The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-05-22
BY DOLLY DALRYMPLK

A distinguished visitor whom Birming
ham has had the pleasure OF honoring for
the past few days is Miss Amelia NJ.
Abrahamson, the field secretary of the
Jewish Consumptives' Relief society of
Denver
Miss Abrahamson is very interesting and
agreeable, her experiences in her chosen
work covering many years of hard labor
and energetic work.
She is associated with a cause in which
every heart beats in sympathy-the work
OF affording relief and sustenance to
those afflicted with the dread disease
tuberculosis.
Miss Abrahamson impresses one from
the moment of meeting her with her earn
estness and complete sympathy with her
work
She Is a very handsome woman her
flashing brown eyes and splendid ply
sique, her wholesomeness and genuine
ness giving confidence to her auditors and
making them feel that whatever she SAYS
regarding her work, and it's aim and OBJ
ject, is sincere. and honest and MAIN
tained in the cause of suffering humanity,
roads upon than the great white plague.
Miss Abrahamson as field secretary of
the Jewish Consumptives' Relief society,
probably knows as much, if not more,
about the surroundings of the sufferer
from tuberculosis, and where they should
be placed in order to regain lost health,
and to revive life in those who have be-
come emaciated and worn from this dis
ease, than nearly any one you can i'm
agine.
Her enthusiasm, her energy, her desire
to interest people all over the south in the
sanitarium at Denver, is at once commend
able and ingratiatihg, and If the people
of Birmingham are not responsive to her
call, it will be very unlike their great
generosity, whenever a demand Is made
upon them, for such a worthy work.
perhaps there are those who do not
quite comprehend just what the work
of the Jewish Consumptives Relief So
ciety is, said Miss Abrahamson yester-
day when she was telling me about her
work. THE sanitarium which we MAIN
tain at Denver is unique in that there is
no other like 1t in the United States. 1t
is absolutely free to patients. We take
any sort of case of tuberculosis, either
durable or incurable. OF course, there are
other institutions that are charitable, but
none that takes an incurable case. That
is the difference between ours and any
other OF course, Denver abounds in
handsome private santariums, ranches,
lodges and every kind of institution for
the tuberculosis patient but have you
ever stopped to think what 1t costs to
become an inmate of one of these mag
nificent places? The rich can afford this
luxury, but alas! the poor man who Is
dependent upon his salary for his daily
bread is very differently situated. When
he contracts consumption his work stops.
He is stricken sometimes when his chill
dren are not half educated, when his wife
is perhaps in i'll health, when there is
no income except just what he Is making
each day. What must be his relief to
realize that In Denver the most perfect
of all climates for the consumptive, there
is place he can go to, where without
money and without price he can be min
istered to and taken care of and restored
to health, If it is possible for him to be
restored anywhere"
rs the sanitarium entirely denomina
tional?" / asked.
"Oh, no." said Miss Abrahamson. mot
at all. We have patients from all over
the country of Gentle affiliations as well
JEWISH. trOI1 selma we ildQ yOuIS
man, a Gentle, who was sent home after
a long stay at our sanitarium, apparently
cured and ready to take up his life work
again. We have had two patients with us
from Birmingham, one from Mobile; in
fact, you can scarcely name a place
which hasn't been represented by people
of our nationality as well as the Gentile.'
How long ago was this sanitarium
established, and how?' 1 asked.
Ten years ago." Miss Abrahamson
said. 'Dr. Hilkovitz and DR.. Spivak of
Denver became very much interested in
the idea. DIR. Hilkovitz, himself the son
of a rabbi, had worked a great deal
among the poor people and knew just
what dreadful surroundings many of
them lived in who were suffering from
consumption. He was the founder of the
sanitarium, which now is one of the most
beautiful places in Denver. 1t Is sit
uated in Edgewater park. a suburb of
Denver, right at the foot of the noun
tains, and it is in the midst of several
acres of land and il is an ideal location
for such place. Tiie tents pitched over
the grounds and the pavillions and d>dorni-
tories accommodate from 200 to 800 pa
tients, in fact 1t Is seldom that there are
less than 300 under our care. Every
convenience that can be offered is given
to the patients and some remarkable in
cidents might be cited of where patients
have gone there practically despaired Of
by their physicians at home and have
been cured and have gone back well and
happy to their loved ones, who never