Lillian Bilsky Freiman (1885-1940)

Lillian Bilsky Freiman was a Jewish Canadian organizer, activist, and benefactor who dedicated her life to community service. She worked tirelessly to improve the health and welfare of Canadians through her charitable efforts. As president of Hadassah-WIZO (Women’s International Zionist Organization) from 1919 to 1940, Freiman turned this group into a truly national organization.

Born to Moses and Pauline Bilsky in Mattawa, Ontario, Freiman grew up in a large religious and community-oriented family. In 1903, she married Ottawa businessman A.J. Freiman. As a long-serving president of Hadassah-WIZO during the first half of the 20^th century, Freiman was a central figure of the Canadian Zionist movement. She transformed this group into one of the largest and most influential women’s organizations in Canada. Under her leadership, the organization was effective on many national and international fronts in the areas of health, education, and culture. In addition to her work with Hadassah-WIZO, Freiman undertook numerous charitable efforts. In 1920, she organized and became president of the Jewish War Orphans’ Committee of Canada. This group sent money, clothes, and medical supplies to some 137,000 Jewish children orphaned by pogroms, and helped around 150 orphans immigrate to Canada. Much of this work with orphans took place in Rovno, which is now part of the Ukraine, but at the time was part of Poland. Freiman herself travelled overseas to help with the Committee’s work and bring children to Canada. In 1934, Freiman became an advocate for Youth Aliyah, a movement formed to help Jewish children escape persecution in Nazi Germany by sending them to Israel.

Freiman devoted attention to many other national and civic initiatives. Volunteering to help raise funds for Canadian veterans after the First World War, in 1921, she made the first Canadian poppies in her living room, earning her the moniker “Poppy Lady.” Freiman also helped establish the Perley Home for Incurables, which provided care to people with seemingly incurable diseases. She readily assisted the Canadian Red Cross, the Canadian National Institute for the Blind, the Girl Guides, the Roman Catholic Institut Jeanne d'Arc, and the City of Ottawa. In 1934, she was the first Jewish Canadian to be inducted into the Order of the British Empire. While always reasserting her Jewish identity, Lillian Bilsky Freiman was a gifted organizer who forged intercultural ties between her community and all Canadians through her community service.