AJC Atlanta to Honor Blum with Advocate Award

American Jewish Committee (AJC) Atlanta will present the 2026 Distinguished Advocate Award to Ted Blum, a leader whose commitment to Jewish values, civic responsibility, and community strengthening has shaped Jewish Atlanta for decades. The award is one of AJC Atlanta’s highest honors, celebrating individuals who advance the well-being of the Jewish people and uphold democratic principles.

Blum joins recent honorees, including Dov Wilker, Elise Eplan, A.J. Robinson, and Rabbi Peter Berg, continuing the legacy of the former Selig Distinguished Service Award, whose distinguished recipients include Erwin Zaban (z”l), Rabbi Alvin M. Sugarman (z”l), Arthur Blank, and Mike Leven.

The event will be held in Buckhead on May 12, led by Honorary Event Chairs Linda and Steve Selig and Cathy and Steve Kurnanoff, along with Event Chairs Patrice and Ernest Greer, Beth and Gregg Paradies, and Rachel and Garrett Van de Grift … as well as Cabinet Chairs Candy and Steve Berman, Nancy and Randy Gorod, Lisa and Seth Greenberg, Matt Shulman and Michelle and Gary Simon.

Blum’s impact across Jewish Atlanta is far-reaching. He chairs the Atlanta Jewish Foundation and serves on the Board of Trustees of the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta and the Board of Councilors of the AJC Atlanta. His past leadership includes serving as Board Chair of The Epstein School, serving on the board of the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival, and serving as an advisory committee member for The White Rose Society. Event host committee chairs are Mindy and Warren Binderman, Pam and Mark Rosenthal, Tamar and Mark Stern, Joyce and Ramie Tritt, and Ronit Walker and Matt Bronfman. Access host committee chairs are Michelle and Josh Blum.

Professionally, Blum chairs Greenberg Traurig’s Atlanta office and leads the Atlanta office’s corporate practice, earning respect for his clarity, creativity, and principled counsel in complex transactions. His civic work extends beyond the Jewish community. Blum served as founding chair of the Chick-fil-A Foundation Advisory Board and led the Task Force to Fight Human Trafficking and Slavery, work recognized by both the Rotary Club of Atlanta and Wellspring Living.

Blum often reflects on values shaped by his family’s history as Jewish immigrants and Holocaust survivors — stories he shares in his book, “Calculated Risks.”

Blum was also The Lowdown spotlight in Atlanta Jewish Times on July 31, 2020.