נתן שרנסקי (צילום: Nathan Roi via Wikimedia Commons)
הפדרציה היהודית של אזור ונקובר ממשיכה לקבל תמיכה רחבה לאור החלטתה לקיים את המופע של הזמרת אחינועם ניני, במסגרת חגיגות יום העצמאות. עתה מתברר שראשי הסוכנות היהודית בישראל שלחו אגרות ברכה לפדרציה על שהזמינה את ניני ליום העצמאות. יו”ר הנהלת הסוכנות, נתן שרנסקי, שלח אגרת אישית למנכ”ל הפדרציה, עזרא שנקן. שרנסקי מצדיע לארגון על פעילותו הענפה והישגיו למען הקהילה היהודית של ונקובר וכדי לתמוך בצורה איתנה בישראל. שרנסקי אומר: “באופן טבעי בישראל ובעולם הרחב יש הרבה דעות וויכוחים צורמים על הדרך הנכונה לשלום. אבל בשום מקרה איננו יכולים להרשות לעצמנו שהדעות השונות יחתרו ויפגעו בערכי הליבה שמאחדים אותנו, ברצוננו להגיע עתיד יהודי חזק עם מדינת ישראל יהודית ודמוקרטית במרכז. דווקא בימים קשים אלה כשאויבים מבחוץ שואפים לעשות דלגיטימציה לישראל, חייב להיות מקום למגוון דעות רחב”. לסיום דבריו מוסיף יו”ר הסוכנות: “כמו אחד שלעתים קרובות היה לו העונג להינות מהקול היוצא דופן של נועה בעלת הכישרון המרהיב, אני משבח את הפדרציה של ונקובר ואני יודע שחגיגות יום העצמאות שלכם יהיו נפלאות”. ואילו מנכ”ל הסוכנות, אלן הופמן, מציין באגרת שלו כי הסוכנות תומכת בפדרציה של ונקובר על שהזמינה את נועה להופיע ביום העצמאות. לדבריו: “קנדה וישראל חולקות את אותם ערכים דמוקרטיים המאפשרים מגוון רחב של דעות, כולל גילויים מגוונים של ציונות. דיאלוג כולל על ישראל הוא בליבה של מאמצי הסוכנות היהודית לבנות עתיד יהודי משגשג וישראל חזקה”.
הפדרציה קיבלה כאמור אגרות תמיכה רבות על הזמנתה של ניני להופיע בוונקובר, בין היתר ממנכ”ל הפדרציה של ונקובר לשעבר, מרק גורביס, שמשמש כיום סגן נשיא בכיר של הפדרציות היהודיות בצפון אמריקה, ראשי הפדרציות היהודיות של קנדה ורבנים.
שנקן אומר כי דברים מדהימים קרו בשבוע האחרון, בהם למשל ההכרזה ששגרירות ישראל והקונסוליה הישראלית יתנו חסות רשמית לאירוע יום העצמאות בוונקובר. שנקן: “הייתי בר מזל על כך שנפלה בידי ההזדמנות לדבר עם אנשים רבים אשר חולקים אהבה עמוקה למדינת לישראל, כולל חברים בקהילה שלנו, רבנים שלנו וראשי ארגונים יהודים ברחבי העולם. כל אחד מהם מראה בדרך המגוונות שלו כיצד הם אוהבים את ישראל, וכל אחד מראה באופן מדהים כיצד הם חולק את אותה אהבה לקהילה שלנו. אנו גאים בהם שהם תומכים בקהילה שלנו”.
הפדרציה של מטרו ונקובר גייסה 8.3 מיליון דולר בקמפיין האחרון לשנת 2016. בפועל גיוסו כשלוש מאות אלף דולר יותר לעומת הקמפיין של אשתקד. בפדרציה מסבירים את החשיבות שבגיוס הכספים מהקמפיין: “יש להאכיל את הרעבים, לטפל בזקנים ולטפח את הדור הבא”. בפדרציה מודים לתורמים על המחויביות שלהם לקהילה, לערכים של חסד לתיקון עולם ולצדקה. תוצאות הקמפיין מאפשרות לפדרציה ולארגונים השונים להגיע לרבים יותר בקהילה ולהגיב בצורה יעילה יותר מתמיד לצרכי הקהילה.
יו”ר הפדרציה, סטיבן גרבר, אומר: “העלות הגבוהה של החיים בוונקובר מגבירה את הקשיים של החברים רבים בקהילה להתקשר עם החיים היהודים, משתי סיבות עיקריות. או שהם אינם יכולים להרשות לעצמם לגור קרוב לתוכניות ולשירותים יהודיים, או אינם יכולים להרשות לעצמם להשתתף בהם. גיוס הכספים מתייחס לסוגיות כמו אלה, מאפשר לבנות קשרים בין חברי הקהילה לבין אזורי השותפות שלנו בישראל ומסייע ליהודים במצוקה ברחבי העולם”.
As the Jewish community expands into Coquitlam and other cities in the Lower Mainland, there must be an adjustment in the allocation of community resources. (photo by Greg Salter via Wikimedia Commons)
The face of Vancouver’s Jewish community is changing, with 36% born outside of Canada – the largest percentage in any Jewish population in the country.
In the Grade 1 classroom at Richmond Jewish Day School, half of the class is learning English as a second language, its students hailing from Israel and Argentina and speaking a mixture of Hebrew, Russian and Spanish.
Abba Brodt (photo from Abba Brodt)
“There’s definitely a growing number of Israeli families in all our Jewish day schools,” said Abba Brodt, principal at RJDS. Among them is the second wave of Russian Jews, comprised of Russian emigrés who made aliyah as children and moved to Vancouver after doing army service in Israel and starting their families. “They maintain strong Russian ties but have an incredibly strong connection to Judaism and Israel,” he said.
The new arrivals place extra demands on Jewish day schools in terms of meeting their children’s language needs, and RJDS has had to shift resources internally so the children of new immigrants can learn successfully in class.
“When people come, what’s our obligation to them?” Brodt pondered. “They want their kids to get a Jewish education as they get established. Many of these parents come without jobs, are not established financially and are trying to adjust, but it takes many, many years. The only menschlik thing to do is to open our doors, figure it out and let them know they’re not a burden at all. I think that’s the right approach for any Jewish organization in town. The faster we help them get on their feet, the better for the community.”
Adjustment is easiest for the youngest children. Brodt recalled a Russian-Israeli family that arrived in June 2014 with a child who couldn’t speak a word of English. “He entered kindergarten and by December that year he was speaking to his parents outside of school hours in English!”
Cathy Lowenstein (photo from Cathy Lowenstein)
At Vancouver Talmud Torah, head of school Cathy Lowenstein has also witnessed an influx of new immigrants from Israel, as well as from Brazil, Estonia and Hungary. “For students in the younger grades, ESL support isn’t as much of an issue, as they can really immerse themselves in language much faster than students in intermediate grades. But, over the past few years, we’ve increasingly had to allocate budget to students who require ESL support,” she said.
That can be difficult because the ESL needs vary year by year. “Often, these students don’t present until late summer, so we’re left trying to reallocate dollars in August so that we can properly help them transition into the school,” she explained.
Tuition assistance is provided on a case-by-case basis, Lowenstein said. “Even though we may have allocated our cap, we do our very best not to turn away a family wanting a Jewish education,” she said.
The high cost of living in the Lower Mainland is having far-reaching effects on the 26,250 Jews who call this corner of the West Coast home. Approximately 14,000 of them live in Vancouver, close to 6,000 in Richmond and the remainder in outlying cities including Burnaby, New Westminster, Port Coquitlam, Coquitlam, Port Moody, Maple Ridge and Langley, where Jewish resources are few and far between. That’s because the high price of housing forces many new arrivals into these outlying areas, where accommodation is a little more affordable.
While RJDS has space available for more students, the challenge lies in reaching those Jewish families who live in the suburbs.
“We know there are 700 Jewish school-age kids in the Tri-Cities of Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam and Port Moody and, as much as the schools may want them, how many families are going to have their kids get on a bus for an hour’s commute each way?” Brodt said. “You have to be super-committed to do that when there are good public schools around. If I could create a pipeline to Burnaby, I’d do it, but the possible customer base there is not ready to make that sort of commitment. They’re managing their Jewish lives out there, as is their right.”
Shelley Rivkin (photo from Shelley Rivkin)
At the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver, vice-president of community affairs Shelley Rivkin noted that more than 850 children now live in underserved areas beyond the borders of Vancouver and few are receiving any Jewish education. “With community support, Jewish educators can develop innovative programs via which these kids can access that education, sharing fully the richness of our traditions and strengthening their Jewish identities,” she said.
In one such program, Federation collaborated with the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver and funded a pilot project to enable Jewish children living in Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam and Port Moody to attend Jewish summer day camp. The project made transportation and fee subsidies available to 22 kids.
Federation has established a regional communities task force that began work last month. In the meantime, the organization contributes to a shuttle bus in Richmond that helps seniors attend various community activities, and Burquest seniors can enjoy another day of programming thanks to additional funding provided to Jewish Family Service Agency. For young families, PJ Library is an important outreach program, Rivkin said. “For many young families who are raising children in interfaith households and/or who live in the suburbs, PJ Library is a primary Jewish connection. Recently, 100 people attended a PJ Library Chanukah event in Coquitlam.”
Federation is seriously focused on the future of the Lower Mainland’s Jewish community and anticipating programming to reach its needs over the next 15 years.
“Our population of seniors is expected to double by 2030 and an increased number of them will be 85 or older, so programs and services for this group will need to be expanded,” said Rivkin. “As issues of affordability persist, we expect there to be more Jews moving to more affordable suburbs that have little or no Jewish infrastructure. We expect these regional communities to play a larger role, and Jewish Federation will increase its focus on programs and services to reach them.”
The cost of living in Vancouver will likely continue to impact those who pay a premium to live near Jewish services and institutions, but find that the cost of Jewish life prevents them from participating. “We expect that increased subsidies for program participation will be needed,” she added.
According to the National Housing Survey in 2011, 16% of the Lower Mainland’s Jewish community lives below the living wage of $36,504. Among Jewish immigrants to the Lower Mainland who arrived between 2005 and 2011, that low-income rate is 25%. As one communal effort in dealing with this issue, Tikva Housing Society will expand the affordable housing stock for the Jewish community by 42 additional units in Vancouver and Richmond by 2017.
Lauren Kramer, an award-winning writer and editor, lives in Richmond. To read her work online, visit laurenkramer.net. A longer version of this article was published in the Canadian Jewish News.
As housing prices in Vancouver continue to rise, people will have to be creative about, and flexible in, their living arrangements. (photo by Cynthia Ramsay)
Until recently, Naava Smolash was living in a collective house in East Vancouver with five roommates. The combined monthly rent for the 100-year-old character house, with high ceilings, fir floors and stained glass windows, was $2,700 and, though the inhabitants have changed over the past decade, Smolash has been a constant since she moved from Montreal 10 years ago.
What’s a collective house? “It’s people sharing spaces,” she explained. “We cook together, share our food and have a house bank account to which we all contribute money. It’s a small urban commune but the difference is that the members tend to be older, with families and professionals living together.”
Smolash’s fellow roomies, all in their 30s, included a scientist, a lawyer, an artist and a law student, while Smolash herself is a professor of English literature at Douglas College. In her spare time, she manages the Vancouver Collective House Network’s Facebook page. She estimates hers was one of 50 collective houses in the city, and that the residents of at least 10 of them are being evicted. Hers included.
Things changed this past summer when her house on Victoria Drive was sold for more than $2 million. A young family will be moving in and Smolash is stuck for a place to live. “There isn’t anywhere else we can afford,” she said. “This neighborhood is changing so quickly that only wealthy people can afford to live here, and I don’t think that’s what we want.”
She’s been talking with the Waterfront Consumers’ Cooperative, which suggested she and her roommates put in proposals for buying a house. “The problem is the co-op can’t buy a million dollar house and, even if they could, the mortgage would be $5,000 a month, which would make it unaffordable,” she said.
Smolash is feeling the panic. “We’re older, we can’t just keep moving,” she lamented. “And co-op houses tend to be rented to families, while a collective home has changing inhabitants.
“What we need is more cooperatively owned collective houses. We’re hoping that people who bought houses in the 1970s or 1980s will step up and sell it to the co-op for an amount the organization can afford. In so doing, they could create a legacy of affordable collective housing that’s cooperatively owned in East Vancouver.”
Michael Geller, a Vancouver architect, planner and developer, is sympathetic to her plight. “I think there’s a need for collective housing, and there’s a real problem here. But maybe this group should look at that $5,000 per month mortgage payment as a good way to go. While we’d like to think there’s some benevolent person in the community who might be willing to donate or reduce the price of a property, it’s been very difficult to achieve that in the past.”
Susana Cogan, housing development director at Tikva Housing Society, has a budget of $75,000 this year (down from $90,000 last year) to help subsidize the rent of those in the community who need it. “Right now, we’re helping 46 Jewish people,” she said. “Being Jewish is not a condition – we house low-income people, giving preference to Jews, so if there are two families with the same need and one is Jewish, we’d subsidize the Jewish family first.”
In February 2014, Adam M (not his real name), 57, and his wife moved to Vancouver from Montreal and the two, both shomer Shabbat, struggled to find jobs and affordable rental accommodation near the Jewish centre. Eventually, they found a one-bedroom apartment near Oak and 17th for $1,200. Tikva Housing is helping subsidize 38% of the monthly rent.
“People don’t like to ask for help,” Cogan said. “But, due to circumstances, they sometimes end up having to take it. Most of the needs arise because of unforeseen things – an illness, a divorce.”
In Adam’s case, the couple had arrived in Vancouver with some resources but depleted them before they were able to find affordable accommodation.
“Our rent subsidy program is supposed to help people for the short term, while they bridge their problems,” Cogan said, adding that each case is different, but one to one-and-a-half years is the average period of assistance.
Adam is grateful for help from the Jewish community in Vancouver but said more resources from donors are necessary. “I know a lot of religious people that would want to come and live in Vancouver with their families because of the lifestyle out west. The problem is, living close to the Jewish community is too expensive.”
Cogan said we definitely should not be encouraging people to come and live in Vancouver if they cannot afford it. Subsidies are scarce, she stressed. “We can’t assist everyone who comes here and we turn a lot of people away, only assisting those who have the most need.”
Right now, there are at least 50 people waiting for Tikva Housing’s help.
“Maybe next year we’ll have even less resources,” Cogan speculated. “But our goal is that if people come here and run out of resources, we don’t want them to be living on the street. We’ll help them find affordable accommodation.”
Lauren Kramer, an award-winning writer and editor, lives in Richmond, B.C. To read her work online, visit laurenkramer.net.
