004

Palma has been the president of AILA (The American Immigration Lawyers Association) for the past year, and during the June 2004 conference in Philly, she passed the torch on to the next in line. I decided to make an effort to be there because I missed the occasion of her becoming president, and at least this way I could join in the celebration of the end of her term.

Cathy and Cy were there from San Francisco, Mom and Dad came in from Rochester, Barb arrived a little late because she was on business in Paris, and Carla was working during the days in New Jersey. And of course Deasy, Jake, and Spenser were also part of the gang.

June 10, 2004 - Dinner at Bistro St. Tropez The first night we had dinner at Bistro St. Tropez. I'm not sure how we ended up there but the food and the atmosphere were great.
Delaware River	Delaware River	Delaware River	Schuylkill River	Cathy gave me a great shirt
to the San Tropez	Cy & Cathy	Deasy & Palma	Deasy & Palma	Joan & Joe
Joan	Joe	Jake	Dennis & Lisa	Jake

6/11/2004 - We visited the National Liberty Museum and met Vickie Farber. Vicki introduced us to Gwen Borowsky who gave us a tour. We hadn't seen Vickie in 14 years. She hasn't changed a bit. The National Liberty Museum is about 5 years old, and Vickie is a major contributor to the museum. It's a wonderful combination of art glass, and ideas about how to make the world a more tolerant, peaceful place. There were images of Jimmy Carter, kids who decided to do something to make a difference, Mother Teresa, Nelson Mandella, the rescue workers from 911, and a whole museum of other inspiring people. There was art from the likes of world-renowned artist Dale Chihuly. It was a wonderful place to spend our first morning in Philly. Ironically, Dennis and I tried to see the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall on the way back to the hotel, but the lines were very long because there was so much security around the historic sites that we didn't see them!

June 11, 2004 - Cocktails with Jack and Vickie Farber. We continued the reunion at Vickie and Jack's apartment. The group included Ellen and David, David's girlfriend, their cousin Jill, and three of the four Farber grandkids. We gathered at Vickie and Jack's apartment, and then walked to Di Angelo's, an Italian restaurant nearby.
Joe and Jack	Joe and Jack	Joe, Jack and Joan	Cy, Cathy, David & Barb	Cy, Cathy, David & Barb
Joan and Carla	Joan and Carla		Jack, Vickie, Joe & Joan
Joe and Jack			Jack, Vickie, Joe & Joan	Joe and Jack
Joe and Jack	Jake and Billy	Lisa	Jack, Vickie, Joe & Joan	Joe and Jack
Joe and Jack			Jack, Vickie, Joe & Joan
Joe and Jack				Jill, Ellen & Barbara

June 11, 2004 - AILA Party at Palma's pad

This was really the reason that we were all in Philly. We were all exhausted from the visit with the Farbers, and the big Italian meal, but we're troopers, and Palma appreciated us being there. I spent January through April creating 8 vases with palms on them for this occasion. Palma gave one to each of the officers. It was great for me to see them unwrapped by their new owners. Everyone seemed to really like them.

New President

June 12, 2004 - We caught a bus to the Art Museum. Dennis and I took the first bus that left the museum. It was hit by a van and got stuck, wedging the bus bumper between the vans tire and fender. Some guys got together and picked up the back of the van and moved it over because it couldn't move backward or forward. Then the van ripped its fender when it pulled forward. Then they called the cops to file a police report, and Dennis and I decided to walk back to the Loew's Hotel. We found a pizza place near the hotel called "Jake's Pizza".
Joe and Cathy	Lisa and Dennis	Cy and Cathy	William Penn
Tour Guide	Lisa and Dennis			Jake's

We finished the evening with pizza as the sun went down on the Schuylkill River and a nice family get together.
Spenser				Spenser

Spenser is Ch.Woodshire's Spenser for Hire's nickname