The Denver and LEA chapters of Hadassah are merging to form the Hadassah Greater Denver chapter, effective Jan. 1, 2023.
L-r: Jan Fisher, Risa Buckstein, Belle Kauvar
The new board consists of members of the two former chapters. They were formally installed on Dec. 18. Jan Fisher is the new chapter president. She first joined Hadassah in Minneapolis in 1973. She has served on the board of the LEA chapter in different capacities over the past 20 years. Her biggest interests are educational programs and the work of the Jewish Community Relations Council.
In addition to Fisher, the new executive board consists of Cecile Zelinsky, treasurer; Sherrie Davidson, corresponding secretary and programming; Barbara Lipkin, records administrator; Della Levy, philanthropy; Norma Sierota, membership and engagement; Janet Smith, vice president, leadership; Roni Ogin, vice president, marketing and communications; Maureen Goldman, vice president, education and advocacy and programming; Eileen Naiman, recording secretary; Ileane Kopelson, Dale Marcus and Dorothy Resnick.
The merger is a major event in the history of Hadassah, the Women’s Zionist Organization of America, in the metro Denver area.
The Denver chapter was founded in 1915, just three years after Henrietta Szold founded Hadassah as a Zionist organization, combining the Jewish emphasis on social welfare, medical care and education with the ideology of Zionism.
The chapter grew from 200 members in 1918 to over 1,800 by 1948, when the State of Israel was founded. The first president, J. Kolinsky served from 1915-1917. Belle Kauvar, wife of Rabbi Hillel Kauvar of BMH Synagogue, also served as an early president.
In 1924, the Denver chapter established a Junior Hadassah chapter to interest young women in the cause. Participants in a Chanukah party were urged to fill empty milk bottles with coins so the “Jewish babies of Palestine would receive a generous Chanukah gift from Denver Jewry.”
In March 1948, over 4,000 women were invited to attend a donor fundraising luncheon to assist Hadassah as the official medical defense arm of the Jewish Agency, which was then fighting for Israel’s existence.
Judith Epstein, a great Jewish woman leaders in the US, was featured speaker.
By then, Hadassah had grown from two nurses sent to Palestine in 1913 to building a major medical center on Mt. Scopus in Jerusalem.
Hadassah also supported Youth Aliyah, a program which brought 25,000 children from war-torn Europe to Palestine.
Hadassah doctors treated soldiers wounded in the War of Independence.
Over the years, Denver chapter has raised funds in support of Hadassah’s projects in Israel and in the US.
Its women have served in leadership positions in the chapter, Desert-Mountain Region and on the national board.
Its format has changed over the years from an array of various groups to one unified chapter.
For a while, Hadassah supported Aviva, an evening group of younger women, and Mt. Scopus, a business and professional group.
It also supported study and book groups and a bowling group and offered a variety of programs and philanthropic events.
While the structural specifics have changed, the chapter’s purpose has remains to raise funds to support the mission and goals of the national organization.
The LEA (Littleton, Englewood, Aurora) chapter of Hadassah was established in June, 1988, after a small group of women discussed how to attract young Jewish women living in the southest metro area to join Hadassah. Wendy Ruby, then president of Denver Chapter, was supportive of the endeavor.
Marion Bean was the founding (pro tem) president and the late Risa Buckstein served as first president.
From its inception, LEA fostered personal Jewish growth among its members and provided a network to investigate their roots, strengthen their identity and gain satisfaction from helping Hadassah with its projects.
In its first 25 years, the chapter raised nearly $1 million for Hadassah, supporting medical research and patient care and rescuing refugee children and children from dysfunctional families.
The chapter has supported a study group, two book groups, as well as social, philanthropic and educational events. Its members have been involved in leadership positions at the chapter, regional and national levels. Some have won prestigious awards.
LEA Chapter has produced a women’s symposium, co-produced “Women in the Arts” with Denver chapter and Mizel Museum, ran a program for preschool children and their mothers, advocated at the US Capitol and at the Colorado State House for various causes and legislation.
In 2022, with changes in demographics, Denver and LEA chapters decided to merge into one chapter to better support the mission of Hadassah.
The Hadassah Greater Denver chapter is committed to upholding the Jewish values of pikuach nefesh (saving lives), klal Yisrael (one people, Israel) and tikkun olam (repairing the world).
Information: www.hadassah.org.
