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Moment Magazine mourns the death of former Moment executive editor Suzanne Singer, who died January 1, age 86, in her apartment in Baka, Jerusalem.
Singer was executive editor from 1987 to 2004 and was instrumental in shaping the magazine’s editorial voice during this period along with editor and publisher Hershel Shanks. Traveling Israel and the world extensively, she wrote stories, book reviews and incisive columns on topics ranging from Judaism to Jewish life to Israel, and generously nurtured new generations of writers. Singer was also passionate about biblical archeology and worked alongside Shanks at the Biblical Archeology Review, where she held a variety of editorial positions from Jerusalem correspondent to executive editor from 1977 to 1988.
Sue came to Moment in 1987 when Hershel Shanks bought the magazine and incorporated it into the Biblical Archeology Society. That was the same year that her son Alex was killed in battle in Lebanon while serving in the IDF on his 25th birthday. Beginning with her moving columns about Alex, her beautifully written pieces chronicle her life and that of the Jewish people and their relationship to Israel. She was an intellectual with a unique voice—observant of details, sensible yet idealistic, calm and never angry.