Amelia Greenwald (March 1, 1881 – January 1, 1966) was an American public health nurse. She worked in France and Germany during and after

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, and founded the Jewish Nurses' Training School in

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...

in 1923.

Early life and education

Greenwald was born in

Gainesville, Alabama Gainesville is a town in Sumter County, Alabama, United States. Founded in 1832, it was incorporated in 1835. At the 2010 census the population was 208, down from 220. Confederate Lieutenant General Nathan Bedford Forrest surrendered his men near ...

, the youngest of the eight surviving children of Joseph Greenwald and Elisha (or Elise) Haas Greenwald. Her family was Jewish. Her father was a grain dealer, and served as mayor of Gainesville. Against her prominent family's wishes, she earned her nursing degree at the Touro Infirmary Training School for Nurses in New Orleans in 1908, with further studies at

Johns Hopkins University Johns Hopkins University (Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1876, Johns Hopkins is the oldest research university in the United States and in the western hem ...

and

Teachers College, Columbia University Teachers College, Columbia University (TC), is the graduate school of education, health, and psychology of Columbia University, a private research university in New York City. Founded in 1887, it has served as one of the official faculties and ...

. She also studied with

Henrietta Szold Henrietta Szold ( , ; December 21, 1860 – February 13, 1945) was a U.S. Jewish Zionist leader and founder of Hadassah, the Women's Zionist Organization of America. In 1942, she co-founded Ihud, a political party in Mandatory Palestine dedic ...

in New York City.

Career

In the United States

Greenwald helped establish the Pensacola Sanitarium in 1909. In 1916 she was director of the New Jersey Public Health Association. In 1919, she became head of the Committee for Work on Jewish Farm Women of the

National Council of Jewish Women The National Council of Jewish Women (NCJW) is a 501(c)(3) tax exempt organization. Founded in 1893, NCJW is self-described as the oldest Jewish women’s grassroots organization in the United States, now comprised by over 180,000 members. As of ...

and the Jewish Agricultural and Industrial Aid Society. The program addressed rural women's health broadly, including English lessons, a resource library, and hygiene classes. Later in life, in 1936, Greenwald opened a clothing store in

Eunice, Louisiana Eunice is a city in Acadia Parish, Louisiana, Acadia and St. Landry Parish, Louisiana, St. Landry parishes in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The 2010 United States Census, 2010 census placed the population at 10,398, a decrease of 1,101, or 9.5 per ...

In Europe

During World War I, Greenwald went to France with the

American Red Cross The American Red Cross (ARC), also known as the American National Red Cross, is a non-profit humanitarian organization that provides emergency assistance, disaster relief, and disaster preparedness education in the United States. It is the desi ...

, and worked in hospitals at Verdun and Savoy, as well as in

Koblenz Koblenz (; Moselle Franconian language, Moselle Franconian: ''Kowelenz''), spelled Coblenz before 1926, is a German city on the banks of the Rhine and the Moselle, a multi-nation tributary. Koblenz was established as a Roman Empire, Roman mili ...

in Germany. She started the Jewish Nurses’ Training School in Warsaw in 1923, funded in part by American Jewish organizations. "There is no force in Poland which will act as an agency for good as will this group of girls who are going into homes, spreading knowledge and raising the standards of the people", she said in 1927, of the Polish nurses her school trained. She also held the first Polish driver's license issued to a woman, and is said to have introduced

iced tea Iced tea (or ice tea) is a form of cold tea. Though it is usually served in a glass with ice, it can refer to any tea that has been chilled or cooled. It may be sweetened with sugar or syrup. Iced tea is also a popular packaged drink that can be ...

to Polish women. Greenwald received a Victory Medal for her services in World War I, and the Polish

Golden Cross of Merit The Cross of Merit () is a Polish civil state decoration established on 23 June 1923, to recognize services to the state. History At the time of its establishment in 1923, the Cross of Merit was the highest civilian award in Poland. It was aw ...

for her work in Warsaw in the 1920s. She was a member of the

American Legion The American Legion, commonly known as the Legion, is a non-profit organization of U.S. war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militi ...

In Palestine

From 1932 to 1933, Greenwald was head of the nurse's training program at

Rothschild Hospital The Rothschild Hospital, named after its founder Baron Anselm von Rothschild, was the hospital of the Israelitische Kultusgemeinde in Vienna, Austria. The hospital lasted from its opening in 1873 until its closure by the Nazis in 1943. After Wor ...

Publications

* "For Jewish Women on the Farms" (1923)

Personal life

In 1939, Greenwald adopted a teenaged German cousin, Liselotte Levy. She died from cancer in 1966, at the age of 84, in Eunice. Her papers are in the special collections at Tulane University Libraries.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Greenwald, Amelia 1881 births 1966 deaths American nurses American women in World War I People from Eunice, Louisiana