In the litany of rising voices, letters to editors, website comments, and random back-of-the-shul conversations, you hear the angst and worry and mild resentment about the rising cost of making a simchah. The rich are guilty, because they’re the ones who raised the bar. No, the middle class is guilty, because they can’t live within their means. Actually, it’s the lower-income families, because by being swept along, they leave no options for those who want to buck the trend of expensive simchahs.
It’s all a big question mark, because until someone actually figures it out — the numbers, the practicalities, the details — it’s just background noise.
The thing is, there is someone who did.
At a simpler time, nearly 20 years ago, Reb Shia Markowitz made it his mission to help create uniform simchah guidelines, a concept dating back to the great kehillos of centuries ago. A skilled and experienced businessman, Reb Shia invested personal resources, time, and energy when he undertook the project, networking, persuading, listening.
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