Anne F. Ratner.........1911-2011

I never met the woman. I don't remember ever seeing her. I knew one of her relatives. I also remember buying something at the store which bore the name: "Ratners." It was located on Market Street in downtown San Diego. Why would I write something about a lady that I never met? Because she accomplished a great deal during her lifetime. She definitely contributed to the betterment of this world while she was alive. She is an example for others to follow. Anne F. Ratner died of natural causes on Nov. 9, 2011. She was 100 years of age. Mrs. Ratner had devoted much of her long life toward improving the lives of others. The information I share in this blog; I obtained from an obituary column of the San Diego Union Tribune, written by Linda MCintosh, dated Wednesday November 23, 2011. In my view: Mrs. Ratner's life, and her contributions to society continue to speak.

She was instrumental in opening the EyeMobile, which serves low income children at the Shiley Eye Center, and she established UCSD's Ratner Children's Eye Center in 1995, which not only helps children in the US, but trains doctors from around the world. Mrs. Ratner was a volunteer and philanthropist. "She cared deeply for her community," said her granddaughter, Lisa Foster, a San Diego Superior Court judge. She was a founding member of the San Diego Opera and served on the executive committee of the San Diego Symphony board of directors, becoming an honorary life member of the board. She was known as a matriarch of the Tifereth Israel congregation in San Carlos, where she and her husband endowed the Abraham Ratner Torah School and where she founded the Sisterhood at Tifereth Israel Synagogue. After World War II, she helped resettle refugees from Europe. She was the founder of the Women's Division of the United Jewish Federation. "She believed strongly that Jewish people should be involved not just in the Jewish community, but in the greater community," Foster said. Mrs. Ratner was a founding member of the Women's Auxiliary of Salk Institute. The Salvation Army Door of Hope honored her. She and her husband were honored by the Meals on Wheels program. She supported scholarships at UCSD and established a fund for breast cancer research and stem cell research. She was honored posthumously with the Chancellor's Medal of Honor, one of the highest awards from UCSD. I salute Anne F.Ratner. She did great things. She leaves a legacy that is honorable. In closing, I would just leave this thought by an anonymous source: "A person is not honored for what he or she receives, a person is honored for what he or she gives."