The first time I walked into the California State Capitol to advocate, I almost turned around.

I remember standing outside the building thinking that I do not belong here. I was not an elected official. I was not a policy expert. I was a volunteer, a woman who cared deeply about women’s health and justice but I still carried a quiet doubt about stepping into rooms of influence.

And then I remembered Henrietta Szold.

In 1912, before women in America could even vote, Henrietta founded Hadassah. She did not wait for an invitation. She did not soften her ambition. She organized American Jewish women to build the health infrastructure in a land that was still forming its identity. She believed women could do more than support causes – that they could build institutions.

That belief changed Jewish history. It also changed me.

I did not grow up in a home where authority felt steady or safe, so stepping into leadership as an adult did not feel automatic. It felt vulnerable.

When I first became involved with Hadassah, I was happy to help. I could plan. I could speak. But I did not immediately see myself as someone who belonged at the decision-making table.

Hadassah saw it before I........

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