Did you know that all of our cabins are named after grandparents – of our team members, friends, and guests?
Our grandparents have often been the teachers of timeless lessons and simple truths – like the importance of time outside, away from our screens. You can listen to stories from may of our grandparents on the second season of The Getaway Podcast here.
The Betty is nestled into the the Chattahoochee National Forest at Getaway Chattahoochee, named for Betty Fine, the grandmother of our Head of Content, Amy. She tells us about her grandmother.
My grandma, Betty, was born in Pennsylvania, the daughter of two immigrants from Eastern Europe. She was in her late teens when she met my grandfather. They fell in love at first sight.
My grandfather was stationed in Japan shortly after they met, and they kept in touch, writing letters nearly every day. He served as a teacher during his time in the service, and would periodically send back kimonos that my grandmother still has in a trunk along with all of the letters.
At that time, in their Jewish communities in Hershey, Pennsylvania, it was customary to have a big wedding where you would invite the whole synagogue, and it was a big ordeal for the family of the bride. My grandma’s father was very ill at the time, so in order to spare her family the burden, she and my grandfather found a rabbi two hours away from town and eloped, with only my great aunt there as a witness. They actually still have the tape recording of their elopement (a very early tape recording!), and we all listened to it during their 60th wedding anniversary.
My grandma went on to have three kids, my aunt, my mom, and my uncle. As a family, they frequently moved because my grandfather worked for IBM and was often shuffled around the Northeast. Ultimately they settled in their home in Northridge, California. I have very fond memories of that home, where my my grandma, the matriarch of our family, truly turned a house into a home, inviting us over for barbecues and pool time throughout the summer, and along with my grandfather, creating games for all of us six grandchildren to play.
If my grandmother were to define her love language, it would be through food. When I think of her, I think of brisket at Passover seders, latkes during Hanukkah, blintzes on Rosh Hashanah. We celebrated all the Jewish holidays (and many secular holidays) at their house, which never ceased to feel warm and inviting. I hope that the cabin that is lucky enough to have her name has all of that same sense of coziness and warmth I think of when I think of Betty.
You can find The Betty at our Outpost 2 hours north of Atlanta. Book an escape to Getaway Chattahoochee today.