About IFFP

Our Staff

Susan Ryder
IFFP Program Coordinator

Photo of Susan RyderSusan Ryder's life has taken her from a Jewish conservative/orthodox family in the South during Klu Klux Klan days to Manhattan in the '60s and early '70s, brief stints in London and Florida, to a macrobiotic study house in Baltimore, and then married life in the Washington suburbs. During that time she worked in advertising agencies and ran an assemblyman's constituent office in NYC, explored many New Age ideas and religions, met (by blind date!) and married a very wonderful man, Bill, (who happened to be raised Catholic) from the DC area. They both read widely on religion and spirituality, and like camping, hiking, traveling, and the beach, and have three grown sons and a large extended family incorporating several religions.

By choice, she was mainly a stay-at-home mom, very involved in school and community volunteer activities. She organized and ran a Caring Kid program that worked with shelters, soup kitchens and held a Christmas toy collection for the Mother Dear Community Center in DC for eight years. She also founded and facilitated a women's peace organization that held dialogues between American Jewish women and Muslim and Arab women. Eventually she worked as the facilitator and coordinator of craft shows at the Audubon Society in Chevy Chase and for many years operated a home day care business.

She created/wrote a Dovetail magazine that focuses on Muslim interfaith families and includes interviews with couples as well as imams.