From Chihuly to chemicals, Faith Berger’s second act is about the art of science

BY JORDAN PALMER | CHIEF DIGITAL CONTENT OFFICER

When we began our “Second Acts” series, we thought the stories would be about people who found a new calling for themselves after a successful career. Until now, that has included people who retired from arguably high stress, high power positions to a more laid-back way of life. But that is not the second act story of Faith Berger.

At first glance, Berger’s second act isn’t as far a stretch from her first act as it might appear.

Berger’s family has always called St. Louis home. Her paternal grandparents emigrated from Russia, and once settled, opened a small furniture shop. Her mother’s family owned a local shoe store called Toby’s Shoes. As a young woman, Berger worked at Toby’s before leaving for a position at Venture Stores, where she became a children’s shoe buyer.

“My mother got the retail bug when I was in college in 1979 and opened a retail frame shop that later spawned into the Barucci Gallery,” said Berger.

In 1987, Berger left Venture to join her mother at the gallery. Over the next three decades, the two sold millions of dollars worth of art and introduced hundreds of artists to the region. Along the journey, Faith married Corey Berger, had two children, Jordan and Amanda, and is now a grandmother of two.

Berger, a longstanding member of Congregation B’nai Amoona, spent 35 years in the art business. She owned and operated Barucci Gallery in Clayton for more than 27 years. Barucci is often credited with bringing the “American Studio Glass Movement” to St. Louis and featured many national and international artists such as Romero Britto and Dale Chihuly.

Berger hosted dozens of artist openings throughout the years benefiting numerous charitable organizations from her show proceeds. And she promoted and served as an ambassador of the burgeoning St. Louis art scene, as well as collaborating with other art galleries in the community. She was recently asked to be a judge for the 2022 St Louis Art Fair in September.

One highlight of Berger’s collaboration efforts was the creation of the Clayton Triangle to promote art and boutiques at the intersection of Maryland Avenue and Brentwood Boulevard in Clayton. This was a successful venture garnering her the Chamber’s Retailer of the Year Award.

In 2007, she founded Faith Berger Art Consultants, to continue and help enhance her art planning and design firm. The firm served residential and commercial spaces for clients both locally and nationally. Berger has continued her journey in the arts through her own painting and collage work.

Time for a second act

In 2020, Berger and her son Jordan decided to purchase Taylor Scientific, a St. Louis-based laboratory chemical distributor, from her husband, who was retiring. Berger became CEO, and her second act was underway.

“Science and art have a distinct con- nection in my mind. Taylor Scientific is an extension of my career in terms of managing and growing a company. I have always been interested in bigscale business,” said Berger.

So, instead of dealing with artists, collectors and shows, she is now dealing with corporations with strict rules and regulations related to chemicals and lab supplies.

“Interestingly, many government contracts must award art contracts in their bids,” said Berger. “This bonus allows me to combine my skills when dealing with labs that are being constructed or redesigned, we can supply items they need because of my design background.”

Buying the business allowed Berger to apply to be a certified “WomanOwned Business,” thus opening doors to work on extending accounts and pitching new ones.

“Being a WOB is very exciting in the field of chemical and lab supplies because very few women are involved in leadership roles,” said Berger.

Staying creative

As an artist and designer, Berger is finding new outlets for her creativity. The planning of new business strategies based on current economic conditions requires as much artistic thought as creating a new painting or collage.

“I find business to be an outlet. Coupled with customer service and building relationships, we identify our niche,” said Berger. “To be financially successful in the art business, you must have a business plan. My business strategy is similar to what I implemented while owning Barucci Gallery.”

Painting, design and business are completely intertwined for Berger. Something will happen in business and stimulate an idea for a painting. Likewise, something she may read can stimulate a creative idea for approaching a potential client. There is a definite crossover between her first and second acts.

“I have fantastic teams and I can be attentive to both. I have a wonderful group for Faith Berger Art Consultants and the business continues to operate because of the format we developed,” said Berger. “Bottom line, whether it’s chemicals, art, or any chosen field, if you love what you do, you’ll become a student of how to incorporate and improve your skills.”

Tuesday, April 19, 2022

6:30 P.M.

The Factory

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Jonathan Greenblatt

CEO and National Director of ADL (Anti-Defamation League) Tickets ($10)

Chesterfield, Missouri continued from page 25 community grow and to see the impact we’re having on so many Jewish families in our county. We’re at the point where it’s hard to imagine a St. Charles without it.”

Chaim Landa wants to grow the St. Charles Jewish community this year.

“As a community, we’ve accomplished a lot in two short years,” he said. “We’ve had some really big events, like Hanukkah on Main Street and the Jewish Festival, and those have been amazing. St. Charles has really embraced them. But what gives us the greatest joy is seeing dozens of adults coming together every Shabbat, young children and their mothers learning about Judaism in a fun and meaningful way each Sunday. These reflect a real and growing community.”

Landa says another sign of St. Charles County’s burgeoning Jewish community are the many connections being made through the Chabad Jewish Center.

Not long ago, Landa had a meeting in a coffee shop near his home. When he walked in, he was delighted to see two Jewish couples he knew, sitting together. Both were St. Charles residents and had met and become friends at Chabad.

“When you see Jews connecting in other settings, you know something good is happening,” he says. “That’s a success story.”

A virtual Jewish community launches in St. Charles

The size of the St. Charles area and the lack of a centralized meeting place for the Jewish community offered the Chabad Jewish Center of St. Charles a chance to try something different: an online community. Thus was born the Facebook page Being Jewish In St. Charles (@ BeingJewishStCharles). The page offers a glimpse inside the lives of Jews who live and work in the area, told through firstperson photo essays.

It’s the brainchild of Landa, with assistance from Lindy Drew, the co-founder of the popular Facebook page Humans of St. Louis. Drew, who is Jewish, said an online community is an ideal connection vehicle for this type of undertaking.

“We know there are over 6,000 Jews in the St. Charles region,” said Drew, 43. “This community has the potential to depend on each other and be connected and to find friendships and relationships. Why not try to give them an opportunity to share their stories for how they arrived, and their background and how they connect to religion?”

The Facebook page started sharing the photo stories in October. Its goal is to seek out and feature more of the Jewish St. Charles residents. Social media has become a useful method to form connections, Drew said.

“Knowing the power of storytelling, when you hear someone’s individual experiences and lessons learned in life and beautiful connections combined with a really intimate photo of them shared through social media, there’s a power in seeing the story,” she said.

Welcoming diversity

Just outside the office of St. Charles County Executive Steve Ehlmann sits a tzedakah (charity) box. Ehlmann attended the 2021 St. Charles Jewish Festival and the menorah lighting on

Main Street. Last summer, outside his office, he watched the printing of the “Tanya,” the book detailing the philosophy of the Hasidic movement.

Ehlmann, an educator-turned-politician, enjoys learning about different cultures and religions. In 1976, when he taught world history at Clayton High School, he said he “was shocked to find out my Jewish students knew more about Christianity than my non-Jewish students.”

He has written a referenced history of the St. Charles Jewish Community dating back to the 1820s. And he’s encouraged to see St. Charles emerge as welcoming to the Jewish community, but he has the same hopes for any faith group.

“I’m very happy to see any religious organization be successful out here,” Ehlmann said. “Of course, government has to be apart from church, but it doesn’t mean we can’t be rooting from the sidelines. I’d do the same thing for any Protestant or Catholic or Muslim organization that would ask me to participate.”

Hanukkah was celebrated Dec. 2, 2021, in O’Fallon, Mo., at the city’s main police station, to the delight of Mayor Bill Hennessy, who said, “Hopefully that happens every year because, in O’Fallon, we welcome everybody, all races and religions.”

The event was organized by Landa, who is also one of the O’Fallon Police Department’s newest chaplains. Having a Jewish chaplain on board made a good fit, according to John Neske, acting chief of police.

“Rabbi Landa has several qualities that will make him a good chaplain for our department,” Neske said. “Most police officers are Type A personalities, and they respect and respond positively to confidence. Rabbi Landa is a natural teacher. I see how he converses with people, and he enjoys explaining or describing things about the Jewish faith.”

The emergence of the Jewish community in St. Charles County is welcome news to Dan Borgmeyer, mayor of St.

Charles city. He has participated in the menorah lighting on Main Street for the past three years and was an early proponent of the St. Charles Jewish Festival. He also sees it as being an anchor event for the city.

“I want the next Jewish Festival to be like Hill Day,” Borgmeyer said. “I want Jewish dancers, Jewish music, Jewish exhibits, Jewish food. I would like a large part of the Jewish population in St. Louis to be there.”

Borgmeyer recently formed the Mayor’s Multicultural Task Force in an effort to get input and representation from a diverse cross-section of people. It includes African American, Jewish, Hispanic, Vietnamese and Asian members. His goal is to create a one or twoday St. Charles multicultural festival next year not unlike the International Festival held annually in St. Louis’ Tower Grove Park.

“It will be an opportunity to see what diversity is and to understand cultures better and ultimately make the city better,” he said.

Ehlmann is looking forward to this year’s version of the St. Charles Jewish Festival.

“We’ll help get twice as many people there,” Ehlmann said. “If you’ve got good food and good fellowship, people will show up and, to the extent that it helps people understand other religions, that’s just an added benefit.”