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January 16, 2004
Teenagers take over Toronto
Pinwheel Region sends 57 youth to annual international convention.
KYLE BERGER REPORTER
Imagine walking into one of Toronto's fanciest downtown hotels
and instantly being surrounded by more than 1,300 Jews. That's what
visitors to the Sheraton Centre Hotel had to contend with during
the 53rd International Convention of United Synagogue Youth (USY)
last month.
The annual convention, which took place Dec. 21-25, brings delegates
from the 17 regions across North America to a different city each
year. This year, the event was hosted by the Eastern Canada region
(ECRUSY).
The Pacific Northwest Region (Pinwheel) was represented by 57 USYers
in Toronto, including 24 from chapters in Richmond, Vancouver, Victoria,
Calgary and Edmonton.
As always, explained Pinwheel region's youth director Neal Chark,
the opening ceremonies, where each region is paraded into a large
ballroom, set the tone for the rest of the convention.
"Try to imagine 1,300 teenagers and leaders singing and dancing
as one and then rising in unison to sing Hatikvah," he said.
"I have attended over 20 conventions and each year I am overwhelmed
by the commitment and drive of our young Conservative Jewish leadership."
"As a Jewish teen living in a smaller Jewish community like
Vancouver, to have the chance to be constantly surrounded by other
Jewish teens for five days is amazing," said Vancouver's Tamara
Nachmani, a Grade 12 student and Pinwheel's regional president.
"It's a very unique opportunity for many of us to celebrate
our Jewishness and really feel like we're a part of something that
makes us stronger."
Michael Slonimer, a member of the Calgary chapter, said that even
though his friends told him how much fun international convention
was, he couldn't have imagined what he experienced.
"Everywhere I went, people were introducing themselves to me
and asking me where I was from," he said.
"I was pretty tired when I came home but I was prouder than
ever to be Jewish."
One of the traditional events at each international convention is
the Social Action/Tikkun Olam projects (SATO), for which the USYers
travel throughout the host community to help those less fortunate.
This year, the Pinwheel USYers joined up with teens from Pennsylvania
to make stuffed animals for kids who may not otherwise receive any
Christmas or Chanukah gifts.
Keeping with the theme of helping those less fortunate, convention
participants were introduced to John Beltzer, the founder and CEO
of the Songs of Love Foundation, which writes and produces more
than 30 songs a month for sick children. The original songs offer
a sense of hope and inspiration for the children, or just bring
a much-needed smile to their faces.
Beltzer brought his recording equipment and staff to the convention
and had the USYers sing the chorus of a new song written for a sick
young girl.
The official theme for the convention was Jewish lifecycles. Daily
sessions and programs throughout the week focused on the various
steps of Jewish life – from birth to marriage to death.
The convention also featured reunions for participants of USY summer
programs, a variety of different types of prayer services and an
entire floor of the hotel with booths that promoted various tours
to Israel or post-secondary opportunities.
One of the more important parts of the week was the election of
the 2004 USY international board. David Goldberg from ECRUSY handed
the president's gavel to Josh Nason of the South Western Region.
Pinwheel region spent four days before the convention in Ottawa,
where they enjoyed Shabbat hosted by the city's Congregation Agudath
Israel. The USYers spent a day in Montreal and also toured the Parliament
Buildings, where they met Elinor Caplan, the member of Parliament
for Thornhill, Ont., who was also the first Jewish female cabinet
minister in Canada.
Next year's convention will take place in Chicago. More information
about USY can be found online at http://uscj.org/pacnw/usy/.
Kyle Berger is a freelance journalist and graphic designer
living in Richmond.
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