Joseph Arnold

ARNOLD, Joseph

Joseph Allan Arnold was born July 1, 1931 at the zenith of The Great Depression. He did not know how poor he was until later in life. He did know that none of his five older siblings owned an automobile. When asked about her family, his mother would say that she had "five children and a doctor".

Joe's parents, Bernard and Addie Arnold, were older when he was born as his father was 56 and his mother, 43. His father had a dry goods store on Decatur Street which was lost in the Depression so he peddled gold and silver door to door until he got a job at Mel Gudell's Mitchell Street liquor store. His father, Bernard, was born in Moscow in 1875, one of the few Jews allowed to live in there. His mother, Addie Lefkoff, was born in Atlanta in 1888, the same year as T.S. Eliot and the completion of The Eiffel Tower. Addie claimed to be the first Eastern European girl born in Atlanta (at that time, Germany was in the West).

Joe was essentially raised by his oldest brother, Sam, who was 17 years older. Joe's father died just a few weeks before his bar mitzvah, which took place at the Shearith Israel synagogue, where he closely identified with Rabbi Hyman Friedman and Cantor Paskin (who recognized his baritone voice leading to his singing in choirs for 25 years).

Throughout high school, Joe worked weekends at Star Loan Company under the tutelage of Bernard (Buster) Cohen who, unbeknownst to him, was somewhat of a father figure. At about that time (age 17) Joe met and fell in love with his future wife, Phyllis Edith Gershon, but that love was not consummated for another 13 years, when her father, Sam Gershon told Phyllis, "Get that boy".

Joe was valedictorian at his graduation from Hoke Smith High School and was awarded a scholarship to Emory University and a Naval ROTC scholarship to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. At UNC, he earned a degree in mathematics and was, again, named valedictorian of his class and was invited to join Phi Beta Kappa. Upon his graduation, he was commissioned as an engineering officer in the US Navy during the Korean conflict and he traveled to several European countries and the Far East.

Following his military service, Joe enrolled in The Medical College of Georgia with a specialization in family medicine. He did a one-year residency at the US Naval Hospital in Charleston, South Carolina before returning home to Atlanta. It was while he was working in the emergency room at what was then DeKalb General Hospital, that he reconnected with Phyllis, who had come to seek medical care. She expressed her appreciation for his attentiveness with a six-month subscription to National Geographic and a lifelong relationship ensued.

To this day, his former patients bemoan the fact that Dr.Joe, aka,"the Singing Doctor", finally made the difficult decision to retire at the age of 80. They miss the thorough and conscientious care they received as he would listen to their concerns and diligently record them in hand-written medical records. Joe was a diagnostician beyond compare. He treated each and every patient with care and concern. His whistling and humming filled the hallway with music and soothed any discomfort that his patients may have been experiencing. His passion for helping others and his desire to ease pain were the guiding principles by which Joe lived and he was supported in this work by his partner in all things, Phyllis.

Joe and Phyllis had a love affair for the ages; they married in 1962 and, together, raised five children who revere them. Their partnership exemplified loving kindness and mutual respect. Through thick and thin, they supported each other and, quite literally, never left one another's side. Joe remained Phyllis' steadfast companion throughout her illnesses and knew that she loved him as much as he loved her.

Of course, we would be remiss if we didn't mention Joe's many interests. He was an ardent supporter of the Jewish and secular communities. Additionally, he was an avid coin and stamp collector and tennis player. He loved listening to classical music, exploring cemeteries, riding his bike and taking walks in the woods. Above all, Joe was a student - he loved learning and it was not uncommon to find him surrounded by his books as he researched various topics.

Joe was predeceased by wife, Phyllis; as well as his parents, Bernard and Addie Arnold; and his siblings, Sam Arnold (Sara Kennedy), Charlotte Idov Rich (Morris), Sarah Ellison (Jerome), Reuben Arnold (Sarah) and Phillip Arnold (Sylvia). Survivors include his children: Leslie Hammond (Richard), Kim Massell (Joanna Stamatiades), Beth Arnold Helmey, Mark Arnold (Julie), and Dan Arnold (Debbie). He is adored by his grandchildren: Dustin Hammond, Jacob Hammond, Maya Baumeister, Sam Helmey, Hannah Helmey, Jack Arnold, Eva Arnold, Emily Arnold and Lila Arnold.

We express our most sincere gratitude to his caregivers, Comar, Eda and Laree, who treated him with dignity, compassion and loving kindness. We would also like to acknowledge the care he received from Longleaf Hospice.

Funeral services will be held at Ahavath Achim Synagogue, 600 Peachtree Battle Avenue, NW, on Thursday, May 8 at 1 PM, followed by burial at Greenwood Cemetery, 1173 Cascade Circle, SW. Donations in Joe's memory may be made to an organization that does meaningful work to make the world a better place and to ensure that a culture of music, nature and learning are alive and vibrant for generations to come.