Jamie Apody: Looking Ahead, Not Back, in Coming Year

By Jon Marks

Slowly but surely, Jamie Apody has begun to emerge from exile back into the public view.
It’s been nearly a year since Apody, whose four grandparents were all Auschwitz survivors, essentially disappeared from the WPVI Channel 6 airwaves. To this point, neither side has been willing to explain what happened.

During that span, she’s learned a lot not only about herself, but about her viewers of 18 years. And while there have surely been some downs, there have also been plenty of ups.
“It’s been eye-opening from a couple of different perspectives,” said Apody, who served as emcee and participant in the Philadelphia ZERO Cancer Run/Walk at Wilson Farm Park in Wayne on Sept. 29. “Almost like watching my own funeral, which is weird. And pretty neat to see how I was loved.”

Indeed, her Facebook page is filled with admirers saying how much they miss her on the air. Apody admits she’s missed it, too, although she has recently reemerged, making periodic guest appearances on Fox 29’s Phanatic Sports Show.

But having all this free time has also allowed her to do something she’s always longed for: getting to spend more quality time with her sons Tanner (12), Chase (10) and Brayden. “So many times during the 12 years I’ve been a mom, I had such guilt about missing things, and I missed a lot,” admitted Apody, who arrived here in 2006 after starting out in her Los Angeles hometown and spending a few years in El Paso, Texas. “Here I was paid to do this amazing job, but a lot of times I’d be at a big event and say to myself, ‘I wish I could be at some event with my kids.’

“But I had a chance this past year to see what it’s like. All three played travel baseball. I went to all 54 games they played.

“It was crazy, but they loved it.”

Otherwise, Apody says she spends much of her time doing laundry and walking their dog Biscuit, since she’s at home while her husband, Paul Coleman, is a teacher and middle school football coach. But anytime she might start feeling sorry for herself, all she has to do is think about her grandparents.

“You can’t compare what they went through to what I’ve gone through,” she quickly points out. “But my grandmother believed in fate and my dad echoes over and over that everything happens for a reason. So, I have to believe that.

“One of the interesting things about being raised by Jewish parents is you’re always instilled with a very high sense of being successful in life. So at the beginning, when dealing with this whole loss of identity, I sort of felt like a failure after being Jamie Apody on the air for 18 years.

“But having the support of my parents has been huge and made me realize this is a special time in my life I won’t ever get back. And to see the bright side in all this, I’m getting to experience things with my kids I never expected.”

She also finally has time to get involved with charity work and accept some of those speaking opportunities at synagogues she’s had to turn down in the past. That’s where the Cancer Walk comes in, which encompasses either a five-kilometer run or one-mile walk.
It’s a cause that’s near and dear for Apody because of her close relationship with her friend and mentor, the late Gary Papa. “I was approached by the zero prostate cancer run/walk people to see if I wanted to emcee,” revealed Apody, who credits Gary for making her feel at home when she first arrived. “We lost him in 2009 and I saw what he went through.
“What a great way to bring his message of early detection back to life for people getting to that age.”

Some 300 participants raised $141,000 at the event, which Apody kicked off by delivering an address expressing her regret Papa didn’t learn of his condition until it was too late. “It was great,” said Apody, still sore and weary from running 3.3 miles in her first public appearance since moderating an event at the Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History in May. “And it was cathartic for me, dealing with a little bit of fear going out in public.

“But it was great to be among so many like-minded people for an amazing cause. It was really heartwarming.”

As the new year begins, Jamie Apody is finally looking ahead, rather than back. That’s the message she wants to pass on to her legion of fans who keep telling her how much they miss her.

“I tell people turn the page and start a new chapter,” she said.

Jon Marks is a Philadelphia-area freelance writer.