Judith Karl

Judith spent the better part of her career at the United Nations Showing up for others wasn’t just her job – it was who she was So when she retired in 2021, stepping back was never an option. 

She found her way to Lighthouse Guild – a place she already knew well. 

Decades earlier, Judith had walked through the doors with her daughter, Tepi, needed more than a standard pair of glasses, and Judith needed someone she could trust. That person was KK, a soft-spoken optician who became a constant in their lives — fitting her daughter year after year, and watching her grow up. “He was really the entry point into an organization that turned out to provide us with support from all sides,” Judith says.

When Judith’s mother later developed macular degeneration, Lighthouse Guild was there for her family again. By the time Judith returned as a volunteer, she knew firsthand what that support looked like – and she wanted to give back.

Her first role was reading — spending time each week with Constance, an elderly woman who had lost her sight, and read aloud – art critiques from the New York Times, essays from the New York Review of Books, and philosophy. During that time, Judith lost her mother. Something about Constance — her curiosity, her warmth — filled a quiet space. They spent a year and a half together. It set the tone for everything that followed.

In recent years, Judith has been part of Lighthouse Guild’s GED program, sitting with students as they take exams that will change their lives. On test day, she arrives early and stays until the very end. She reads the Language Arts and Social Studies tests aloud — every question and every passage.

Watch Judith’s Story

Watching these students grow, she says, has become one of the most meaningful parts of her life. 

“Working with students on this GED test is really watching self-confidence and persistence blossom.”. At Lighthouse Guild’s 2026 GED Graduation, Judith watched four students she had worked with – Jojo, Veronica, Jamie, and Frdous –  walk across that stage in their graduation gowns, diplomas in hand.

Judith and Tepi, now thirty, have never been closer, their bond built over years of navigating the world together. Judith has witnessed what becomes possible when people have the right support.  

“My experience here makes me feel like I’m helping create the space for this community to do their best,” she says. “And that’s a great thing to be part of.”