Volunteering: My Lifetime Passion

I have had wonderful role models in my life. My beloved maternal grandmother Gussie Stempler Langer Burstein and my mother Shirley Langer Ettinger were the first ones. And then there were my courtesy aunts Selma Weiser, Lillian Treiser and Grace Weill Backer.

I was born in Brooklyn, N.Y., but raised in Bloomfield and Sussex, N.J. I spent my college years in Bridgeport, Conn., and Charlottesville, Va. Then, 50 years ago, I moved to Westchester County, N.Y., where I have lived ever since.

At each step along the way, one of these incredible women acted as my role model. These amazing mentors volunteered for different causes in different ways. They held various offices in the organizations they supported.

My Polish immigrant grandmother Gussie supported Hadassah, Israel Bonds and the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society. She sold journal ads and raffle tickets and took part in other fundraising activities. Armed with a deep intellect, curiosity and a driving compassion, she raised a lot of funds despite being of modest means.

My mother Shirley volunteered for the American Legion Auxiliary, Alexander Linn Hospital and the Sussex Garden Club. She worked on public relations, solicited items for auction and financially supported our small local hospital. Volunteering as “A Pink Lady,” she would visit patients, offering them magazines from her cart, such as Reader’s Digest.

Her years as chair of the Whistle Stop Thrift Shop she founded and opened in an old station house were epic. She once sold her own raincoat rather than lose a sale! My college dorm rooms and first apartment were furnished with Whistle Stop finds and treasures.

I learned by Mom’s side. When she chaired the hospital auxiliary committee making dolls for sale, I took photos of my cousin surrounded by the colorful beauties. It resulted in my first- published photos in the New Jersey Herald newspaper, which would later lead me to receive a summer journalism scholarship.

Selma was a lovely doctor’s wife and family friend. She was our Brownie and Girl Scout leader. We loved her enthusiasm, sincerity and resilience. The activities she planned were fun and taught us small life lessons.

Lillian was an optometrist’s wife and family friend, as well as our landlady for six years. I loved to help tend her flowers and to edit community cookbooks and cook and bake delicious Jewish delicacies with her. She was my model for everything Jewish; much of what I needed to know as an adult woman I learned from her.

Grace was an agricultural agent’s wife. The mother of five, she was one of Mom’s oldest friends from Brooklyn and responsible, in part, for my parents’ decision to settle in northern N.J. Always ready to hit the road for adventure, a project or just a ride into the countryside, Aunt Grace and her run-down station wagon were our “ground zero” transportation for trips. She was an intrepid driver and took us everywhere before Mom learned to drive.

These lovely ladies were my mother’s best friends. They hosted graduation and bridal lunches for me. When my parents passed away in 2016, their guidance was invaluable.

They shared several positive characteristics: passion for their projects, dependability and resourcefulness and love for their families, friends, America and Israel. I have modeled their behavior in my own life.

I kept in mind the lessons they taught me the two times that I chaired the Hadassah Westchester Region’s Hands of Healing luncheons. These major fundraising functions were attended by 250 to 500 or more people and raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for Hadassah projects in Israel.

To ensure the greatest success, I chose a top-notch committee to select a venue, create invitations, record responses, vet keynote speakers from the Hadassah Speaker’s Bureau’s finest and select our chapter and region honorees. The tasks might have been arduous in normal times, but the 9/11attack occurred during the critical weeks leading up to our event. We questioned: Should we cancel the event? Would our honorees and speakers still attend? How much would we lose if we cancelled? Would it be safe to have our event? Could we finalize our reservation count and seating?

We were frightened by the attack and its repercussions, but more concerned with letting the attacks take away our most important fundraiser of the year. We took a vote; to a woman, we agreed not to cancel the fundraiser. Our event was one of the most well-attended of the year, raising much-needed funds for Hadasah Hospital construction and furnishings.

I have learned that volunteering can take as little or as much time as you have available in your life at any given time. Today’s technology allows for worldwide communication via Zoom and emails. There are roles small and large –from chairing or hosting an event to advocating for important issues locally and on the state, national and international levels to making some phone calls, selling Mahjong cards or baking cookies.

Volunteering, I also learned, is a way to develop new skills that can enhance your performance in your paid employment. You can train in various free seminars and practice your new skills on volunteer assignments. There is always something new to learn, with various opportunities to gain experience.

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Linda is a member of the Hadassah Writers’ Circle, a dynamic and diverse writing group for leaders and members to express their thoughts and feelings about all the things Hadassah does to make the world a better place. It’s where they celebrate their personal Hadassah journeys and share their Jewish values, family traditions and interpretations of Jewish texts. Since 2019, the Hadassah Writers’ Circle has published nearly 500 columns in The Times of Israel Blogs and other Jewish media outlets. Interested? Please contact hwc@hadassah.org.