Lifelong Atlanta resident Meyer Balser grew up in the 1920s around the corner from the Jewish Educational Alliance. That community center became his hangout. He played there. He coached basketball there. He found his wife of 73 years there.
"It was the only place Jews could go and meet one another," he said in a 1996 Atlanta Journal-Constitution story.
At the alliance, Mr. Balser found a calling. He would spend most of his adult life providing Atlanta Jews with greater opportunities for education, recreation and socialization.
"Meyer was the heart and soul of the Jewish community," said his friend, Stephen M. Berman of Sandy Springs. "He encouraged people to spend their time and energy creating, not criticizing. He was fond of saying, 'It takes more muscles to frown than it does to smile, so why shouldn't we go around smiling?' "
Meyer L. Balser, 95, of Atlanta, died Friday at Northside Hospital of cardiopulmonary arrest. The funeral is noon Saturday at Ahavath Achim Synagogue. Jewish Funeral Care is in charge of arrangements.
At Commercial High School, Mr. Balser was a star basketball forward who played on the all-city, all-prep and all-state teams. His confidence on the court helped him become a crackerjack life insurance agent during a 70-year career in the business, most of it with Massachusetts Mutual.
He was a member of the Million Dollar Round Table for 56 consecutive years.
Mr. Balser's business acumen and pleasing personality put him in demand for civic leadership roles. He headed the Community Chest drive in 1951 and the Red Cross campaign in 1954. He chaired the United Jewish Appeal in 1947, 1951, 1965 and 1969.
His primary allegiance, however, was to the Atlanta Jewish Community Center, an outgrowth of the Jewish Educational Alliance. Mr. Balser became its first president in 1946. During his decade-plus in the position, he helped raise funds for the construction of a much larger facility in Midtown and he greatly expanded the center's athletic, health and educational programs. Under his guidance, it became the focal point of Jewish social life in the city.
Mr. Balser also took a keen interest in the older members of the Jewish community.
From 1974 to 1977, he served as president of the William Bremen Jewish Home and remained on the board for many years. The Meyer Balser Healthy Living Center, a continuing education facility, opened on the Jewish Home's campus in 2000.
"Meyer was a great role model," said Buckhead Beef Co. CEO Howard Halpern of Atlanta. "He was an inspiration to me and one of my guiding lights in developing a philanthropic approach to the community."
"Daddy was a giver," said his daughter, Ellen Hyman of Houston. "He said he hoped Mother didn't get to his safety deposit box before he dies, because if she saw all the IOUs, she'd kill him."
The Anti-Defamation League honored Mr. Balser with its Abe Goldstein Humanitarian Award in 1978.
Mr. Balser received lifetime achievement awards from the Atlanta Jewish Community Center in 1993 and the Atlanta Jewish Federation in 2003.
Survivors include his wife, Roslyn Stone Balser; two sons, Jack Balser of Atlanta and Ronald Davis Balser of Atlanta; 11 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren.
"It was the only place Jews could go and meet one another," he said in a 1996 Atlanta Journal-Constitution story.
At the alliance, Mr. Balser found a calling. He would spend most of his adult life providing Atlanta Jews with greater opportunities for education, recreation and socialization.
"Meyer was the heart and soul of the Jewish community," said his friend, Stephen M. Berman of Sandy Springs. "He encouraged people to spend their time and energy creating, not criticizing. He was fond of saying, 'It takes more muscles to frown than it does to smile, so why shouldn't we go around smiling?' "
Meyer L. Balser, 95, of Atlanta, died Friday at Northside Hospital of cardiopulmonary arrest. The funeral is noon Saturday at Ahavath Achim Synagogue. Jewish Funeral Care is in charge of arrangements.
At Commercial High School, Mr. Balser was a star basketball forward who played on the all-city, all-prep and all-state teams. His confidence on the court helped him become a crackerjack life insurance agent during a 70-year career in the business, most of it with Massachusetts Mutual.
He was a member of the Million Dollar Round Table for 56 consecutive years.
Mr. Balser's business acumen and pleasing personality put him in demand for civic leadership roles. He headed the Community Chest drive in 1951 and the Red Cross campaign in 1954. He chaired the United Jewish Appeal in 1947, 1951, 1965 and 1969.
His primary allegiance, however, was to the Atlanta Jewish Community Center, an outgrowth of the Jewish Educational Alliance. Mr. Balser became its first president in 1946. During his decade-plus in the position, he helped raise funds for the construction of a much larger facility in Midtown and he greatly expanded the center's athletic, health and educational programs. Under his guidance, it became the focal point of Jewish social life in the city.
Mr. Balser also took a keen interest in the older members of the Jewish community.
From 1974 to 1977, he served as president of the William Bremen Jewish Home and remained on the board for many years. The Meyer Balser Healthy Living Center, a continuing education facility, opened on the Jewish Home's campus in 2000.
"Meyer was a great role model," said Buckhead Beef Co. CEO Howard Halpern of Atlanta. "He was an inspiration to me and one of my guiding lights in developing a philanthropic approach to the community."
"Daddy was a giver," said his daughter, Ellen Hyman of Houston. "He said he hoped Mother didn't get to his safety deposit box before he dies, because if she saw all the IOUs, she'd kill him."
The Anti-Defamation League honored Mr. Balser with its Abe Goldstein Humanitarian Award in 1978.
Mr. Balser received lifetime achievement awards from the Atlanta Jewish Community Center in 1993 and the Atlanta Jewish Federation in 2003.
Survivors include his wife, Roslyn Stone Balser; two sons, Jack Balser of Atlanta and Ronald Davis Balser of Atlanta; 11 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren.
Lifelong Atlanta resident Meyer Balser grew up in the 1920s around the corner from the Jewish Educational Alliance. That community center became his hangout. He played there. He coached basketball there. He found his wife of 73 years there.
"It was the only place Jews could go and meet one another," he said in a 1996 Atlanta Journal-Constitution story.
At the alliance, Mr. Balser found a calling. He would spend most of his adult life providing Atlanta Jews with greater opportunities for education, recreation and socialization.
"Meyer was the heart and soul of the Jewish community," said his friend, Stephen M. Berman of Sandy Springs. "He encouraged people to spend their time and energy creating, not criticizing. He was fond of saying, 'It takes more muscles to frown than it does to smile, so why shouldn't we go around smiling?' "
Meyer L. Balser, 95, of Atlanta, died Friday at Northside Hospital of cardiopulmonary arrest. The funeral is noon Saturday at Ahavath Achim Synagogue. Jewish Funeral Care is in charge of arrangements.
At Commercial High School, Mr. Balser was a star basketball forward who played on the all-city, all-prep and all-state teams. His confidence on the court helped him become a crackerjack life insurance agent during a 70-year career in the business, most of it with Massachusetts Mutual.
He was a member of the Million Dollar Round Table for 56 consecutive years.
Mr. Balser's business acumen and pleasing personality put him in demand for civic leadership roles. He headed the Community Chest drive in 1951 and the Red Cross campaign in 1954. He chaired the United Jewish Appeal in 1947, 1951, 1965 and 1969.
His primary allegiance, however, was to the Atlanta Jewish Community Center, an outgrowth of the Jewish Educational Alliance. Mr. Balser became its first president in 1946. During his decade-plus in the position, he helped raise funds for the construction of a much larger facility in Midtown and he greatly expanded the center's athletic, health and educational programs. Under his guidance, it became the focal point of Jewish social life in the city.
Mr. Balser also took a keen interest in the older members of the Jewish community.
From 1974 to 1977, he served as president of the William Bremen Jewish Home and remained on the board for many years. The Meyer Balser Healthy Living Center, a continuing education facility, opened on the Jewish Home's campus in 2000.
"Meyer was a great role model," said Buckhead Beef Co. CEO Howard Halpern of Atlanta. "He was an inspiration to me and one of my guiding lights in developing a philanthropic approach to the community."
"Daddy was a giver," said his daughter, Ellen Hyman of Houston. "He said he hoped Mother didn't get to his safety deposit box before he dies, because if she saw all the IOUs, she'd kill him."
The Anti-Defamation League honored Mr. Balser with its Abe Goldstein Humanitarian Award in 1978.
Mr. Balser received lifetime achievement awards from the Atlanta Jewish Community Center in 1993 and the Atlanta Jewish Federation in 2003.
Survivors include his wife, Roslyn Stone Balser; two sons, Jack Balser of Atlanta and Ronald Davis Balser of Atlanta; 11 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren.
"It was the only place Jews could go and meet one another," he said in a 1996 Atlanta Journal-Constitution story.
At the alliance, Mr. Balser found a calling. He would spend most of his adult life providing Atlanta Jews with greater opportunities for education, recreation and socialization.
"Meyer was the heart and soul of the Jewish community," said his friend, Stephen M. Berman of Sandy Springs. "He encouraged people to spend their time and energy creating, not criticizing. He was fond of saying, 'It takes more muscles to frown than it does to smile, so why shouldn't we go around smiling?' "
Meyer L. Balser, 95, of Atlanta, died Friday at Northside Hospital of cardiopulmonary arrest. The funeral is noon Saturday at Ahavath Achim Synagogue. Jewish Funeral Care is in charge of arrangements.
At Commercial High School, Mr. Balser was a star basketball forward who played on the all-city, all-prep and all-state teams. His confidence on the court helped him become a crackerjack life insurance agent during a 70-year career in the business, most of it with Massachusetts Mutual.
He was a member of the Million Dollar Round Table for 56 consecutive years.
Mr. Balser's business acumen and pleasing personality put him in demand for civic leadership roles. He headed the Community Chest drive in 1951 and the Red Cross campaign in 1954. He chaired the United Jewish Appeal in 1947, 1951, 1965 and 1969.
His primary allegiance, however, was to the Atlanta Jewish Community Center, an outgrowth of the Jewish Educational Alliance. Mr. Balser became its first president in 1946. During his decade-plus in the position, he helped raise funds for the construction of a much larger facility in Midtown and he greatly expanded the center's athletic, health and educational programs. Under his guidance, it became the focal point of Jewish social life in the city.
Mr. Balser also took a keen interest in the older members of the Jewish community.
From 1974 to 1977, he served as president of the William Bremen Jewish Home and remained on the board for many years. The Meyer Balser Healthy Living Center, a continuing education facility, opened on the Jewish Home's campus in 2000.
"Meyer was a great role model," said Buckhead Beef Co. CEO Howard Halpern of Atlanta. "He was an inspiration to me and one of my guiding lights in developing a philanthropic approach to the community."
"Daddy was a giver," said his daughter, Ellen Hyman of Houston. "He said he hoped Mother didn't get to his safety deposit box before he dies, because if she saw all the IOUs, she'd kill him."
The Anti-Defamation League honored Mr. Balser with its Abe Goldstein Humanitarian Award in 1978.
Mr. Balser received lifetime achievement awards from the Atlanta Jewish Community Center in 1993 and the Atlanta Jewish Federation in 2003.
Survivors include his wife, Roslyn Stone Balser; two sons, Jack Balser of Atlanta and Ronald Davis Balser of Atlanta; 11 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren.
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