This year, Yom Ha’atzmaut, or Israel’s Independence Day, falls on May 1, and Mother’s Day on May 11. And though it may not be readily apparent, the concepts at the core of the two holidays—national sovereignty and motherhood—are intricately bound.

Mother’s Day was established in the United States in 1914, but its origins are directly traceable to the Mothers’ Day Work Clubs initiated by social activist and community organizer Ann Jarvis to improve sanitation in Civil War military camps, where typhoid and other diseases spread rapidly.

Today, more than 100 nations observe Mother’s Day in May. Israel is not among them—and therein lies a Hadassah story. Henrietta Szold’s public health activism was akin to that of Ann Jarvis. When our founder arrived in Jerusalem for the first time, in 1909, she was both horrified and motivated by the severity of the diseases—typhoid, malaria and especially the constant buzzing of flies around the eyes of children, a mark of trachoma—that she witnessed.

Three years later, she founded Hadassah and went on to launch the medical mission that built the foundations of what would become Israel’s national health care system. In the process, she thrust women into leadership roles in the Zionist movement, ensuring that it would not be an exclusively male domain.

In the 1930s, already in her 70s, she took the helm of Youth Aliyah, the movement to shelter and educate refugee Jewish children from Nazi Germany—and eventually refugee and immigrant youth from everywhere. Over time, thousands of children came to regard Szold, who never had children of her own, as a revered mother figure.

When Israel gained independence in 1948, many in the country were familiar with the concept of Mother’s Day, but there was debate over when it should be observed. The issue was resolved in 1951, when 11-year-old Nechama Frankel wrote a letter to the Ha’aretz newspaper suggesting the holiday honor the memory of Szold. The idea took hold. Though the festive day’s name has since been broadened to the more inclusive Family Day, it continues to be observed on the 30th of Shevat, Szold’s yahrzeit, which usually comes in January or February.

More than a century after our organization’s founding, members of Hadassah—whether they have many children or none—are proud of our record as a women’s movement that played an essential role in birthing a nation. We are proud of our advocacy for women’s rights and equally proud of upholding the healing, nurturing and maternal dimensions of our Zionism. We have been the enablers of women’s equality in the United States, in the American Jewish community and in modern Israel.

Since October 7, 2023, Hadassah has been at the forefront of fighting for justice for the victims of Hamas, pressing the United Nations, the International Committee of the Red Cross and other world bodies to recognize, condemn and struggle against not only terrorism but also the weaponization of sexual violence.

And as we have defended Israel’s national existence and its right and responsibility of self-defense, the Hadassah Medical Organization has been a key player in the treatment and rehabilitation of soldiers and civilians injured in the Gaza war.

Enemies and critics notwithstanding, Israel continues to be a light unto the nations. And that status is written into the Jewish calendar as well. On the evening of June 1, we will begin the celebration of Shavuot, which commemorates, among other things, the receiving of the Torah at Mount Sinai. Shavuot closes a monthlong circle that encompasses not only nationhood and nurturing but also the Jewish ethical foundation that has had an enormous influence on all humanity.

If I have one wish at this moment, it is that the priorities at the center of these observances continue to permeate our hearts long after the holidays have ended.