Anne Heyman, a 1982 College graduate and member of the Penn Hillel National Board of Governors, died in a horseback riding accident on Friday. She was 52.
Heyman founded a youth village in Rwanda in 2005 called the Agahozo-Shalom Youth Village for orphans of the 1994 genocide. She was inspired to start the organization after drawing similarities between the orphan problem in Rwanda and in Israel after World War II. ASYV is currently home to more than 500 orphans.
“She was amazing,” Hillel rabbi Mike Uram said. “I really think she planted seeds for [the] transformation of [Rwanda].”
Penn Hillel sponsors an alternate break trip to Rwanda to visit Heyman’s ASYV each May.
Related: Rwanda opens up to Penn
Heyman and her husband, Sean Merrin, were the visionaries behind Moral Voices, an initiative sponsored by Penn Hillel that focuses on a different social justice issue each year. This program has reached about 1,000 college students, Uram said.
“The notion was that the Jewish community should tackle one moral issue every year,” Uram said. ”[There were] conversations about social justice because of Anne’s philanthropy.”
Rwandan Prime Minister Pierre Habumuremyi tweeted his condolences for the Heyman-Merrin family.
“My condolences for the passing of Anne Heyman founder of Agahozo village, you will be remembered for [your] love & support to orphans & poor [people],” he wrote.
Heyman is survived by her husband and their three children.
The Daily Pennsylvanian is an independent, student-run newspaper. Please consider making a donation to support the coverage that shapes the University. Your generosity ensures a future of strong journalism at Penn.
DonatePlease note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.