Category: Local

New lending programs

At 100 years old, the Hebrew Free Loan Association of Vancouver (HFLA) is a fairly spry organization, keeping current with the community’s changing needs. So, as the new year begins, it is introducing three new lending programs for trial in an effort to encourage more applicants to look to HFLA for the loan that may help them through financial hardships, finance dental work, launch their new business or fix their roof.

Emergency loan limits have doubled to a maximum of $1,500. These loans are for immediate and urgent needs and typically are processed within 48 hours of application. One qualified guarantor is needed to secure this loan.

Single-guarantor personal loans with a $5,000 maximum are being introduced, and applicants will require only one qualified guarantor.

Business, education and special purpose loans are being changed to make it easier to borrow up to $10,000. HFLA will now ask for only two qualified guarantors instead of three. Borrowers in this category use these loans for modern needs like in vitro fertilization, adoption or computer equipment for business startups.

In 1915, when Jews in the community first began making small loans, it was to buy a horse or a pushcart to open a used furniture shop or to buy supplies for a small store. These loans of $5-$25 were a lifeline for early immigrants to Vancouver to establish themselves and, in turn, to build our community. Today, we look back and see how much those first loans did to encourage financial independence and engender security for people who were unable to find money any other way. We can see in the less distant past, loans to a wave of immigrants from the former Soviet Union in the 1980s, who bought musical instruments and other vital equipment to make a living here.

There are many amazing stories of ways in which people have received assistance to get out of a bad situation or a jump-start into a new life with a loan from HFLA, and the association wants to ensure those stories continue to accumulate by reaching more people. This strategy began with HFLA’s centennial celebration in May.

The new loan programs are designed to make it easier to apply for interest-free loans quickly, with anonymity and dignity. HFLA meets every two weeks to discuss loan applications so the waiting time for a loan is brief.

For full information about all of HFLA’s loan programs, visit hfla.ca or send someone you feel will benefit from an interest-free loan to check it out (the revamped website includes simplified forms). To speak to the HFLA’s part-time administrator, Michelle Longo, call 604-428-2832.

FEDtalks launches annual campaign

Left to right are Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver CEO Ezra Shanken, campaign chair Dr. Neil Pollock, women’s philanthropy chair Lisa Pullan, board chair Stephen Gaerber and major donors co-chairs Alex Cristall and Andrew Merkur. (photo from JFGV)

On Sept. 17, Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver kicked off this year’s annual campaign with a new event: FEDtalks. Featuring brief TED-style talks from four speakers – the Hon. Irwin Cotler, Eli Winkelman, Dafna Lifshitz and Rabbi David Wolpe – more than 700 community members attended the event at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre.

photo - Audience members take their seats at FEDtalks on Sept. 17
Audience members take their seats at FEDtalks on Sept. 17. (photo from JFGV)

“Each speaker delivered a message that was Federation related, from the refugee and migrant crisis, to caring for those facing hunger, to leveling the playing field in Israel’s periphery, to inspiring people to connect more fully with their Jewish identity and values,” said Jewish Federation chief executive officer Ezra S. Shanken. “Their messages were our messages, and they reflected the soul of who we are as a Federation.”

Cotler addressed issues important to the Vancouver Jewish community – and, indeed, to the world – with particular emphasis on Syria and the refugee and migrant crisis. As a well-respected parliamentarian and human rights lawyer, he brought depth and breadth of knowledge on the crisis.

Winkelman shared her story of turning the simple act of baking challah into acts of social justice by founding Challah for Hunger, which now has 90 chapters on college campuses in three countries. Her work was recognized by President Bill Clinton, who highlighted Challah for Hunger in his book Giving: How Each of Us Can Change the World.

Lifshitz, CEO of Appleseeds Academy, addressed her organization’s work bridging the digital divide in Israel’s periphery and, in particular, the Net@ program that is supported by Jewish Federation. Through Net@, at-risk youth in our partnership region of the Upper Galilee receive specialized computer training that catapults them into highly-skilled, well-paying jobs, thus helping break the cycle of poverty.

Wolpe, who was named the most influential rabbi in America by Newsweek magazine, also addressed the refugee and migrant crisis, but from a Jewish perspective. He closed the evening with an inspirational message that united the community through the shared values of chesed, tzedaka and tikkun olam.

The Vancouver Jewish community’s central fundraising initiative, the annual campaign supports critical social services, Jewish education, seniors programs and young adults programs, and fosters ties with our partnership region in Israel. To donate or volunteer, visit jewishvancouver.com/what-to-give/annual-campaign.

Ready for the election

SUCCESS chief executive officer Queenie Choo, left, with federal election candidates, left to right, Jody Wilson-Raybould, Erinn Broshko, Wes Regan and Mira Oreck. (photo by Jocelyne Hallé)

More than 100 people filled Choi Hall on Sunday to hear local candidates in the Oct. 19 federal election talk on immigration, economics, security, employment and health care. Co-sponsored by the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs and SUCCESS Canada, as well as various media outlets, including the Jewish Independent, the panelists, in order of initial three-minute presentations, were Vancouver-Granville candidates Erinn Broshko (Conservative), Mira Oreck (NDP) and Jody Wilson-Raybould (Liberal) and Vancouver East candidate Wes Regan (Green). The candidates each had two minutes to respond to questions submitted in advance by the public and, at the end of the Q&A, they each gave summary statements.

Charlie Smith, editor of the Georgia Straight, served as moderator, while Doug Purdie, chair of the board of SUCCESS, welcomed the audience and Jason Murray, chair of CIJA, closed the proceedings.

Israelis connect with locals

Left to right, shinshiniot Ophir Golumbek, Tomer Tetro and Lian Swissa are volunteering with various organizations in the Greater Vancouver Jewish community. (photo from Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver)

For the first time, Vancouver is participating in the Shinshin program through the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver (JFGV) in conjunction with the Jewish Agency for Israel.

Shinshin is an acronym for shnat sherut, meaning year of service, which is exactly what the three 18-year-olds who arrived on Aug. 31 are here to provide the Vancouver Jewish community.

The project, which is co-funded by JFGV and the beneficiary agencies, is an outreach program created by the Jewish Agency to give exceptional Israeli youth a meaningful gap-year experience that furthers the objectives of the Jewish Agency for promoting goodwill and education about Israel. According to Vancouver’s shinshin coordinator, Lissa Weinberger, the program has been wildly successful and popular among the Jewish communities that have had the chance to host Israeli teens in the past. JFGV had planned to begin hosting Shinshinim in 2016 but because of the enthusiasm of participating agencies, they fast-tracked the program and made it happen this year.

Shinshin has been embraced by communities in England, the Netherlands, South Africa, North America and South America, growing from 54 participants last year to 100 this year. The Israeli youths volunteer with young people in schools, synagogues, Jewish community centres and other Jewish organizations to build awareness and give access to a teen perspective on Israel. According to Weinberger, the program has been so effective at building relationships between Israeli and Diaspora Jewish youth that there is a plan to grow it to 300 Shinshinim within five years.

Weinberger said that the young women in Vancouver – Ophir Golumbek, Tomer Tetro and Lian Swissa – will be working six days a week for the next nine months, with a few weeks off spread over that time.

“When we were discussing their schedule, we were told to keep them busy. They were coming to give back, not sit around,” Weinberger said.

The Shinshiniot (feminine plural) will be hosted by local families during their stay, a different family every three months. The host family experience is crucial to the program as it gives the youths a soft landing here in Vancouver, in a family environment.

Jennifer Shecter-Balin will be hosting one of the Shinshiniot for the first term. She spoke for her family when she said, “We are excited for the experience. I have been communicating with Ophir via email and I have been thoroughly impressed by her maturity, enthusiasm and introspection.”

In an interview with the Jewish Independent the day after their arrival, the three young women were indeed bubbling with energy and enthusiasm. Golumbek will be working primarily with students at Vancouver Talmud Torah (VTT), with the Temple Sholom Sunday school as her Sunday job. Tetro will divide her time between the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver and Congregation Beth Tikvah. Swissa will be working with King David High School, Congregation Beth Israel and Richmond Jewish Day School.

Each one of the Israelis comes with a history of volunteerism and leadership, as well as an impressive command of English. None of them comes from an English-speaking home in Israel but all are eloquent and clear in their goals for their year of service in Vancouver.

Golumbek explained why she applied to the Shinshin program. “I have family in the U.S., third cousins, and they all went on Birthright and I saw how it made them [connected to] Israel. Some came back to study and one made aliya. Each one of my cousins told me about a person who influenced them to love Israel and I wanted to build that connection for people here.”

Swissa echoed Golumbek’s interest in building connections with local Jews and added, “I believe that Jewish people have a shared history and we should create a shared present and future. We are here to learn about Vancouver and Judaism outside of Israel, as much as we are here to share our love of being Jewish in Israel.”

It’s not surprising that 18-year-olds who can express these types of ideas when jet-lagged were selected from the 1,700 applicants to the Shinshin program. Swissa and Tetro have leadership experience and a strong basis in working with other Jewish teens from a two-year program they did in high school called the Diller Teen Fellowship, which brought them to Chicago and Baltimore, respectively, when they were in grades 10 and 11. Their experience working within a pluralistic Jewish environment has prepared them for their work in Vancouver. Golumbek participated in a special program of her Scouts called Seeds of Peace in Maine, which brought together Israeli, American, British, Palestinian and Egyptian teens to work on building relationships and tackling issues of conflict.

When asked how they feel about being away from their families, they all teared up slightly. Swissa is the youngest of seven children, so it’s a shock for her to be without family here, while Tetro will miss her 5-year-old sister. Golumbek has a brother who is finishing his army service this year and, while she said she will miss her family, she looks at this year as an opportunity to get ready for being away when she goes into the army, while making an impact and making new connections. She said, “Our host families will be like a new family … we are grateful for the chance to come here, to make a mark. Thank you is a small word for what everyone has done for us so we could be here.”

Tetro spoke for all three volunteers when she explained what they hope for the year to come. She said, “We are so excited because this is a brand new program and nobody knows what to expect, but we are also stressed because we want to make the best impression. We want to build a really good base for next year so all of the kids will be eagerly waiting for the next Shinshinim to come.”

Michelle Dodek is a freelance writer living in Vancouver.

Building relationships

East Side Jews observes Shabbat at Trout Lake. (photo from Carey Brown)

When Rabbi Carey Brown and her family moved to Vancouver in 2011, they made their home in East Vancouver.

“We settled down in East Van and really loved the neighborhood,” Brown told the Independent. “Slowly, as I became familiar with more people, I realized there was a growing need for additional places for people to meet and connect with their roots.”

photo - Rabbi Carey Brown
Rabbi Carey Brown (photo from Carey Brown)

This realization was the inspiration for East Side Jews, a group that Brown founded about a year ago, and which she co-directs with Lisa Pozin. Brown is associate rabbi at Temple Sholom, and Pozin is the synagogue’s program director.

“We started with Rosh Hashana on Main Street, we invited people to join us and taste honey cake and hear a story at Solly’s, learn about honey at the Honey Shoppe, and sing songs and hear the shofar at a local park. We didn’t know how to reach people, so we posted notes in coffee shops and community centres around the area. To our surprise, the turnout was amazing. We decided to create one event every month. We hosted a tikkun olam event at the PriceSmart food store [now a Save-On] on King Edward Avenue and Knight Street, we did a Havdala under the stars at Trout Lake, and shared Shabbat dinners in local community centres. People really liked our events, a group was formed. We were really happy and excited.”

Elaborating on the tikkun olam event, Brown said it was a “scavenger hunt we called Project Feed. We gave the families a list of specific food items that JFSA [Jewish Family Services Agency] told us were needed by the Jewish Food Bank and PriceSmart told us would be on sale. The families made a donation to participate and then used their lists to fill their carts. After finishing the shopping, we met at Or Shalom to sort the food and hear a short presentation from JFSA about the food bank. People learned a lot about the food bank and realities of hunger in our community. The kids were very into the experience and the parents really appreciated having a hands-on opportunity to engage with their kids in tikkun olam.”

Brown grew up in Minneapolis, went to Northwestern University, which is near Chicago, and then studied at Hebrew Union College in Jerusalem and in New York City. After her ordination, she was a rabbi at Temple Isaiah in Lexington, Mass., for six years. That community’s approach to community outreach influenced her and, when she and her husband – Dr. Gregg Gardiner, assistant professor and Diamond Chair in Jewish Law and Ethics at the University of British Columbia – brought their family (they now have two children) to Vancouver, she incorporated it into her own approach.

“The federation in Boston (CJP, Combined Jewish Philanthropy) invested a lot of time and effort in reaching out to interfaith couples. Every event, every meeting, every holiday, they always emphasize the fact that the invitation is open to interfaith couples, that they are welcome to join in, that it will be in a nonjudgmental atmosphere, that everyone will accept them and encourage them to connect to the Jewish community. I saw how meaningful that was to families and that it really impacted their participation in Jewish life. I wanted to make sure that families in Vancouver were hearing this supportive message as well.”

And it seems that the message is indeed being heard – and appreciated. East Side Jews now has some 200 names on its mailing list, it receives support from the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver and has recently been honored by the Union for Reform Judaism. The East Side Jews initiative garnered Temple Sholom one of URJ’s 2015 Belin Outreach and Membership Awards, which recognizes congregations from across North America “that have developed programs to actively welcome and integrate those new to Judaism, created relationship-based membership engagement models, or developed new, innovative ways to engage and retain members.”

“We really try to use the events to establish personal relationships with our new friends, to go for a coffee, to meet in smaller groups, to build a connection following the public events,” explained Brown about what makes East Side Jews unique. “We learned that there are many people out there who are eager to live a meaningful Jewish life, but they are having a hard time finding the right place for them. We create a Jewish experience that is very approachable, very friendly and accepting. There are many Jews who grow up here and they have a very small connection to the community. They would love to have more, but they don’t know where or when or how. We help these kinds of people get engaged and involved and find their own path to design their own Jewish life…. It’s working very well so far and our group is growing at a surprising pace.”

Next on East Side Jews’ calendar is a field trip to Fraser Common Farm/Glorious Organics in Aldergrove on the morning of Sept. 27 with Temple Sholom congregants, religious school kids and others. If you would like to catch the 9:10 a.m. bus from Temple Sholom, register at info@templesholom.ca or 604-266-7190. For more information, visit templesholom.ca/sukkot-on-the-farm.

For anyone wanting to know more about East Side Jews, visit eastsidejews.ca.

Shahar Ben Halevi is a writer and filmmaker living in Vancouver.

Blessings in our lives

Rabbi David Wolpe joins FEDtalks on Sept. 17 at Queen E. Theatre. (photo from Facebook)

When the man Newsweek calls the most influential rabbi in America gets up to speak in Vancouver this month, he may be as surprised as the audience by what he has to say.

“I really never know exactly until I get up to speak,” said Rabbi David Wolpe, who will be here Sept. 17 as one of four speakers at FEDtalks, the annual campaign launch of the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver. “I do this somewhat spontaneously and it will depend somewhat on what I hear the other people say because I don’t want to repeat what they would say.”

His talk, Inspiring Jewish Life, will address “something about the way in which our efforts have surprising and unanticipated consequences both in our community and in the world,” he told the Independent in a telephone interview.

Wolpe has also been dubbed one of the 50 most influential Jews in the world by the Jerusalem Post. He is the author of eight books, including the bestseller Making Loss Matter: Creating Meaning in Difficult Times. His most recent book, David, the Divided Heart, was a finalist for the National Jewish Book Awards. He has taught at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America in New York, the American Jewish University in Los Angeles, Hunter College and UCLA. He is a prolific writer and commentator.

Wolpe is the rabbi of Sinai Temple in Los Angeles, of which about half of the congregation are Jews of Iranian origin, which gives him an acute perspective on the nuclear deal between Iran and the P5+1 world powers.

“I would say in the Iranian Jewish community in L.A., the consensus is fairly strong against the deal,” he said. “It’s not unanimous, but it’s fairly strong.”

Wolpe sees a glimmer of hope but overall fears the deal is a bad one.

“The biggest reason for optimism long term is that the Iranian population is so young … and that many of those young people don’t support the theological or political views of their leaders,” said the rabbi. “That’s the reason long term for optimism and, of course, Iran and the United States have had an alliance in the past. Maybe one day that could be renewed.

“There is plenty of reason for worry, however,” he continued. “I, myself, oppose the deal. I think most of my Iranian congregants do as well. But whoever is correct about this deal, or no deal, I think that the prospect that Iran will get a nuclear bomb is both frighteningly real and just plain frightening.”

Wolpe is the son of a rabbi and has been taken aback by the persistence of global antisemitism across generations.

“When I started out in the rabbinate, I really did believe that, unlike my father’s rabbinate … antisemitism wasn’t going to be the theme of Jewish life anymore,” he said. “I really thought that. I thought it was on the wane. So, the resurgence through Europe is disheartening and pretty scary.”

Wolpe traveled in Europe this summer and sees little reason for optimism. “I wish I did,” he said. “The mood in Europe is very pessimistic.”

He believes that the United States is relatively well inoculated against antisemitism.

“Unlike the countries of Europe, the United States did not have an identifiable majority and minority,” he said. “Most antisemitism arose when there were the French and the Jews, the Germans and the Jews, the Russians and the Jews. The Jews were the clear, identifiable minority in most of these countries. That’s not true in America. We are a patchwork of minorities and, as a result … to be a Jew is not to be the one who stands out as being different.… America has historically not been a place that is hostile to Jews. Are there antisemitic acts? Yes. But I don’t see any serious signs that [tolerance toward Jews is] changing or threatens to change.”

Wolpe will be speaking at the event during the Days of Awe and said it is a good time to reflect on the positive.

“Rosh Hashana is really about our sense of gratitude, about the gift of everything that we have because we are showered with blessings,” he said. “Even though we focus on all the dangers and difficulties of our lives, we are just bursting with wonderful and extraordinary and often unprecedented blessings in our lives.”

For more information about and tickets to FEDtalks, visit jewishvancouver.com. Interviews with the three other speakers appeared in previous issues of the Independent: Irwin Cotler, Dafna Lifshitz and Eli Winkelman.

Seeking repatriation

From left to right, are Naomi, Michelle and Max Dodek with Gil Lewinsky in Abbotsford. Michelle is holding a one-day-old Jacob sheep. (photo by Jenna Lewinsky)

A couple living in Abbotsford is gaining international attention for their unusual quest. They want to return their flock of Jacob sheep to the breed’s ancestral home – Israel.

After visiting Gil and Jenna Lewinsky at the farm where they rent a barn and outdoor space for their sheep, there is no doubt that these modern Jewish shepherds are committed to taking their flock to Israel. Once there, the couple intends to set up a heritage park for visitors to connect with this aspect of ancient biblical history.

These sheep, according to the Lewinskys, are the descendants of Jacob’s original flock. Sheep are discussed in Genesis 30:32, when Jacob negotiates with Laban to keep the speckled and spotted offspring of Laban’s sheep in payment for his 14 years of service to Laban. As Laban has managed to trick Jacob before, most famously by switching brides and having him marry Leah instead of Rachel, he thinks he’s getting the better deal here, as well. However, the Torah explains the special techniques Jacob employs to grow a strong, large speckled flock, leaving the weaker, solid-colored sheep for Laban. It is the first recorded case of selective breeding and, apparently, it worked.

“People know that Jacob fathered the Jewish people but they don’t know that he also ‘fathered’ a breed of sheep,” said Gil. He also explained that these sheep followed Jacob’s family into Canaan and eventually Egypt. While the Children of Israel returned to Canaan after centuries of slavery, it seems that these sheep did not accompany them. They went west and ended up, many centuries later, in England, where they were bred extensively. A few of the “heirloom breed,” those unaltered from their original ancient Syrian physiology, have made it to hobby farmers in Canada. Not one lives in Israel.

The Lewinskys feel this is a problem that needs to be solved. “God put it into our hearts to bring the Jacob sheep back to Israel,” said Jenna in an interview. In response, she and her husband have formed a nonprofit organization called Friends of the Jacob Sheep with a stated mission to bring the animals back to Israel.

Friends of the Jacob Sheep plans to repatriate the sheep from Abbotsford to the Golan Heights, where the Lewinskys hope to open up a heritage park so that the biblical sheep can be seen in Israel and be put to their original purposes for the Jewish people.

According to Gil, Jacob sheep in ancient times were used in every aspect of life, including using the wool for religious clothing such as tallitot, the skin for leather for tefillin or parchment to make Torahs and mezzuzot, as well as for food and Temple sacrifices. Of course, the horns were also used to make shofars. This breed of sheep has an advantage in the area of shofar making because both male and female Jacob sheep are commonly found with four horns and can grow up to six at one time.

While the Lewinskys are very dedicated to their mission, there are a number of stumbling blocks in the way of their plan. In order to export animals to another country, many policies have to be followed. Ever determined, they have lobbied both the Israeli and Canadian governments to find a way to fast track a trade agreement that would enable the sheep to return to Israel. Federal Trade Minister Ed Fast visited the Lewinskys’ flock in early August this year. The Lewinskys describe Fast as a strong supporter of the state of Israel and they hope to use this contact to further their plans.

“We have around 50 sheep now and, when we reach 80, we will be ready to take them to Israel,” said Jenna. Since my visit to the farm, the flock has increased to about 70.

photo - The Lewinskys’ flock of Jacob sheep now stands at about 70
The Lewinskys’ flock of Jacob sheep now stands at about 70. (photo from facebook.com/friendsofthejacobsheep)

“Our new flock are from the Okanagan and from Cabri, Sask.,” said Gil in an email to the Independent. “The flock from Saskatchewan trace back to the first four Jacobs that were imported from the U.K. to Canada at the Assiniboine Zoo in Winnipeg. They retain their primitive confirmation.”

The increase in numbers is due in part to the Lewinskys’ continuing efforts to acquire heirloom Jacob sheep from farmers in Canada and the United States, and in part to a good spring, with many of their ewes birthing adorable lambs. Jenna and Gil have investigated and negotiated with an airline that specializes in transportation of livestock to transport the flock as soon as they can wade through the red tape currently preventing the exportation of the animals and, of course, once they have raised the money to do so.

By chance, one sheep made it onto Abbotsford Mayor Henry Braun’s Facebook page, and Gil has used his experience as a journalist to get the word out about these sheep all around the world, with the story being picked up in news outlets from Israel Vision TV to Scotland’s Jewish Telegraph. The couple said they are applying for grants from a number of agencies and making connections with both Jewish and non-Jewish communities for support.

For more information on Friends of the Jacob Sheep, visit their website (friendsofthejacobsheep.weebly.com) or like them on Facebook to keep abreast of the latest developments.

Michelle Dodek is a freelance writer living in Vancouver.

Local athletes have lots of fun

The silver-medal-winning volleyball team at the JCC Maccabi Games in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (photo by Kyle Berger)

They weren’t the largest delegation at the JCC Maccabi Games in Fort Lauderdale this past August, but Team Vancouver’s 13 athletes certainly made their presence felt.

photo - Jada Wilson, left, and Sydney Cristall at the opening ceremonies of the games in Fort Lauderdale, Aug 7
Jada Wilson, left, and Sydney Cristall at the opening ceremonies of the games in Fort Lauderdale, Aug 7. (photo by Kyle Berger)

No moment stood out greater than when the six local girls joined with four others from around North America – meeting for the first time at the games – to make up a volleyball team. They ended up taking the silver medal, beating out more experienced teams from New York, Massachusetts and California. Leah Serlin, Leah Schwartz, Jada Wilson, Julia Tregobov, Sydney Cristall and Simone Killas, aged 13-16, formed the core of the team coached by Jack Serlin. Despite not practising as a full squad until arriving at the games, the group came together and lost only to the host city’s team of all 16-year-old club players in the finals.

“For a new team facing several challenges, to be able to beat out teams who train and play together all season, such as Bensonhurst (Brooklyn) and Orange County, is quite an achievement,” said Jack Serlin. “It was such an overall feeling of pride and satisfaction seeing the girls come together as a unit, genuinely grow to like and play for each other, and perform so well on the court and have so much fun off of it.”

Serlin said he is already considering plans to battle for the gold medal next summer. “The fact that all the eligible girls can’t wait to come back next year is truly a testament to how successful we were and what an incredible experience the JCC Maccabi Games are regardless of your background or from where you come,” he said.

photo - Rachel Bugis, left, and Magalee Blumenkrans celebrate after a big soccer victory
Rachel Bugis, left, and Magalee Blumenkrans celebrate after a big soccer victory. (photo by Kyle Berger)

The Team Vancouver delegation was also made up of soccer players Josh Bugis, Rachel Bugis, Magalee Blumenkrans and Saul Kalvari. Zach Moldowan joined a baseball team from North Miami Beach while Jackson March won a couple of bronze medals in table tennis and Sydney Swick from Winnipeg joined the Vancouver delegation and took home a couple of medals herself.

“The JCC Maccabi Games is awesome every time I go,” said Kalvari, who attended his second set of games this summer. “The people you meet are amazing, from all over the world, and everyone is there for the same reasons. It’s great to be surrounded by so many Jewish teens just there to have fun.”

The JCC Maccabi Games are an annual multi-sport event hosted in different North American cities each summer. Jewish teens from around the globe compete in the Olympic-style event. The JCC Maccabi Arts Fest runs parallel to the games, engaging teen artists, who participate in workshops with a final performance or show at the end of the week. The games and arts fest attracts more than 3,000 Jewish teens each summer.

For more information on the JCC Maccabi Games and next year’s events, contact me at kyle@jccgv.bc.ca.

Kyle Berger is Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver sports coordinator, and a freelance writer living in Richmond.

Museum jazzes up website

The new Jewish Museum and Archives of British Columbia website, jewishmuseum.ca.

The Jewish Museum and Archives of British Columbia has launched its revamped website, unveiling a new look for the organization, simplifying navigation and making it easier for users to engage with the museum’s diverse programming and to access the holdings of the B.C. Jewish community archives.

The website, jewishmuseum.ca, features a contemporary design. Implementing the archives database system Access to Memory (AtoM), the new site gives researchers access to thousands of documents, photos, audio and video items documenting the 150-year history of Jews in British Columbia.

“For the first time in the history of the JMABC, we have the capability of providing online access to the treasures in the archives, while at the same time adhering to important archival standards,” said archivist Jennifer Yuhasz. “We are excited to join the vast community of professional archives already using AtoM, including UNESCO, World Bank Group Archives, Library and Archives Canada, and most of the provincial, municipal and university archives and libraries across B.C.”

Selections from this archival collection are presented in the form of online exhibits recounting specific themes and events in community history. Exhibits will be added each year.

The production of the new site was made possible through the support of the Betty Averbach Foundation, the Jewish Community Foundation of Greater Vancouver, numerous private donors and the more than 100 contributors to the JMABC’s 2014 Indiegogo campaign. Its launch follows the introduction of a new graphic identity for the museum and archives, designed by local graphic design firm Adria Consulting, which also redesigned the website.

Important elements of JMABC’s new look include a new wordmark, new typography, a palette of vibrant colors and a suite of facet shapes drawn from the Star of David. Together, these elements celebrate the diversity of B.C. Jewish history and the innovative spirit of JMABC, and they will be implemented throughout all of JMABC’s print and online materials, unifying the organization’s public presence as never before. The public were given their first taste of the new identity at the recent JMABC exhibit, Fred Schiffer: Lives in Photos, presented this spring as part of the Capture Photography Festival.

“Our new look reflects the exciting work we are doing, always seeking new ways to share our community’s rich history with everyone,” said Michael Schwartz, JMABC’s coordinator of programs and development. “Adria understood this immediately and devised an identity that boldly conveys our core principles.”

JMABC is dedicated to the collection and sharing of community memories of Jewish life in British Columbia. With 300 linear metres of textual records, 300,000 photographs and 725 oral history interviews, it chronicles all facets of the community’s history.

An invitation to learn

Limmud Vancouver is accepting submissions until Oct. 15 for presenters at the 2016 learning festival. (photo from Limmud Vancouver)

After two successful events in the past two years, Limmud Vancouver is returning for a third learning extravaganza in 2016.

Following a Saturday night Limmud cabaret, to be held Jan. 30, LimmudVan ’16 will offer a daylong celebration of Jewish learning at Beth Israel Synagogue on Sunday, Jan. 31. Presentation proposals are now being accepted from experienced as well as first-time presenters.

A non-denominational, pluralistic gathering for Jewish learning, Limmud is a growing global phenomenon that began 30 years ago in the United Kingdom and has attracted participants and presenters of all ages and backgrounds. There are now more than 80 Limmud festivals held annually in Jewish communities all over the world, from Canada and the United States to Australia, Turkey, Sweden, India, China, Brazil and, of course, Israel.

Since its inception in 2014, LimmudVan celebrates the wide range of wisdom and knowledge within our Jewish community and we encourage everyone to share their excitement for any topic with a Jewish aspect. In the first two years, presenters have included scholars, teachers, actors, rabbis, lay enthusiasts, scientists, artists, storytellers, cooks, musicians and others. Topics have ranged from Torah study to opera, social activism and Jewish environmentalism to Jewish humor, Czech Torah scrolls to Jews and indigenous peoples.

Whatever topic you are passionate about, you are welcome to present it in the format that appeals to you most, whether dramatic or interactive, as a lecture or something different – you decide. If you would like to be a part of a local, thought-provoking learning event, visit Limmud Vancouver’s website and submit a topic (or two?) about which you would like to share your knowledge and enthusiasm with the wider community.

A core Limmud value is that everyone is a student and everyone can be a teacher within this interconnected learning community. “Volunticipating” is also an important aspect of Limmud. Everyone, including organizers and presenters, registers to participate and take part in the daylong event. And, as a volunteer-led organization, its success depends on the time and energy of individuals who care about community-based Jewish learning. If this is something you are passionate about, and whether or not you would like to present this year, consider gifting some of your time as a volunteer and help make LimmudVan ’16 an event to remember.

Go to limmudvancouver.ca, where you can also see what was offered at last year’s learning event. Short- and long-term volunteers are accepted on an ongoing basis. Presenter submissions will be accepted until Oct. 15, 2015. Chosen presenters will be contacted and the program will be confirmed in November. Tickets for the event will go on sale soon afterwards. Follow Limmud Vancouver on Facebook and Twitter.