Campaign All Star

Layne Zagorin was six days into her presidency of the Illinois Board of Jewish National Fund-USA when the Jewish world changed forever on October 7. “My whole world flipped,” Layne says. “I realized that life is short, and I very quickly became involved with my whole soul.” 

Just ten years ago, she was a stranger to the organization. So when she tagged along to the Global Conference for Israel in her hometown of Chicago, she was excited to discover sessions about Alexander Muss High School in Israel (AMHSI), where she had studied as a teenager…and the rest, as they say, is history.  

She began to learn more and recalls an early conversation she had with CEO Russell F. Robinson. “I said to him, ‘I’m hearing about all of these great events for young people—Shabbat in the Park in New York, Shabbat in the Desert in Arizona, and Shabbat on the Beach in LA. I live in Chicago— 

why don’t we have anything like that?’ And he pointed at me and said, ‘Because you didn’t plan it.’ And that just brought home everything that I know about Jewish history: you have to be the one to make the difference and to be the change.” 

Layne went on to chair the first Windy City Shabbat and joined the JNFuture Board, eventually joining and becoming president of the Illinois Board of Directors.  

A realtor and mother to two children and two stepchildren, Layne is particularly passionate about supporting Jewish National Fund-USA initiatives that empower Jewish mothers to raise the next generation of leaders, thinkers, and proud Zionists. Although she had been to Israel twice before, she says that when she and her father joined Jewish National Fund-USA’s Israel at 75 mission, it was an opportunity to see the country as she never had before. “When I went to Israel when I was 17 years old, I was studying Jewish history. When I returned in 2010 for my cousin’s wedding on the beach in Tel Aviv, it was a chance to see modern Israel. But when I went with Jewish National Fund-USA, it was a trip to the future.” 

The trip included visits to many Jewish National Fund-USA sites, but one in particular stands out in Layne’s mind. “Perhaps the most impressive was the lake that was built in Be’er Sheva, where 77,000 condos are now being built,” she says. “It was incredible to see a whole suburb being built because now there’s water infrastructure and work opportunities.” 

“Layne embodies the heart and soul of our mission—strategic in vision, wise in counsel, and deeply loving in her dedication to Israel and the Jewish people,” says Midwest National Campaign Director Ellen Spira Hattenbach. “Her leadership inspires all of us to dream bigger, act boldly, and give generously.” 

Layne says that she is proud to have taken such an active role in shaping Israel’s future. “Jewish National Fund-USA brings together heart and strategy,” she says. “It’s a place where donors don’t just give—they build. Whether it’s investing in education or leadership or water solutions or Zionist identity, we address the future at every level. With Jewish National Fund-USA, I have found a way to turn my values into impact, and my concern into hope.”