Summary by Melissa Grim, J.D.
Dr. Judith Richter, Global Business & Interfaith Peace Award Gold Medalist, delivered a keynote address at the 2022 Dare to Overcome National Faith ERG Conference in Washington DC. (See recording below.)
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Dr. Judith Richter is an accomplished entrepreneur and among Israel’s most distinguished business leaders. In 1993, Dr. Richter co-founded Medinol, a global medical device company that acquired a significant international position in the Interventional Cardiology and stenting industry. She has served as the company’s Chief Executive Officer since its founding.
Dr. Richter realized her vision for the social impact of her company’s when she founded the NIR School of the Heart, a bright ray of hope in a region where prejudice and violence are present in the hearts of too many people. The NIR School is a unique academic and social program, that assembles teenagers from different backgrounds to learn the basics of cardiology. Despite times of great tension in the region, the NIR School has operated continuously, and today is proud to have more than 800 graduates, and more than 25% of these graduates are pursuing careers as physicians or other medical-related professions.
Of her father and the Holocaust, she shares:
But not less important I’ve learned that the heart is a common symbol across all religions and cultures of our shared humanity. In working to open hearts, I was inspired by the legacy of my father, a survivor of the Holocaust, one of the darkest times in human history.
Through his heroic life story – risking his own life to save the lives of others – my father taught me that while one’s possessions, friends and even family can be ripped away, the single asset that no one can take away from you is knowledge.
Knowledge empowers. Knowledge humanizes. Knowledge is the foundation upon which respect and peace are built.
Over the years I have come to learn that there are moments in life when one has to go above and beyond the call of duty, follow his/her personal values, and stretch a hand to those in danger and need.
Dr. Richter stresses that in these troubling times, the agony of the Ukrainian people is calling upon humanity to take action and help save lives. The management and employees at Medinol are taking part in this global noble front. On the Israeli Holocaust Remembrance Day in 2022, Medinol shipped stents as a donation to Ukraine.
She called upon leaders in the corporate world, in the business sector, and in the halls of power, to inspire others to open their hearts, break down barriers allow friendship and creativity to flow across borders, and help build bridges between hearts, over and through walls.
In closing, Dr. Richter said that “We should all appeal to our common humanity and the parts of religion that call upon each of us to take a greater human responsibility – doing good for a better world. We have proven it at Medinol and in the NIR School. We can do it anywhere.”