It is with great sadness that we note the passing of Hadassah Musher, a PEF trustee and widow of Sidney Musher (PEF Chairman 1985-90). Hadassah was the last surviving daughter of Rabbi Mordecai and Lena Kaplan and died soon after celebrating her 101st birthday with her children, nine grandchildren and 22 great-grandchildren.

In the fall of 1911, Henrietta Szold held parlor meetings in the Kaplan’s home to form an organization to provide medical support in Palestine. The decision to call this organization Hadassah was made in December, 1911, and, when the Kaplan’s new daughter was born in January, 1912, she, too, was named Hadassah.

When Sidney became head of the PEF-Israel Endowment Fund, Hadassah traveled with him several times each year to oversee grants to various social, cultural and educational charities. These visits led to her involvement in the Batsheva Dance Company, Ben Gurion University, Hebrew University, Israel Sinfonietta, and the Weizmann Institute, among others. She was also active in the PEF Israel Endowment Fund, Tel Aviv Museum of Art, the America Israel Cultural Foundation, and numerous cultural organizations in New York.

Remembered for her energy, vitality, devotion to family, and commitment to education and culture, Hadassah will be sorely missed by family and friends.

Excerpted from obituary published in The New York Times