Jewish Family Service has long been the safety net of Tidewater’s Jewish community—but it all began with a group of determined women.
In March 1902, the Hebrew Ladies Charity Society was formed when Fannie Brenner gathered a small group of Jewish women to create a society dedicated to helping the less fortunate. It takes a village, and Jewish Tidewater’s foundation was built by these women.
Fannie Brenner served as president for an extraordinary 25 years. Other founding members included: Bertha Siegel, Mrs. Glasser, Mrs. Ray Cohen, Rosa Brener, Sara Legum, Rebecca Goodman, Hennye Shaeffer, Annie Spensky, and Frieda Shapiro.
At the time, annual dues were $3, with an additional 25 cents collected each month. These modest amounts funded generous acts of kindness. The women visited the sick, fed the hungry, comforted the lonely, and raised funds for those in need. Long before Jewish communal institutions were established, it was these women who quietly and compassionately laid the foundation. Today, much of Tidewater’s Jewish communal life rests on the groundwork they built. Eventually, Jewish Family Service formed, and the Hebrew Ladies Charity Society dismantled. The money remaining from the Hebrew Ladies Charity Society was set up in a fund to continue carrying out their efforts and is still utilized by JFS to help people in need.
Many of the descendants of these remarkable women reside in Tidewater today. Through her own family research, Ellen Hundley discovered that her great-great grandmother, Fannie Brenner, was the founding president of the Hebrew Ladies.
“Learning that my great-great grandmother Fannie Brenner helped start this organization has been deeply meaningful. Her work not only supported those in need at the time but also planted the roots of Jewish communal life in Tidewater. The values she and the other women lived by continue to this day through Jewish Family Service and the many ways our community cares for one another,” says Hundley.
As Jewish Family Service prepares to celebrate the lasting impact of Hebrew Ladies Charity, it asks community members to look through old photos and search for familiar names to learn what personal connections exist with this extraordinary story. Those who are descendants of any of these remarkable founding members are asked to contact JFS at the email below.
Save the date for a special Hebrew Ladies Kosher Luncheon on Sunday, January 11, 2026, at Ohef Sholom Temple, where the legacy of these pioneering women will be honored, remembered, and celebrated. After all, these women built the heart of Jewish Tidewater—one act of kindness at a time.
To share a personal story about Hebrew Ladies Charity or to get involved, contact: Brooke Rush at brush@jfshamptonroads.org.