News U.S. Longtime Hadassah leader dies at 101 Facebook Twitter Email SMS WhatsApp Share By JTA | January 9, 2015 Ruth Popkin, who served as national president of Hadassah and the Jewish National Fund, has died. Popkin died Jan. 2 at the age of 101. She served as the 18th national president of Hadassah, the Women’s Zionist Organization, and was later named an honorary vice president of the organization. She also served as the national president of JNF from 1989 until 1993, and was a Century Council member. Popkin also was a past member of the executive board of AIPAC, the cabinet of the American Zionist Movement, the board of directors of the United Israel Appeal and American Friends of Hebrew University. In 1987 she was the first woman elected as chair of the presidium and president of the World Zionist Congress. — jta JTA Content distributed by the Jewish Telegraphic Agency news service. Also On J. Letters Free speech at S.F. State; ‘Love for all Jews’ has a limit; etc. Books Agatha Christie novels edited to remove offensive references to Jews Bay Area Neo-Nazi leader arrested in San Jose after threatening journalist World Israeli turmoil spills over into European Jewish leaders' summit Subscribe to our Newsletter Enter Email Sign Up