Creating an impact in areas as diverse as domestic violence awareness, chronic disease, and arts and culture is a way of life for Judith (Judy) Jorgensen. She credits her 33 years in four different Leagues with teaching her invaluable skills and connecting her with opportunities to assist her community.
A Sustainer in the Junior League of Portland, OR (JLP), Judy has also been a Member and on the Board of Directors of the New York Junior League (NYJL), the Junior League of San Francisco (JLSF), and the Junior League of San Jose (JLSJ). In each of these Leagues, she saw an opportunity to join the Board to build a new program or initiative. As JLNY’s Founding Focus Area Director on Domestic Violence Issues, Judy helped form a coalition of city agencies and Junior League volunteers to raise awareness about domestic violence. For JLSF, where she was President, she assisted in launching Women at the Center Honors, an event that recognized outstanding women leaders in the Bay Area for their community service. She formed a new Sustainer council for JLSJ to help Sustainers feel more connected to the organization. Judy is currently a Sustainer Representative to the JLP Board, where she engages and fosters collaboration between Sustainers and Active Members in the creation of a new focus area. She is a Member of the following Committees: Investment, League Planning and Budgeting, Bylaws, Crisis Management, and Issue-Based Community Impact.
JLSF has honored Judy with several awards, including Women at the Center Honors, Spirit of the League, and Sustainer of the Year. NYJL named her an Outstanding Volunteer. Judy has previously served on the Board of Directors for The Association of Junior Leagues International (AJLI) as an Area VI Director, providing leadership in the areas of member communications and issues management, technology, internationalism, and advocacy/collective action.
Judy can trace a Junior League connection back to nearly every volunteer experience in her life. This includes her work for the Arthritis Foundation Northern California Chapter, where she was on the Board of Directors, and the San Francisco Symphony, where she was on the Board of Governors, as well as President of the symphony’s San Francisco League. Judy has also served on the Board of Directors for the International Museum of Women and the Bay Area Arthritis Auxiliary. She is Parliamentarian on the Board of Directors for the National Society of Colonial Dames.
For over 30 years, Judy has held management-level communications positions, including with major publishing companies, a national trade association, and a worldwide public relations agency. Most recently, she was Executive Director of the Arthritis Foundation’s Oregon and Southwest Washington’s office. She now works as a Communications Consultant.
Judy earned a Bachelor of Arts in Comparative Literature from Occidental College and a Master of Science in Journalism from Northwestern University.
