In 1895, Shapir joined the Russian Women's Mutual Philanthropic Society and held a number of leadership positions including manager of the Commission on Fundraising, manager of the Society's Department of Abstracts and member of the governing Council that decided on the organization's policies. Shapir considered the Society to be a place for females to convene and discuss their shared experiences and hardships. They focused on ways to empower the ongoing Russian women's movement. Members largely consisted of educated, upper-class individuals who sought to improve their own status while providing aid to those who were less fortunate. Shapir's disagreement with the Society's administrative leader, Anna N. Shabanova, on charitable projects led her to resign from the Council but continue working in the Suffrage Department to plan the First All-Russian Women's Congress in 1908.
