Lenny and Jinny Marsh have been volunteering at the Boca Raton Regional Hospital for the past 4 years. They’ve been Floridians for nearly seven years and love both Florida and volunteering. They live in the same Boca neighborhood as their closest friend Nona Goldstein (a long-time hospital volunteer) who convinced them to try volunteering. They did and loved it. Both volunteer one day a week at BRRH. Lenny serves as a tram driver shuttling patients, their families and staff between the several buildings on the hospital campus. Jinny works in the surgical waiting room helping pre- and post-op patients and their families. They readily admit that they love volunteering and that they get far more out of volunteering than they give.
Their story began 42 years ago. In 1983 Lenny was a stand-up comic at a Manhattan neighborhood nightclub. One night during the club’s “open-mic” a singer, Jinny—came in to perform. When she took the stage and “wowed” the room, their fate was sealed. By year’s end they had formed a cabaret act cleverly titled An Act Together. They performed in smart New York supper clubs, on upscale cruise ships and other like venues. They married and relocated to Maryland, where they welcomed a daughter, Leila.
There were many career twists and turns over the next 25 years. They settled in Fairfax Station, Virginia, where, they raised Leila and three Standard Poodles. Jinny became a cantor and served at Temple Beth Torah in Northern Virginia for over 15 years. She performed hundreds of weddings, bar bat mitzvahs, etc. Meanwhile, Lenny went back to school, earning a Master’s in Education. He then worked for Fairfax County Public Schools as a teacher and then as an assistant principal. Later, he transitioned to a highly successful career in real estate.
They often made visits to Florida. But in 2018, they came down for a wedding with some friends from Northern Virginia. Lenny and Jinny decided to “just peek” at a few homes in Boca. In a moment of “joint inspiration,” they decided right then to retire, sell everything, and move to Florida. The entire transition—from house-hunting to living in Boca—took just 49 days.
In addition to hospital volunteering, he currently serves as Chairman of Company A, a 36-year-old group of retired men who meet weekly to discuss items of national and local interest and share breakfast at the Boca Delray Country Club.
“Helping people is just in my blood,” he said. From a New York nightclub to a Boca hospital, from cruise ships to cantor and community activists, Lenny and Jinny are still very much An Act Together. If you are interested in volunteering at Boca Regional Hospital, please call 561-955-4098. A wonderful experience awaits you.
