Jamie Zimmerman, who served as a doctor and reporter for the ABC News medical unit, drowned while on vacation in Hawaii. She was 31.
According to a note from ABC News President James Goldston to staff, Zimmerman was attempting to cross the Lumhai River on Kauai’s north shore when she lost her footing and was swept out to sea. Zimmerman’s mother, Jordan Zimmerman, confirmed her death with a message on Zimmerman’s Facebook page.
“Those of you who knew Jamie or perhaps read some of her writings knew that she loved people above all else. It was her passion to be of service and teaching meditation was her calling,” Jordan Zimmerman wrote. “In her short 31 years Jamie traveled the globe representing America as a caring mindfulness ambassador.
Her accomplishments included helping Congolese refugees in Zambia, volunteering in a cash-strapped hospital in India, building classrooms in Uganda, and working with indigenous people on the Amazon in Peru. Jamie served as a United Nations Global Health representative in Haiti and she even taught meditation at the U.S. Capitol.
“She was honored with UCLA’s prestigious Charles E. Young Humanitarian Award, was a Rhodes Scholar finalist, and earned the title of Dr. Jamie at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine. Jamie wrote for the Huffington Post, Sonima, and Mind Body Green. Most recently she interviewed Deepak Chopra and had planned to collaborate with him on his new project giyo.com.
All this was in addition to her work with ABC News in their Medical Unit as well as The (Goldie) Hawn Foundation where she trained educators and school administrators to teach meditation to children.”
Along with contributing to research for ABC’s medical unit, Zimmerman also offered meditation sessions for the ABC News staff in New York, according to Goldston. She had also made a documentary on Congolese refugee camps.
