Governance Committee & Alumna
Los Angeles
Judy Belk has a particular passion for exploring stories focused on race, community, social change, and family (especially the dysfunctional types), which means she never has a shortage of material. Her work has appeared in a variety of media outlets, including The New York Times, National Public Radio, and the Los Angeles Times, where she is a frequent op/ed contributor. Judy’s new book, Ten Miles from the White House: Living in America’s Shadows, will be published by The New Press in late 2027.
A Hedgebrook alumna, Judy has received two transformative residencies where she experienced firsthand the power of women authoring change and Hedgebrook’s radical hospitality.
Judy is an award-winning philanthropic leader and social justice advocate. For nine years, she served as the President and CEO of The California Wellness Foundation. She has been named as one of the nation’s 50 influential nonprofit leaders by The NonProfit Times and appointed the 2025 Waldemar A. Nielsen Philanthropy Fellow by Georgetown University’s Center for Public and Nonprofit Leadership. She currently resides in Los Angeles.
