JCC BookFest gives fresh start to ’23 on Jan. 26

By Deb Silverthorn

The air, and our skin, will clear at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 26, when Dr. Fayne L. Frey, author of “The Skincare Hoax,” is featured at the Aaron Family JCC’s Margot Rosenberg Pulitzer Dallas Jewish BookFest.

“Fayne’s mission is to help people understand ‘expensive’ isn’t always better, that skincare products purchased at a high-end store aren’t likely better than what’s at the corner drugstore. She’s done the research and she knows what she’s talking about,” said Farin, founder and publisher of 50Plus-Today.com with Facebook, Instagram and other platforms providing a voice and community for those age 50-plus and their families.

Raised in Berkeley Heights, New Jersey, Frey is an alumna of Governor Livingston High School, Boston University and Weill Cornell Medical College.

Her parents and extended family members, involved in many areas of the entertainment business, were almost “disappointed,” she says, when she announced she wanted to become a doctor. Always fascinated with chemistry, in her last year of medical school she decided on investigative dermatology, a career that continues to keep her amazed and inspired.

“Dermatology is a challenging arena,” said Frey, who in her West Nyack, New York, practice now mostly diagnoses and treats skin cancer. “The skincare industry is wonderful but there are those who send disingenuous messages of unattainable degrees of beauty. ‘Beauty’ comes from being a good person and that is the beauty we should all be striving for.”

Frey now lives in New City, New York, with her husband, Roger, an interventional radiologist; they are affiliated with the Orangetown Jewish Center. The couple met while in medical school and are the parents of Tali, Shay (who designed her mother’s book cover and took photos for the book), Zachary (Becca) and Solomon.

“Most consumers don’t realize what the ingredients in what they are purchasing are, or what they are for,” said Frey, the founder of FryFace.com, an educational skincare information and product selection service that clarifies and simplifies the many choices of effective, safe and affordable products on the market.

Frey’s recommendation for good, healthy skin is a regimen that parallels a healthy lifestyle of good diet, exercise, sleep and a good-sized dose of laughter. Frey says skin shields the body from so much; she adds that more and more, science has proven that the sun is the biggest cause of damage and skin cancer, and sunscreen is one of the skin’s greatest protectants.

“Fayne’s voice is unique and true,” said Leslie Farin, who grew up with Frey. The two attended Hebrew school together as young children, and Farin’s father and Frey’s parents are still neighbors. When Farin premiered 50Plus-Today, she and Frey reconnected and the skincare expert began posting articles to the forum, focused on support for older adults.

“She wants people to appreciate aging and the wrinkles and spots or lines that come with it,” said Farin. “Her philosophy matches our 50Plus-Today belief that anyone’s ‘second act’ can be as good as, if not better than, the first. Looking for purpose always and living our best in every area.”

Frey enjoys dancing, playing the piano and guitar and training as a marathon and Ironman triathlete with a daily 5- or 6-mile run. Her daily routine is to wash her face in the morning without a cleanser; to slather sunscreen on her face, neck and hands; to wear a little makeup; and to shower in the evening — again, with no cleanser but her favorite product, petroleum jelly.

“The secret, maybe not-so-secret, to good health for me at least is to be up and running, literally early in the morning, to work to follow a healthy diet and to crash early and get plenty of sleep,” said Frey. “I’m 61 years old and proud of that number, also of how I am living it.

“My message is resonating and I’m very grateful to have so many with the wind at my back,” says Frey. “Truly, your best ‘facelift’ is your smile.”

BookFest 2023 continues on Feb. 21 with Zack Bodner and his “Why Do Jewish? A Manifesto for 21st Century Jewish Peoplehood,” on Feb. 22 with Pam Jenoff and her “Code Name Sapphire,” on Feb. 26 with Peter Seymour and his “Giants of Jazz: From A to Z” and on March 15 with Shannon Sarna and her “Modern Jewish Comfort Food.”

“We are excited to begin the year with Dr. Frey’s fresh face — and fresh look at an industry that so many of us are consumed with — and to welcome our community into the building again,” said Weiss Crane. “We have a great lineup for the next few months and, as always, the J is the center of the community — we hope the center for learning, connecting and growing together in so many ways.”

To register for the Jan. 26 event, and all scheduled JCC BookFest programs, visit jccdallas.org/
special-events/bookfest. BookFest is presented by the Aaron Family JCCand Central Market, with Frey’s visit co-sponsored by Leslie Farin and 50Plus-Today.