It is the deepest honor to write for the first time as CEO of HIAS. For more than 120 years, this organization has stood at the intersection of Jewish memory and urgent global need. In every generation, HIAS has answered a simple but profound question: Who will stand alongside those forced to flee?
HIAS was born from a simple truth: Jews fleeing persecution and violence needed safety, and too often, the world turned their back. That call to act has defined us ever since, and it is etched into my own identity — as I know it is for many of you. It remains the foundation for all we do today: standing up for refugees and asylum seekers of every background, fighting antisemitism and anti-immigrant hate, keeping families together, helping them not only to survive but to thrive, and ensuring that those who are forced to flee can find safety — and are never left to face the world alone.
My path to this role has been shaped by over two decades in refugee resettlement and international development, from work on displacement and poverty alleviation across Africa to senior leadership at two U.S. resettlement agencies. Since joining HIAS in 2023, I have been deeply engaged in confronting the sector’s toughest challenges, standing with colleagues to ensure that our voice pushes back against policies that demonize immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers.
Looking ahead, I want to be clear. HIAS will be unapologetic about our Jewish grounding and bold in our global reach. We will meet crisis with compassion but also invest in lasting opportunity — so families can rebuild their lives with dignity and agency. We will speak truth to power, even when it is unpopular, because our history demands nothing less. And we will open our arms to the next generation of supporters and leaders who feel called to carry this work forward.
We will speak truth to power, even when it is unpopular, because our history demands nothing less.
I step into this role shaped by the story that has always guided HIAS, and with determination to carry that legacy into a new generation. HIAS’ story belongs to you — our community of supporters — who for more than a century have turned history’s hardest moments into a call to act. Together, we now have the chance to write the next chapter: one where welcome is not rare but expected.
Thank you for your faith in HIAS, for standing with refugees and asylum seekers, and for trusting me to lead this sacred work. With your partnership, we will ensure that the doors of welcome never close.
With gratitude,
Beth Oppenheim, Chief Executive Officer
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