Youth form new alliance

KYLE BERGER REPORTER

A new group, represented by the leaders of the Jewish youth organizations of Greater Vancouver, held the first in a series of eight Community Vigils for Israel, Dec. 5, at the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver (JCC).

The Jewish Youth Professionals Group was formed four months ago for the purpose of combining resources, ideas and programming.

"We wanted to start working together to build a strong community with the youth," said Shira Rudnick, the teen and youth program co-ordinator of the JCC.
"We're all committed to having community-wide events and all of our kids are interested in meeting other Jewish teens who they are not often in a situation to be social with," added Jordana Corenblum, youth director of Beth Israel Synagogue.

The idea to lead community vigils arose at the group's first meeting, when they were thinking about social action projects for the youth. The vigils are aimed at bringing community members of all ages together to honor those who have perished at the hands of terrorism and to increase their connection to the people in Israel.

At the Dec. 5 event, more than 60 community members were joined by representatives of United Synagogue Youth (USY), Temple Sholom Youth (TSY), the B'nai B'rith Youth Organization (BBYO), the National Congress of Synagogue Youth (NCSY) and the JCC teen and youth program. It began with remarks from Rudnick, who introduced the group and explained the purpose of the vigil.

"This will be a place where the community can gather to grieve as well as to find support and hope for the future," she told the crowd. "It will not only be a place to commemorate those who have been taken from us, but to also raise awareness, show solidarity and reach out to our community."

Rudnick's remarks were followed by the reading of the names and ages of 43 victims of terror, along with the dates they were murdered. Eighteen yahrzeit candles were lit in honor of those who have perished at the hands of terror. Rabbi Avi Berman, leader of the local NCSY chapter, shared the tragic story of one of the many families of terror attack victims.

Following a moment of silence, Rosa Blumenfeld, representing the Vancouver USY chapter, explained why Chanukah was an appropriate time to think about the current struggle of the Jews in Israel.

"The Greeks, like so many others in our history, failed in their attempts to annihilate our faith and our culture," she said. "We are confident that we will overcome this conflict and we hope that our children will look back on these troubled times as yet another testament to the irrepressible existence of our people."

The vigil concluded with the lighting of the candles for the seventh night of Chanukah and the singing of Hatikvah.

At the conclusion of the program, event organizers welcomed community members in attendance to share their ideas for future community vigil's.

The next two vigils are scheduled for Jan. 2 and Jan. 30 and the group is also planning several community social events for the winter and spring months.

For more information, call Rudnick at 604-257-5111, ext. 207, or Karen Berger, the local BBYO advisor, at 604-257-5111 ext. 217.

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