When Judy Ron gave birth to her daughter at the Hadassah hospital in Jerusalem, she said what she saw was “remarkable.”

At the time, Ron was living and working in Israel. She had a shared room in the maternity ward with a Christian woman and an Arab woman.

“We speak of Hadassah as providing peace through medicine and I saw it firsthand, and it is so aligned with my heart and soul,” said Ron.

Ron, managing director of Hadassah Mid-Atlantic, has worked for Hadassah for 21 years and plans to retire in January.

“Over the past two decades, I’ve had the privilege of working alongside extraordinary volunteers, dedicated colleagues, and passionate leaders who share an unwavering commitment to Hadassah’s values and vision,” Ron said.

While Ron always knew she wanted to work in the nonprofit world, she didn’t seek out working for a Zionist organization. It wasn’t until she learned about Hadassah’s mission that knew she wanted to work for it.

“A lot of people look at jobs as jobs. It’s a nine-to-five thing. It’s sort of drudgery,” she said. “For me, Hadassah and my career have been so much more than that because I believe so much in the work that we do. We say that it’s practical Zionism, and to me, helping bridge peace.”

After earning a master’s degree in public policy from the University of Michigan, Ron spent the summer as a research assistant for a professor at Hebrew University she had met in Ann Arbor. In Israel, she met her husband and took a job working for the newly established Jerusalem Bureau of The Washington Post.

“It was an especially exciting time in Israel’s history,” Ron said.

It was the first time an Arab leader, Egyptian President Anwar Sadat, visited the Jewish state.

“I remember the tremendous joy and optimism that surrounded the possibility of peace,” she added. “It was a highlight of my life.”

Ron was born and raised in Philadelphia in a long-standing Labor Zionist family. She attended Hebrew school, but said her Jewish identity was entirely shaped by her experience at the Jewish summer camp Habonim Dror Camp Galil in Bucks County.

For Ron, being a Zionist meant supporting the existence of the state of Israel as a Jewish state, but she said in her work, she sees “different flavors of Zionism.”

“What I like so much about Hadassah is [that] it’s not political,” she said. “There’s not one way of looking at Israel. I would say the common thread is that our members do support Israel as a Jewish state and we care very much about the future … I would say that we are Hadassah, the Zionist women’s organization of America, but it can mean different things to different people.”

Ron added while she always worked in the nonprofit space, Hadassah became a nonprofit that she could “truly embrace.”

“Our members do not all share the same political views or the same perspectives on how to address the tremendous challenges Israel faces,” she said. “But what unites us is our deep concern for Israel’s future and our desire to continue to see it flourish as a vibrant Jewish state. And I certainly am one of these people.”

Ron said that she is grateful to have been a part of a community that provided a safe space for the grief and uncertainty she and many others were feeling after Oct. 7.

“I feel fortunate to be leaving a job that I have enjoyed and embraced for so many years, while also looking forward to spending more time with family and friends,” she said. “I am excited to explore new opportunities that give me purpose and allow me to continue making a difference because that’s what I’m about.”

mresnicow@midatlanticmedia.com