Articles — JWI

Posts in Inspiring Women

Over 2,000 people donated to my Facebook fundraiser following the Tree of Life shooting

Over 2,000 people donated to my Facebook fundraiser following the Tree of Life shooting

By Monica Edelman

I don’t know the race, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, ability, or personal history of the vast majority of my fundraiser’s donors. In this digital age, for me they are generous little circular profile pictures alerting me of a new donation every thirty seconds. For two days I watched their faces flash and flash, over and over, continually curating new donations on the screen of my cell phone in what was a beautiful slideshow of names, both familiar and foreign, giving what they could to help out complete strangers.

News & Culture, Inspiring Women, BlogDanielle CantorNovember 8, 2018Tree of Life, Fundraiser, YWLN

Why you should absolutely, definitely, avoid the Young Women's Leadership Conference at all costs.

Why you should absolutely, definitely, avoid the Young Women's Leadership Conference at all costs.

By Susanna Lustbader

Don’t ask me to abandon my bed on a chilly afternoon in early December. After all, I have an appointment with my pillows to hole up with mac & cheese and binge watch an entire season of The Office. Why would I want to surrender my well-broken-in sweatpants for casual office attire, my day of splendid vegetation for a Young Women’s Leadership Conference?

Career, Inspiring Women, BlogDanielle CantorNovember 1, 2018Young Women, young Jewish professional women, Young Women's Leadership Conference, career

My Mom: The Activist

My Mom: The Activist

By Valerie Brown

How my mom’s civic engagement has transformed from informed citizen to activist extraordinaire - and what she’s done for her community this year.

Inspiring Women, News & Culture, BlogDanielle CantorNovember 1, 2018Civic engagement, Midterms, midterm election, 2018, 2018 election

How our Women to Watch have seen women's leadership evolve

How our Women to Watch have seen women's leadership evolve

We asked our former Women to Watch honorees how they’ve seen women’s leadership change over the last decade, and their responses show us how far we’ve come together. There’s still so much work to be done, but by recognizing the incredible women in our community, we’ve marked and honored the legacy of women who came before us.

Inspiring Women, BlogDanielle CantorOctober 9, 2018women to watch, WTW, women's issues, women's leadership, mentor

Bringing open-heartedness into 5779

Bringing open-heartedness into 5779

By Lori Weinstein

This time of year directs us to turn ourselves inside out, make amends, begin anew – with a fresh gaze and an open heart – all in our life journey to do better and be better. Open-heartedness is the journey of forgiveness. It is spacious and rejuvenating. It enables you to return to your daily battles with renewed vigor, commitment and optimism.

Inspiring Women, Spirituality, BlogDanielle CantorSeptember 12, 2018Rosh Hashanah, New Year, Yom Kippur, Jewish values, Jewish holidays, 5779

Jenny Abramson

Jenny Abramson

Three years ago, Jenny Abramson decided to follow a piece of advice that her mother gave her: If you want something done, do it yourself. Today she is the founder and managing partner of Rethink Impact, the “largest impact-oriented venture capital fund in the country with a gender lens.”

Inspiring Women, BlogDanielle CantorSeptember 4, 2018Fall 2018, Women to Watch 2018, Jenny Abramson, WTW

Mackenzie Barth

Mackenzie Barth

Mackenzie Barth is a self-described “bad eater” who didn’t touch a vegetable until she was 21. But that didn’t stop her from recognizing that college students needed a food resource geared to their lives and interests.

Inspiring Women, BlogDanielle CantorSeptember 4, 2018Fall 2018, Women to Watch 2018, Mackenzie Barth, WTW

Wendy Feldman Block

Wendy Feldman Block

Wendy Feldman Block has built a 31-year career in the commercial real estate realm, completing leasing and sales transactions totaling nearly 12 million square feet. And while building her career in a male-dominated industry, she has also demonstrated an extraordinary passion for community service.

Inspiring Women, BlogDanielle CantorSeptember 4, 2018Fall 2018, Women to Watch 2018, Wendy Feldman Block, WTW

Rabbi Lizzi Heydemann

Rabbi Lizzi Heydemann

When Rabbi Lizzi Heydemann, then 30, moved back to Chicago in 2011 after being away for more than a decade, she wanted to connect with contemporaries but didn’t see a ready avenue. She founded Mishkan, named after the tent that the Israelites carried with them through the desert.

Inspiring Women, BlogDanielle CantorSeptember 4, 2018Fall 2018, Women to Watch 2018, Rabbi Lizzi Heydemann, WTW

Dr. Logan Levkoff

Dr. Logan Levkoff

Dr. Logan Levkoff is a respected educator dedicated to perpetuating healthy and positive messages about sexuality and relationships. She teaches widely, has written multiple books about both teen and adult sexuality and is an oft-consulted expert appearing on such TV shows as Nightline, Good Morning America, and The Today Show.

Inspiring Women, BlogDanielle CantorSeptember 4, 2018Fall 2018, Women to Watch 2018, Logan Levkoff, WTW

Marlee Matlin

Marlee Matlin

Marlee Matlin has built a body of work – and a life – that reflects her versatility, her skill, her generosity, and her willingness to take risks. She has compelled us to see her not for her disability, but for her talent and humanity, and along the way has helped to normalize the inclusion of all deaf individuals.

Inspiring Women, BlogDanielle CantorSeptember 4, 2018Fall 2018, Women to Watch 2018, Marlee Matlin, WTW

Dr. Jill Saxon

Dr. Jill Saxon

Throughout Jill Saxon’s life, from the time on the number one U.S. high school soccer team, to her years as a Navy lieutenant and optometrist serving during Operation Iraqi Freedom, to her current work at the global headquarters of Bausch + Lomb, she has strived to excel, while fulfilling her goal to help people.

Inspiring Women, BlogDanielle CantorSeptember 4, 2018Fall 2018, Women to Watch 2018, Jill Saxon

Beth Chartoff Spector

Beth Chartoff Spector

A 25-year Wall Street veteran, Beth Chartoff Spector often has been the sole woman in rooms where mergers, corporate debt refinancing packages, and institutional investment decisions are hammered out. Working “to address what is a pretty big gender divide in women coming into this field” has been one of her aims.

Inspiring Women, BlogDanielle CantorSeptember 4, 2018Fall 2018, Women to Watch 2018, Beth Chartoff Spector, WTW

Laurie Strongin

Laurie Strongin

From the age of ten, Laurie Strongin showed a knack for leadership. But the full scope of her strength and ability to lead emerged when her son Henry Strongin Goldberg was diagnosed at age two weeks with a rare genetic disease, Fanconi anemia.

Inspiring Women, BlogDanielle CantorSeptember 4, 2018Fall 2018, Women to Watch 2018, Laurie Strongin

Linda Youngentob

Linda Youngentob

Through her philanthropic and hands-on involvement in multiple educational organizations throughout Montgomery County, Md., Linda Youngentob works to impact the lives of first-generation college students, many from immigrant families, by helping them apply for and succeed in college.

Inspiring Women, BlogDanielle CantorSeptember 4, 2018Fall 2018, Women to Watch 2018, Linda Youngentob, WTW

Hear Us Vote: 25 women tell us why they're voting this November.

Hear Us Vote: 25 women tell us why they're voting this November.

By Sasha Altschuler

With 67 days until the midterm elections, voting is on my mind. A vote is more than helping shape the future, it's about acknowledging and honoring the past. We are responsible for continuing the legacy of the women who fought for our right to vote; we owe it to our communities to act as a catalyst for change by taking our voices to the polls.

News & Culture, Inspiring Women, BlogDanielle CantorAugust 30, 2018voting, midterm election, midterms, women's advocacy, 2018 election, Women's equality, women running for office, Women's Suffrage, Hear Us Vote, When We All Vote

We said they were Women to Watch, and now they're running for office.

We said they were Women to Watch, and now they're running for office.

By Sue Tomchin

Former JWI Women to Watch, Kathy Manning and Susie Turnbull are among the hundreds of women who decided that 2018 was the right time to run for office.

Inspiring Women, Career, BlogDanielle CantorJune 12, 2018women in office, Women in politics, Politics

On Friend’s Day, Honoring an interfaith friendship.

On Friend’s Day, Honoring an interfaith friendship.

By Steph Black

There are holidays for everything—National Hug Your Cat Day is June 4; National Ice Cream Day is July 1; and World Emoji Day is July 17. While I certainly love my cat, Goose, eat my share of ice cream and appreciate a good emoji as much as the next gal, I am also happy that there’s a day to honor friendship—June 8, national friends day.

I’d like to tell you about a friend who has impacted my life in an unexpected way.

Inspiring Women, Women's Issues, BlogDanielle CantorJune 8, 2018friendship, strong friendships, female friendships

A Chapter in History Women Need to Know About

A Chapter in History Women Need to Know About

By Sue Tomchin

Journalist Elaine Weiss thinks of herself as well-read. She votes in every election and considers herself politically aware. But five years ago she realized there was a glaring gap in her knowledge.

Inspiring Women, News & Culture, Women's Issues, BlogDanielle CantorJune 5, 2018voting, Womens suffrage, womens rights, midterms, midterm election, Primary, primary voting

Fighting Back Against Mom's Wage Gap

Fighting Back Against Mom's Wage Gap

By Steph Black

The paycheck of the most important woman in your life will only be 71% of her male counterpart. The woman who raised and cared for you will be economically hampered due to stereotypes and bias. But we think your mom deserves better.

Inspiring Women, Women's Issues, Career, BlogDanielle CantorMay 30, 2018equal pay, Moms Equal Pay Day