Sheila Shuster Macks

Volunteerism has set the tone for my entire adult life. After graduating from college in Buffalo, where I met my future husband, I worked in the Manhattan headquarters of a multi-divisional corporation as personnel manager for a staff of 300.  It was high-powered, exciting, lots of pressure and I loved it.  Had it not been for marriage and children, I would probably be there still. The Buffalo community in which my husband, Lester, was raised had an old-fashioned view of marriage and family.  It was generally agreed, that if a woman continued to work after marriage, it signaled her husband was not capable of supporting her.  As a result, although we were living in Westchester and not in Buffalo, Lester asked that I retire after we were married.  I compromised.  I worked until I became pregnant and then retired. Talk about culture shock!  I found it really hard to stay home with babies after leading such an active and creative life.  I tried working out of the house, but it wasn’t particularly satisfying. One the first day of Nursery for my daughter, I met with a group of other mothers.  We all had to stay for the first few hours and in the course of conversation, one of them asked me if I would like to join a Hadassah chapter and learn how to bake a challah.  I met with one of the mothers and, carrying shopping bags full of flour, yeast and eggs, we went to my first meeting.  There, at trestle tables with women who were all checking each other’s dough – too dry/too wet/more flour/more water/knead/knead/knead – I met and bonded with these women, who became my friends, my social life in couples and my support system in times of need.  Together we have shared life-cycle events for the past thirty-plus years. Over the years Hadassah has given me a purpose and an identity apart from Lester’s wife and Wendy and Allie’s mom.  I work for an organization which supports hospitals and medical research in Israel with the potential to find answers to heal all humankind.  As a member of the National Board, it has given my life structure, particularly after the death of my husband.  I love my family and see my children and my grandchildren often, but my focus is my volunteer life.