Dan Moskovitz

A Learning Stones memorial

A newly created monument in the garden of Temple Sholom Synagogue commemorates the victims of Oct. 7, 2023, and the Israeli civilians, soldiers and foreign nationals who have lost their lives since that day. (photo from Temple Sholom)

There’s a newly created monument in the garden of Temple Sholom Synagogue – a serene and contemplative space. It’s not a cemetery, as you might expect, but a place to remember the horrific events of Oct. 7, 2023, and the tremendous loss of Israeli civilians, soldiers and foreign nationals who have lost their lives since that day. The project, envisioned by Temple Sholom Senior Rabbi Dan Moskovitz, draws on the Jewish tradition of placing stones when visiting the graves of the deceased and the “stumbling stones” of Berlin. The monument stands adjacent to the Temple’s Holocaust memorial. The proximity of the two is its own heartbreaking reminder of Jewish loss and tragedy

The new monument is surrounded by 33 large boulders, each inscribed with the name of a town or kibbutz attacked on Oct. 7; there is also one for the Nova Music Festival. Encircling the monument’s base lie some 1,658 small black stones, each one bearing the name and age of a victim.

The act of placing stones on a grave signifies that the person’s soul is remembered and honoured. It reflects the belief that the soul continues to exist in the afterlife and that the memory of the deceased remains alive in the hearts of the living. In this case, Rabbi Moskovitz’s intention was to make sure his community remembers those killed not as one massive number but as individual Jews. Every individual had a unique life story, just as each stone is unique.

It was this topic that the rabbi talked about in his Kol Nidre sermon only days after the one-year anniversary of the Oct. 7 attacks. A reminder that we must keep the memory of every person who died on that horrible day alive. All members of the congregation were asked to take home a small black polished stone inscribed with the name and age of a victim of the Hamas attacks and the Israelis killed in the war since then.

photo - The Oct. 7 memorial draws on the Jewish tradition of placing stones when visiting the graves of the deceased and the “stumbling stones” of Berlin — The Oct. 7 memorial draws on the Jewish tradition of placing stones when visiting the graves of the deceased and the “stumbling stones” of Berlin. *(photo from Temple Sholom)*

Congregants were asked to research the name engraved on their stone(s); learn their story, their plans, and to even write a message on the stone if they so wished. They were then requested to bring their stone(s) back to the synagogue by Simchat Torah, when the monument would be dedicated. Moskovitz anticipated that the one-year anniversary that falls on the Jewish holiday, marred by the attacks, would be a time of sorrow, reflection and memory as the community gathered for what is otherwise a joyous holiday.

The sermon had a profound impact both in person and online. People wrote back from as far away as Thailand and the majority of synagogue members picked up a rock on their way home.

Inspiration for the monument came from when Moskovitz was a teenager. He recalls wearing a metal bracelet with the name of a Soviet refusenik, a Jew who was denied permission to emigrate to Israel. When the names of the hostages were gradually released, the rabbi said: “The idea struck me that we must hold on to the names of the hostages, share them and never let the world forget their torment and danger. I also wanted to do something to help raise money for the families and all of those in Israel forever changed and impacted by Oct 7. And so began the production and distribution of 10,000 bracelets engraved with the name of each hostage, their age and where they were taken from in a project called Till They All Come Home.”

As the anniversary approached, Moskovitz used the basis of the bracelet project to inspire the memorial stones. Temple Sholom Sisterhood provided the funding for the rabbi to purchase 1,000 pounds of stones and commission a five-foot-tall monument for the synagogue garden. Each stone was personally engraved by the rabbi and his family and the project took more than a month. Every victim was researched on the internet and often the entire family grieved as they reflected upon the age of the victim and the personal stories.

“Chana Kritzman’s was the first stone I picked up,” said Barb Halparin, a Temple Sholom congregant. “Its shape, a glistening black tear drop, attracted my attention. Chana’s age, 88, was etched below her name and I felt the immediate kinship of senior womanhood. Googling Chana’s name only intensified my sense of identification with her. I learned that, as a founding member of Kibbutz Be’eri, Chana had established the kibbutz library, where she ‘raised her children and grandchildren on a love of books, reading, and the art of storytelling.’

“I’ve been an avid reader all my life, and I earned my BA in English literature. I value my membership in the Isaac Waldman Library, and my favourite gift to my grandchildren is a book.”

Kritzman was shot by Hamas invaders while being evacuated from her home. She fought for her life in hospital for two weeks before succumbing to her wounds.

Halparin expressed how reading about Kritzman, her life, her love of words, her senseless, suffering death was a deeply emotional experience for her, as was placing her stone beside the memorial’s larger rock dedicated to Kibbutz Be’eri.

“It felt like I was in some small way bringing her home,” she said. “When Rabbi Moskovitz introduced the stumbling stone concept, I was deeply touched and eager to participate in such a meaningful project of remembrance.”

Another Temple Sholom member, Reisa Schneider, said: “One of the stones I took home was of Tair David, who was 23 years old when she and her sister Hodaya, age 26, were murdered by Hamas terrorists at the Nova music festival on Oct. 7, 2023. They were from the town of Beit Dagan. Their father, Uri, spent 30 minutes on the phone with them. He could hear blasts of gunfire nearby; he instructed them to lie on the ground, hold hands and breathe. Their connection was cut; he never heard from them again.”

On Instagram, their sister Liza wrote that Tair was “just like her name, a child of light, with a smile that could be seen for miles and a presence that is hard to hide.”

“I found it interesting, maybe even coincidental, that the name of the person who I was expected to remember meant light,” said Schneider. “We gave our middle daughter the Hebrew name Orah, which also means light. Additionally, my maiden name is Smiley. I have tried to keep the name alive by smiling authentically and frequently. I have happily and intentionally passed that quality on to my daughters and grandchildren. I plan to honour Tair’s memory by bringing light into this broken world and by continuing to smile, despite these challenging times.”

photo - The Oct. 7 monument in the garden of Temple Sholom — The Oct. 7 monument in the garden of Temple Sholom. *(photo from Temple Sholom)*

Synagogue member Louise Krivel wrote: “After hearing Rabbi Moskovitz’s amazing sermon on Yom Kippur and learning about the over 1,600 rocks that his family had engraved in memory of the victims of Oct. 7 and beyond, I felt a tremendous sense of responsibility to honour the memory of the individuals whose rocks our family had been given.

“I researched each one and reached out to a couple of Israeli families via Facebook to advise them of our synagogue’s memorial and to let them know what Rabbi Moskovitz had been responsible for creating.”

Yoni Znati, the father of Matan Znati, a 23-year-old Nova festival-goer, who died protecting his girlfriend, was one of those grieving family members Krivel contacted. He responded that he was very excited to hear about the memorial. He appreciated it very much, requested photos and hopes that, one day, he can meet Krivel so that he can tell her more about Matan.

“I can’t think of a more meaningful way that we as a congregation could honour the victims of Oct. 7,” Krivel shared. “I am so proud of Rabbi Moskovitz and his family and our congregation for creating this meaningful and beautiful memorial. Am Yisrael Chai.”

These are just three brief stories that Temple Sholom congregants researched from the horrific attack of Oct. 7 and those killed during the year since.

It’s after Simchat Torah. I am standing in the memorial garden. It’s now flooded with the rocks. Inside the synagogue, there’s a bat mitzvah. I can faintly hear the lively sounds of playfulness and laughter.

There will always be moments of celebration and sadness. As Kohelet (Ecclesiastes) reminds us, “To everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven.”

Jenny Wright is a writer, music therapist, children’s musician and recording artist.

Help vs antisemitism

The Antisemitism and Israel Crisis Response Team’s hands-on guide can be found at jewishvancouver.com/toolkit.

Since Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver launched the Antisemitism and Israel Crisis Response Team (AICRT) in November 2023, the team has been dedicated to helping Jewish community members navigate the challenges of a post-Oct. 7 world.

Last week, AICRT – co-chaired by Rabbi Dan Moskovitz and Nico Slobinsky – launched a hands-on guide for community members. It covers everything from tips on engaging in social media, to reporting an antisemitic incident, to hosting neighbours at events so non-Jewish friends can connect with the Jews in their lives in positive ways.

On the day before Federation launched this guide, the Vancouver Police Department released a report that the Vancouver Jewish community experienced a 62% increase in police-reported antisemitic hate incidents in 2023 compared to 2022 – and 33 of 47 incidents occurred after the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks perpetrated by Hamas. (See vpd.ca/news/2024/01/16/israel-hamas-war-fuels-increase-in-hate-crimes-protests-in-2023.)

Antisemitism is a real and present threat, and it’s a growing problem. That’s why Federation, the response team and the Jewish community are coming together to push back against it.

The toolkit is a guide to help people take meaningful actions – as well as advice on where to turn if you need help. All of it is based on two key factors – what the response team has heard from community members about what they need to navigate these dark times, and professional polling of the broader community.

The guide at jewishvancouver.com/toolkit is a living document and will be updated as the situation changes, and new resources are needed. Right now, the contents include:

• Information on well-being and mental health
• Key messages
• Engaging on social media
• How to be a grassroots organizer
• Dealing with antisemitism in K-12 schools
• University resources
• How to write a letter to the editor
• How to engage BC MLAs and MPs
• How to report an antisemitic incident
• How to have difficult conversations with family and friends

The toolkit is designed to help people stand up when needed, and to draw in those who are already inclined to support the community. Write to the Antisemitism and Israel Crisis Response Team at [email protected] with any ideas or comments.

Antisemitism Legal Helpline

The Antisemitism Legal Helpline aims to connect those facing antisemitism with legal information and resources. It is being hosted through Access Pro Bono, a nonprofit providing referrals and legal assistance. Their newly hired coordinator, Dan Rothwell, is a Vancouver lawyer with experience in the public, private and nonprofit sectors. He is keen to connect with community partners to help make this project a valuable tool in the fight against antisemitism, and he can be reached by email: [email protected].

The helpline can be reached at 778-800-8917.

– Courtesy Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver

Rabbis’ emotional journey

Left to right: Rabbis Susan Tendler, Hannah Dresner, Philip Bregman, Carey Brown, Andrew Rosenblatt, Jonathan Infeld, Philip Gibbs and Dan Moskovitz in Israel last month. (photo from facebook.com/jewishvancouver)

Eight Vancouver-area rabbis recently visited Israel where, among many other things, they handed out cards and letters prepared by Jewish day school students and members of Vancouver’s Jewish community to soldiers and other Israelis. The response, according to one of the rabbis, was overwhelming.

“I saw soldiers taking these cards and then dropping down to the sidewalk and crying,” said Rabbi Philip Bregman. “Holding them to their chest as if this was a sacred piece of text and just saying, ‘Thank you. To know that we are not forgotten….’”

photo - The rabbis’ mission included the delivery of thank you cards to Israeli soldiers — The rabbis’ mission included the delivery of thank you cards to Israeli soldiers. (photo from facebook.com/jewishvancouver)

Bregman, rabbi emeritus at the Reform Temple Sholom, was almost overcome with emotion while recounting the experience, which he shared in a community-wide online presentation Dec. 17. The event included seven of the eight rabbis who participated in the whirlwind mission, which saw them on the ground for a mere 60 hours. Rabbi Andrew Rosenblatt of the Orthodox Congregation Schara Tzedeck was part of the mission but did not participate in the panel because he extended his time in Israel.

According to Ezra Shanken, chief executive officer of the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver, who emceed the event, the Vancouver mission was unique in Canada and possibly in North America for bringing together rabbis from across the religious spectrum. The close connection of most local rabbis, facilitated by the longstanding Rabbinical Association of Vancouver (RAV), set a foundation for the mission, which took place in the second week of December.

The eight rabbis transported 21 enormous duffel bags, filled with gear like socks, gloves, toques and underwear, mostly for military reservists.

photos - The rabbis delivered warm clothing, including socks, to Israeli soldiers — The rabbis delivered warm clothing, including socks, to Israeli soldiers. *(photo from facebook.com/jewishvancouver)*

Shanken, who visited Israel days earlier with Federation representatives and five Canadian members of Parliament, said nothing prepared him for what he encountered there. Bregman echoed Shanken’s perspective.

“It’s one thing to have that as an intellectual understanding,” said Bregman, “It’s another thing when you are actually there to witness the absolute pain and trauma. People have asked me how was the trip. I say it was brutal.”

The reception they received from Israelis was profound, several of the rabbis noted.

“I’ve been to Israel dozens of times,” Bregman said. “People are [always] happy to see us. Nothing like this.”

Rabbi Dan Moskovitz, senior rabbi at Temple Sholom, said the mission was to bear witness and also was a response to what rabbis were hearing from congregants about the centrality of Israel in their lives. He told the Independent that he was able to connect with two philanthropists in Los Angeles who funded the mission. Rabbi Carey Brown, associate rabbi at Temple Sholom, and Rabbi Susan Tendler, rabbi at the Conservative Beth Tikvah Congregation, in Richmond, handled logistics, with input from the group.

The unity of Israelis was among the most striking impressions, said Brown.

“It’s so all-encompassing of the society right now … the sense that everyone’s in this together,” she said. The unity amid diversity was especially striking, she noted, when the rabbis visited the central location in Tel Aviv known as “Hostage Square.”

Brown said Israelis asked about antisemitism in Canada and seemed confounded by the fact that there is not more empathy worldwide for the trauma their country has experienced.

Tendler reflected on how Israelis were stunned and touched by the fact that a group of Canadians had come to show solidarity.

The rabbis were able to experience a microcosm of Israeli society without leaving their hotel. At the Dan Panorama Tel Aviv, where they stayed, they were among only a few paying guests. The hotel was filled with refugees from the south and north of the country who are being indefinitely put up in the city.

Several rabbis spoke of incidental connections in which they discovered not six degrees of separation between themselves and people they ran into, but one or two.

Rabbi Jonathan Infeld of the Conservative Congregation Beth Israel, who is chair of RAV, told of being approached by members of a family staying at their hotel who heard they were from Vancouver. They asked if the rabbi knew a particular family and he replied that he not only knew them but that a member of that family had just married into his own.

Likewise, Tendler ran into people who went to the same summer camp she did and the rabbis found many other close connections.

“The idea [is] that we are spread out but, at the heart of it all, we honestly really are one very small, connected people,” said Tendler. “We are one family, one community and that was the most important, amazing thing of all.”

Close connections or not, the rabbis were welcomed with open arms. Rabbi Philip Gibbs of West Vancouver’s Conservative Congregation Har El told of how he was walking past a home and glanced up to see a family lighting Hanukkah candles. They insisted he come in and mark the occasion with them.

Gibbs also noted that the political divisions that had riven the society before Oct. 7 have not disappeared, but that the entire population appears to have dedicated themselves to what is most important now.

The rabbis met with scholars, including Israeli foreign ministry experts and many ordinary Israelis, including Arab Israelis, as well as the writer Yossi Klein Halevi, who told them that many Israelis feel let down by their government, intelligence officials and military leadership.

The rabbis traveled to the site of the music festival where 364 people were murdered, more than 40 hostages kidnapped and many more injured on Oct. 7. They saw scores of bullet-riddled and exploded vehicles. All of them will be drained of fuel and other fluids before being buried because they contain fragments of human remains that ZAKA, Israel’s volunteer rescue, extraction and identification agency, could not completely remove from the vehicles.

Rabbi Hannah Dresner of the Jewish Renewal-affiliated Or Shalom Synagogue was not the only rabbi to compare the mission with a shiva visit.

“I was just so amazed at the care that was being given, that each of these vehicles was now being siphoned of any remaining flammable materials so that each one of them could be buried according to our halachah,” Dresner said, “so that none of the human remains would be just discarded as junk. I found that overwhelmingly powerful.”

Relatedly, the group visited an exhibit at Expo Tel Aviv, which recreates the music festival site and features unclaimed property from the site, including the historically resonant sight of hundreds of pairs of shoes.

photo - The visiting rabbis went to an exhibit at Expo Tel Aviv, which featured unclaimed property from the music festival site where hundreds were murdered — The visiting rabbis went to an exhibit at Expo Tel Aviv, which featured unclaimed property from the music festival site where hundreds were murdered. *(photo from facebook.com/jewishvancouver)*

The rabbis visited Kibbutz Be’eri, where more than 100 people were murdered, and saw the devastation and destruction, some of it not from Oct. 7 but from days after, when explosives planted on that day detonated. It was also at this kibbutz that the Israel Defence Forces found a copy of the Hamas playbook for the atrocities.

“It sounded as if it could have been written by Eichmann or Hitler,” said Bregman. “[The intent] was not only to destroy the body but to destroy the mind, the soul, the psychology, the emotional and spiritual aspect of every Jew.”

The plan included strategies for setting fire to homes in order to force residents out of safe rooms, then specified the order in which family members were to be murdered – parents in front of their children.

photo - As part of their mission to Israel, Vancouver rabbis visited kibbutzim that were attacked by Hamas on Oct. 7 — As part of their mission to Israel, Vancouver rabbis visited kibbutzim that were attacked by Hamas on Oct. 7. (photo from facebook.com/jewishvancouver)

While the trip may have had the spirit of a shiva visit, the mood of the Israelis, Dresner said, was “can-do resourcefulness.”

“It’s felt to me over the past couple of years that Israelis have been kind of depressed,” she said, referring to divisive political conflicts. “But they are full force embracing their ingenuity and turning the energy of the resistance movement into this amazing volunteer corps to supply really whatever is needed to whatever sector.”

Groups that had coalesced to protest proposed judicial reforms pivoted to emergency response, she said, ensuring that soldiers and displaced civilians have basic needs met and then creating customized pallets of everything from tricycles to board games, bedding and washing machines, for families who will be away from their homes for extended periods.

The rabbis also went to Kibbutz Yavneh and paid their respects at the grave of Ben Mizrachi, the 22-year-old Vancouver man and former army medic who died at the music festival while trying to save the lives of others. They had a private meeting with Yaron and Jackie Kaploun, parents of Canadian-Israeli Adi Vital-Kaploun, who was murdered in front of her sons, an infant and a 4-year-old.

On the final evening of their visit, the rabbis hosted a Hanukkah party for displaced residents of Kiryat Shmona, the northern Israeli town that is in the Vancouver Jewish community’s partnership region.

At the party, Temple Sholom’s Rabbi Brown spoke with a woman whose two sons are in Gaza fighting for the IDF.

“I told her that we do the prayer for tzahal, for the IDF, in our services in our shul,” Brown said, “and she was so surprised and touched, and she said, ‘Keep praying, keep praying.’”

Talking on democracy

Left to right: Ora Peled Nakash of the America-Israel Democracy Coalition and Michal Muszkat-Barkan of Safeguarding Our Shared Home listen to a question posed by Temple Sholom Rabbi Dan Moskovitz at an event Sept. 26. (screenshot)

More than 300 people pre-registered to attend Hear From Leaders in the Israeli Protest Movement at Temple Sholom on Sept. 26 and the sanctuary was full. Presented by the synagogue, UnXeptable Vancouver, the America-Israel Democracy Coalition, and Safeguarding our Shared Home, in partnership with JSpaceCanada, New Israel Fund of Canada, Ameinu Canada and Arza Canada, this was the first time that a Canadian Jewish establishment hosted protesters from Israel’s pro-democracy movement on Canadian soil.

Speaking before the Hamas terror attacks on Oct. 6, Michal Muszkat-Barkan of Safeguarding Our Shared Home, and Ora Peled Nakash of the America-Israel Democracy Coalition were touring as part of an effort to educate North American diaspora Jewry on the judicial coup attempt and other fundamental issues with which Israel’s society has been grappling this past year. The unprecedented protest movement was, at 39 weeks, the longest sustained protest movement in modern Israeli history. In response to the war, however, the movement suspended protests in Israel and around the world, including Vancouver, standing in solidarity with their fellow Israelis.

The Sept. 26 evening began with Rabbi Laura and Charles Kaplan singing Oseh Shalom, Salaam (Od Yavo) and Lu Yehi followed by Temple Sholom Rabbi Dan Moskovitz’s introduction of the partner organizations. He said, “We have tried to partner at every opportunity we can to bring a dialogue about Israel, to bring an understanding of the challenges Israel faces and the reality that it faces, as well, through a lens of Zionism that is pro-Israel, pro-democracy, pro-human and civil rights.”

Daphna Kedem, lead organizer of UnXeptable Vancouver, spoke about the global protest movement started by Israeli expats, which has grown from 24 to 70 cities, with chapters in five Canadian cities. She said, “The only reason [the current Israeli government] has not succeeded [with the judicial coup] is millions of determined protesters in Israel and around the world who have been fighting for 38 weeks in a row to save Israeli democracy.”

A shortened version of the speech that American-Israeli author and journalist Yossi Klein Halevi, this year’s resident scholar at Temple Sholom, gave at the synagogue during Rosh Hashanah was played. Klein Halevi said: “Now, in Israel, we’re confronting a situation for the first time that I’ve experienced where there are no two sides. There are no two legitimate sides – one side is trying to destroy the foundations of Israeli democracy and the other side, the side that is in the streets every week for the last 37 weeks, sometimes more than once a week, waving giant Israeli flags, that side is trying to save the Israel that’s embodied by the two flags on the bima [pulpit of Temple Sholom]. These two flags represent the entwinement of Jewish and democratic values – that is the Israel that the diaspora fell in love with and that is the Israel that we’re fighting to preserve.”

Temple Sholom member Rina Vizer, in introducing the two main speakers of the evening, dubbed them “the new wonder women, ahead of Gal Gadot,” for their dedication to their cause, taking a 17-hour flight just as Yom Kippur ended in Israel, landing in Seattle, and driving to Vancouver, arriving mere hours before the event.

Peled-Nakash is a software engineer from Kibbutz Ramat David, just outside of Haifa. She was the first woman to graduate the naval officer’s academy and first woman to serve on a missile ship. She is a member of Forum Dvorah, a nongovernmental organization with a network of professional women in an array of fields relating to Israel’s national security and foreign policy.

Muszkat-Barkan is a professor of Jewish education at Hebrew Union College. She is the director of the department of education and professional development and heads the Rikma program in pluralistic Jewish education in partnership with the Melton Centre for Jewish Education at Hebrew University. She is also the founder and head of the Teachers’ Lounge, a professional development program for Arab and Jewish Educators in Jerusalem.

Peled-Nakash presented a slideshow about what brought her to quit her day job at IBM and volunteer full-time with the protest movement. As the first woman to graduate from the naval officer’s academy, she was inspired by the Alice Miller Supreme Court ruling in 1995, she said. When Miller – who had made aliyah from South Africa with her family when she was 6 years old – applied to the Israeli Air Force Flight Academy in 1993, she was rejected based on her gender. Miller sued the Israel Defence Forces, with the case ending up at the Supreme Court, where the rejection was deemed unconstitutional.

Tying the Miller case to the current attempt by Israeli Justice Minister Yariv Levin to weaken the Supreme Court, Peled-Nakash said, “Alice’s appeal to become a fighter pilot, that completely changed the course of my life…. I didn’t become a fighter pilot but I became a naval officer … following the same steps [as Miller], of opening equal opportunities for women in military service, which is a fight that is actively going on.”

Peled-Nakash has two daughters, ages 8 and 12, and regularly brings them to protests. She sees this act as a continuation of her family’s long Zionist legacy – to fight for Israel as a democracy, whether you live in Israel or in the diaspora.

Muszkat-Barkan grew up in an Orthodox Zionist home in Jerusalem. She spoke of the liberation of Jerusalem following the Six Day War in 1967 and how the night of celebration was also one that opened her eyes to those around her. “I just looked up, I don’t know why, and I saw a hand closing a window and I said to myself, ‘Oh my God, someone is living there and it’s four o’clock in the morning. How come I didn’t think about that? How come we are all here singing and shouting and we didn’t think that someone is living up there?’”

This experience is what led her to dedicate her life to multiculturalism and pluralism, her realization that we are not all the same, but we must live together and respect one another.

It was a WhatsApp message that led Muszkat-Barkan to begin the Jerusalem-based protest group Safeguarding our Shared Home with a few of her friends. The movement grew, with more people coming out to the streets every weekend. “If you came to Jerusalem to protest with us,” she said, “you would see groups of people against the occupation … you would see groups of religious people, you would see Reform people, educators, many groups all together.”

In wrapping up the question-and-answer period, Peled-Nakash left the audience with two messages for diaspora Jews.

“I would ask each and every one of you to take a hard look at how you are supporting, financially, current causes,” she said, “and to make sure that they are in line with your values because the fact is we’ve seen a lot of this coup has been funded by well-intended people that actually thought they were supporting Israel but they weren’t aware of which kind of Israel they were supporting. So, start with an audit to make sure that the causes you’re currently supporting are in line with the values we’re talking about.”

A recording of the entire presentation can be found on Temple Sholom’s YouTube channel.

Maytal Kowalski is a board member of JSpaceCanada and the New Israel Fund of Canada. Based in Vancouver, she serves as the executive director of Partners for Progressive Israel, a New York-based nonprofit dedicated to the achievement of a durable and just peace between the state of Israel and its neighbours.

Dialogue on democracy

Next week, Temple Sholom and UnXeptable Vancouver, with Israeli protest group Safeguarding our Shared Home and US-based registered charity America-Israel Democracy Coalition, will host a discussion about how the Jewish community in Vancouver can support the pro-democracy protest efforts in Israel.

The event, scheduled to take place at Temple Sholom on Sept. 26, beginning at 7 p.m., will feature a discussion with Michal Muszkat-Barkan, PhD, of Safeguarding Our Shared Home, and Ora Peled Nakash of the America-Israel Democracy Coalition. Attendees will hear their perspectives and engage in a dialogue about the efforts by the Israeli democracy movement to build a strong civil society upholding Israel’s Declaration of Independence and its commitments to Jewish history, Jewish values, democracy, equality and justice.

Israel’s pro-democracy movement brings together nearly 200 different organizations. These organizations span various facets of Israeli society, including religious and secular groups, LGBTQ+ and women’s rights advocates, military veterans, medical professionals, anti-occupation activists, and many community-specific groups.

“The pro-democracy movement isn’t about politics, it is about the soul of the country,” said Jonathan Barsade, president of the America-Israel Democracy Coalition. “In modern history, the soul of Israel has been a critical element for the well-being of the Jewish community worldwide. That is why it is so important for the Israeli movement to engage and include the international Jewish community in this momentous event.”

In partnership with JSpaceCanada, Arza Canada, Ameinu Canada and the New Israel Fund of Canada, the gathering at Temple Sholom mirrors in many ways the inclusivity of Israel’s pro-democracy movement, by bringing together the leading organizations of progressive Jewry in Canada to engage in dialogue at a critical time in the history of the Israel-Canada relationship. It will be the first opportunity in Canada for Canadian Jews to meet with Israeli protest leaders live and in-person.

“We are honoured to host this event at Temple Sholom, which provides a platform for open dialogue and the exchange of ideas,” said Rabbi Dan Moskovitz of Temple Sholom. “By bringing together these influential Israeli protest leaders and showcasing the multifaceted nature of Israel’s pro-democracy movement, we aim to promote understanding and empathy while answering their call for solidarity from diaspora Jews.”

Daphna Kedem, lead organizer of UnXeptable Vancouver, added, “as an Israeli expat and proud member of the Vancouver Jewish community, I know how much pain both these communities feel about the current political climate in Israel. It is my hope that, through listening to those on the ground most affected by the potential regime change in Israel, we can work together – diaspora and Israeli Jews – to keep Israel Jewish and democratic, as stated in its Declaration of Independence.”

The Sept. 26 event is open to the public, and all interested individuals are encouraged to attend. Admission is free, and light refreshments will be provided following the discussion. All those wishing to attend should RSVP at bit.ly/SaveIsraeliDemocracy.

– Courtesy Maytal Kowalski, Press Pause Collective

Suzuki at Temple Sholom

On Sept. 9, Dr. David Suzuki will speak at Temple Sholom on the topic We Claim We Are Intelligent: Then Why Are We in Such a Mess? (photo from Temple Sholom)

Temple Sholom has invited Dr. David Suzuki to speak at their annual Selichot program on Sept. 9, at 8 p.m. The award-winning scientist, environmentalist and broadcaster will present on the topic We Claim We Are Intelligent: Then Why Are We in Such a Mess?

Following Suzuki’s presentation, Temple Sholom’s Senior Rabbi Dan Moskovitz will join him in a conversation about our responsibility as people of faith and citizens of the planet to do the Jewish act of teshuvah, return and repair, for the harm we have caused in abdicating our commanded obligation to be guardians of the earth.

The theme of the program comes from Temple Sholom’s ongoing engagement with the environmental crisis through the lens of Jewish moral tradition. A responsibility further amplified by a sermon Moskovitz gave on the issue on Rosh Hashanah in 2019 that sparked a larger effort by the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver.

Suzuki has taught recently that the COVID-19 crisis has had two enormous and related consequences – it brought much of human activity to a halt and it has given nature a respite. Both provide an opportunity to reset society’s priorities and head in a different direction.

Confrontation with the reality of a new epidemic should have subdued political and economic imperatives to scientific reality and the United States and Brazil have shown what happens when science is ignored or brushed aside. In a time of accusations of fake news, deep conspiracies and relentless trolls, scientists should have regained authoritative prominence. People have had to confront important questions about purpose, values, opportunities and constraints in the way we choose to live. The murder of George Floyd in the United States and the outbreak of racist attacks against Asians in Canada have revealed deep-seated racism and inequities that must be dealt with in a post-COVID world.

In this exploratory presentation, Suzuki touches on some of the stark questions and answers we’ve encountered, from our impact on the environment and our ability to change it, to our dependence on the human creation called the economy and the unfair treatment of our elders, Indigenous people, homeless people, and others. Suzuki puts out a call to action for all of us to rethink our priorities and learn the ultimate lesson in front of us – that nature can be far more forgiving than we deserve.

Temple Sholom’s Selichot program on Sept.9 is open to the community. Pre-registration is required via templesholom.ca.

– Courtesy Temple Sholom

Innovators in serving the community

Emcee Michael Newman, left, and keynote speaker Anders Sörman-Nilsson at the Jewish Family Services Innovators Lunch. (photo by Josh Bowie)

“I believe that the next trend is not necessarily digital transformation, but it is the alignment of two of these trends: sustainability and digitalization,” Swedish-Australian futurist Anders Sörman-Nilsson told guests at the 17th Annual Jewish Family Services Innovators Lunch on May 10. Organizations that align digital transformation and sustainability have a 2.5 times better chance of being top performers, he said.

Sörman-Nilsson was the keynote speaker at the lunch, which took place at the Hyatt Regency, the first in-person Innovators since the beginning of the pandemic.

As the founder of Thinque, a think tank and trend analysis firm that reaches global brands across four continents, Sörman-Nilsson is responsible for data-based research and foresight regarding future trends. Beyond his research, he is known for co-creating the Adobe Creative Intelligence test for B2B (business-to-business) marketing. He currently hosts two social innovation podcasts, the 2nd Renaissance Podcast and Entrepreneurs Organization’s Scaling Impact Podcast, and is the author of three books, Aftershock (2020), Seamless (2017) and Digilogue (2013). Sörman-Nilsson’s approach to futurism involves seeking out what he calls “avant-garde ideas” that can drive meaningful change.

Sörman-Nilsson aims to challenge the misconception that integrating technology into an organization’s operations impedes human connection. He gave the example of his family’s business, a clothing store, which thrived on personal interaction out of a brick-and-mortar building in a “highly analogue fashion,” using a pen and paper. He said such an approach is suited “for a world that no longer exists” and that the eventual bankruptcy of the store after 104 years of business was due to the failure to adopt new technologies. He dedicated Digilogue to his parents, exploring in it “how to win the digital minds and analogue hearts of tomorrow’s customers.” He emphasized that technological tools and personable business principles can not only coexist, but enhance one another.

Sörman-Nilsson urged businesses to conduct “pre-mortem” analyses to identify changes that could prevent obsolescence or bankruptcy. He asked people to imagine that it is 2030 and your company has gone under – what were the trends you missed, what were the signs you ignored and what were the investment decisions you delayed that contributed to your company’s failure? To avoid such an outcome, he encouraged organizations to focus on “mega trends” based on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, such as prioritizing affordable and clean energy, responsible consumption, and improving global health and well-being. These goals are “a good indicator of where the world and smart capital is moving,” he said, and reflecting one or more of them in the product or service you provide and in your day-to-day operations and external marketing efforts is key for long-term success. “Mega trends are powerful,” he said, “but they’re particularly exponential when you sit at the intersection of two overarching aligning trends, like digitalization and sustainability.”

Sörman-Nilsson uses the UN Brundtland Commission definition of sustainability, which he described as “meeting the needs of the present without hindering future generations from meeting theirs.” He spoke about the concept of “conscious capitalism,” where an organization is purpose-driven and prioritizes stakeholder well-being. Building a sustainable “ecosystem of impact” – otherwise known as a supply chain – is crucial in winning over today’s consumers, he argued, adding that technology is the most efficient way to achieve this. Better data collection, for example, can lead to less waste, or to gauging more accurately consumer needs. In his Innovators Lunch talk, he compared such technological integration to tikkun olam, as it reflects one’s responsibility to repair the world. He also advocated for the practice of “effective altruism,” which, he said, means that “the investment of your dollar in philanthropy should go the furthest,” giving the example of investing in mosquito nets in Africa. He connected this idea – helping the most people as possible – to tzedakah, justice and charity, as well as to tikkun olam.

Sörman-Nilsson reminded the audience that major tech players are raising the bar with predictive technologies that have the power to solve problems before they arise. He challenged businesses to use technology to streamline mundane tasks, which would allow workers to focus on more meaningful and humanistic responsibilities. He emphasized the importance of merging humanism and technology to leverage the best of human intelligence and artificial intelligence. He stressed the need to “ask the right questions” and incorporate human creativity and ethical decision-making when engaging with technological tools. By doing so, he said, brands can enhance their ability to cultivate community.

Headlining this year’s JFS Innovators Lunch, Sörman-Nilsson shared his insights with more than 500 guests. Over the past 16 years, the Innovator’s Lunch has raised more than $5 million for JFS, supporting services such as food, counseling, housing and comprehensive care for children, youth, adults and seniors. Event committee chair Candice Thal said, “I believe that giving back to the community is not only a responsibility but a privilege.” This event, she said, is “our way of caring for others,” the funds raised helping JFS provide services for more than 3,000 community members.

photo - Left to right: Tanja Demajo, chief executive officer of Jewish Family Services, and Innovators committee chair Candice Thal — Left to right: Tanja Demajo, chief executive officer of Jewish Family Services, and Innovators committee chair Candice Thal. *(photo by MJ Dimapilis)*

The event was emceed by Michael Newman of Global BC News. Following a land acknowledgement from Elder Rose Guerin of the Musqueam First Nation and welcoming remarks from Thal and Tanja Demajo, chief executive officer of JFS, there was a video entitled Building Future, Today, which showcased how JFS not only helps individuals, but their families, creating a ripple effect on the entire community and future generations. Rabbi Dan Moskovitz of Temple Sholom, who did the blessing over the meal, underscored JFS’s mission with the story of “Sam,” a man who sought the rabbi’s help after falling on hard times. “We know many people like Sam,” said Moskovitz. While change is constant, he said, some things never change: “People still get sick, they are hungry, inadequately housed, lonely and vulnerable.” He concluded, “The work of JFS, your support of Jewish Family Services, has never been more important or more necessary.”

Moskovitz’s sentiment was shared by Jody Dales, chair of the JFS board of directors, who shared how the Jewish community helped her after she tried to take her own life when she was 19 years old, living on her own and barely making ends meet at a minimum-wage job. “The blade didn’t cut deep enough to do any real damage but it penetrated enough to scare the hell out of me,” she said. “In the darkest moment of my life, the faintest ray of hope appeared, and I called my mom. And because she was part of the community, thiscommunity, her well-placed phone call set off a chain of events that tracked me into the office of a professional who saved my life. It took me years to ask for help, only days to receive it, but a lifetime to heal.”

In a very different place today, Dales said she shared her story so that people could “understand the complexities of despair, dread and depression. I doubt that there’s a person in this room for whom at least parts of this conversation don’t resonate.”

Among the tools that continue to help her, she said, “is dedicating my life to a life of service. It’s hard to feel bad about yourself when you’re making other people feel good about themselves. And there’s no agency that I know of that makes people feel good about themselves better than Jewish Family Services.”

For Dales, JFS can make such an impact because of the “intangibles” they offer – making all people feel seen and valued. “JFS is overwhelmed with need,” she said, and the only thing holding the organization back from helping more is money. She highlighted the event’s gift-matching sponsor, the Paul and Edwina Heller Memorial Fund, and encouraged people to donate. To do so, visit jfsinnovators.ca/donate.

Alisa Bressler is a fourth-year student at Queen’s University in Kingston, Ont. She is an avid reader and writer, and the online director of the arts and culture publication MUSE Magazine. Bressler is a member of the Vancouver Jewish community, and the inaugural Baila Lazarus Jewish Journalism Intern.

Reflecting back 80 years

At the community’s commemoration of Yom Hashoah, child survivor Janos Benisz spoke about his experiences during the Holocaust. (photo by Rhonda Dent)

Over the past year, Janos Benisz has watched the news of Ukrainian parents fleeing to Poland and elsewhere in Europe to find safety for their families. While “overjoyed” for the families finding refuge today, he cannot help but reflect back eight decades to his own family’s catastrophic history in that violence-ravaged region.

Benisz was born in the summer of 1938 in the Hungarian city of Esztergom. He is one of the very few children to survive the Nazi concentration camps and is now one of an even smaller number of survivors alive to share their stories of survival. He spoke April 17 at the annual Yom Hashoah Commemoration presented by the Vancouver Holocaust Education Centre, on the 80th anniversary of the beginning of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising.

Benisz lost his mother in 1943, when she was 38, after she went to hospital for a routine procedure but was, he said, murdered by a fascist there. His father remarried and his stepmother would prove a saviour for the boy.

The following year, the Nazis began rounding up Hungarian Jews and preparing to transport them to forced labour and death camps.

“Like a plague of locusts, the SS came marching into our city,” he recalled. “As they marched past our house, there was a great fear in our family. My father closed the windows and pulled the curtains down and his fear was passed on to me. The next day, we left our home and on the front of our white stucco home was a yellow Magen David. Within hours, an SS commander came to our house and put stickers on our valuables.”

His father took young Janos and his stepmother to relations who were Catholic. It was the last time he saw his father.

“Life was wonderful for six weeks until one of the neighbours reported us and informed that Jews were in this home,” said Benisz.

An SS officer accompanied by Hungarian Arrow Cross fascists knocked on the door and seized Janos and his stepmother, who were sent to the Strasshof concentration camp, in Austria. They remained there for eight or nine months, until liberated by Soviet forces. Benisz credits his stepmother’s determination for his survival.

“It was like a lioness protecting her cub,” he said. “She would go into the circle where the food was, or the slop was, with the big cup and she would always bring food to me. I would drink it and that sustained me.”

After liberation, Janos, 7, and his now-mother made their way back to Esztergom. The devastation was nearly total.

“I had many, many cousins and they all were massacred,” he said. “My mother’s family … it was like the earth had opened up and killed them all.”

The experiences left Janos’s stepmother mentally broken and Janos was placed in an orphanage.

“The only thing I remember is cod liver oil in the morning and brushing my teeth with about 10 or 15 guys beside me brushing their teeth as well,” he said. “After two-and-a-half years in the orphanage, somebody from the Joint [Distribution Committee] picked me up, took me to the train station. There were 14 or 15 other Jewish orphans there and they told us, ‘You’re going to America – North America.’”

The group first spent six months in France, where “they tried to educate us,” he said, but the young survivors were like “a bunch of wild animals.”

The group arrived in Halifax on Dec. 3, 1948. They were given hot soup and delicious sandwiches, as well as ice cream, of which Benisz said he must have eaten a gallon with his bare hands.

On the train across Canada, orphans disembarked at different cities and Benisz arrived in Winnipeg in the midst of a blizzard.

“My first Canadian Jewish home proved to be a disaster,” he said. “I was bounced around like a basketball between foster homes.… I was never part of the family. I was always an outsider.”

The terrors that followed him from Europe, which led to screaming in the night, did not make him a welcome addition to potential foster homes.

“Who wants to have a stranger’s scream waking [one] up every night?” he asked.

He was put in a reformatory for about six months before a Jewish welfare agency rescued him and found him suitable housing and got him caught up in his education.

At a young age, Benisz got a job as a copy boy at the Winnipeg Free Press. A life in the news business followed, especially covering sports, which he did at newspapers across Western Canada. An editor changed his byline from Janos Benisz to Jack Bennett, which became his professional designation.

Eventually, he arrived to a new job at a Vancouver daily just as the press launched what would become a year-long strike. Jack Diamond, the late Jewish businessman and philanthropist, gave Benisz a job. Years later, after a corporate buyout, Benisz had a $25,000 windfall and he and a partner opened a business in Gastown, “and, over the next 15, 18 years, we made a lot of money.”

He spoke of his gratitude for the community of survivors, especially the Child Survivors Group, based at the Vancouver Holocaust Education Centre. For two decades, he has spoken to school groups and others about his Holocaust experiences.

“I speak on behalf of the six million who have no voice, that includes 1.5 million children who were murdered,” he said.

At the commemorative event, Rabbi Dan Moskovitz of Temple Sholom reflected on the longer, formal name of the day, which is Yom HaZikaron laShoah ve-laG’vurah, Holocaust and Heroism Remembrance Day. He emphasized the resistance and revolt inherent in both the name of the day and the fact that Yom Hashoah is marked annually on the anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising.

“Our sacred purpose is so much more important, so much more vital, because the life-memory is fading. We gather here this evening at the twilight of an era. As the Survivors’ Declaration hauntingly observes, the age of the Holocaust survivors is drawing to a close. Before long, no one will be left to say, I was there, I saw, I remember what happened…. It is in this void that the deniers and the distortionists will come, they always do, as they have continually on every night and every day since even before the liberation of the camps, to say that this didn’t happen, that it wasn’t so bad or the relativism of comparing trauma to trauma.”

There is one significant difference between the contemporary generation and the generation of the 1930s, said the rabbi.

“That difference is that we have the experience that they didn’t have. We know it can happen because it did,” he said. “We know the antisemitism, if it is not confronted vigourously, forcefully and immediately defeated, can develop into monstrous dimensions. So, we don’t have the luxury or the privilege to say, let’s wait and see how things will develop, how this turns out.”

The VHEC’s Abby Wener Herlin, granddaughter of survivors Aurelia and David Gold, spoke as a representative of the third generation.

“In our family, in order to build a life and live each day, they could not speak about their experiences,” she recalled of her late grandparents. “In order to protect themselves and us from the atrocities and traumas of their past, they shared very little.

“There is a sense of weight that comes from being the grandchild of Holocaust survivors,” Wener Herlin continued, “to know that I am part of the last generation that will ever hear those stories firsthand. I feel it is my duty and responsibility to carry it forward and it is my duty to remember.”

In a video presentation, former Canadian justice minister Irwin Cotler discussed the 1994 genocide against the Tutsis in Rwanda, as well as the Holocaust, and said that what makes both historical instances so horrific are not just the horrors themselves but that both atrocities were preventable.

“Nobody could say that we did not know. We knew but we did not act,” said Cotler.

He addressed remarks specifically to survivors: “You have endured the worst of inhumanity, but somehow you found the resources of your own humanity, the ability to carry on, to build families and to make an enduring contribution to Canada and to the communities in which you settled.”

Corinne Zimmerman, board president of the VHEC, read from a statement Prime Minister Justin Trudeau released for Yom Hashoah and Moskovitz read a message from B.C. Premier David Eby. Sarah Kirby-Yung, Vancouver city councilor, read a proclamation from Mayor Ken Sim.

Cantor Yaacov Orzech chanted El Moleh Rachamim, the memorial prayer for the martyrs. An extensive musical program, produced by Wendy Bross Stuart and Ron Stuart, featured Bross Stuart on piano, Eric Wilson on cello, with Cantor Shani Cohen, Kat Palmer, Lisa Osipov Milton singing, as well as eight young voices collectively dubbed the Yom Hashoah Singers.

The evening was presented by the VHEC with the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver and Temple Sholom.

Judaism’s differing practices

Burquest Jewish Community Centre has invited a series of local Jewish leaders to visit the centre and discuss their approach to Jewish practice. A Coat of Many Colours: Conversations about Jewish Practice takes place every other Sunday, through Dec. 11. It started Oct. 16.

Rabbi Laura Duhan-Kaplan – rabbi emerita of Or Shalom (Renewal), volunteer at Beth Israel (Conservative) and director of inter-religious studies and professor of Jewish studies at Vancouver School of Theology – began the series with a talk called An Integrative Spirituality.

On Oct. 30, 1:30 p.m., Congregation Har El’s Rabbi Philip Gibbs speaks on The Conservative Synagogue and the Modern Jew.

“As a Conservative rabbi, I believe that Jewish law develops over time so that even a deep commitment to live according to Jewish values, traditions and rituals can fit with modern sensibilities,” he said. “At the same time, as a community leader, I also recognize that not every person wants to or is able to follow the discipline of an observant life. The synagogue acts as a spiritual toolbox with the many rituals and values that can add meaning to your life. The tension between an individual’s interest and the communal practice is both a challenge to create a welcoming space and an opportunity to explore the deeper meaning of our tradition. We will look at a few examples of how a synagogue could approach rituals like kashrut, prayer and Shabbat.”

Rabbi Tom Samuels of Okanagan Jewish Community Centre, Beth Shalom Synagogue, will give the Nov. 13, 1 p.m., talk, on the topic From Synagogue to Home.

Samuels, who does not identify with any singular Jewish denomination, institution, theology, pedagogy and the like, said, “My session will explore the idea of relocating the North American model for ‘doing Jewish religion’ from the synagogue building to the home. In response to the destruction of the Second Temple, a new Judaism emerged called Rabbinic Judaism. The ancient rabbis established a new locus of Jewish identity and connection to the home, and specifically, to the shulchan, the Shabbat table. Using the model of the Chassidic tish (or botteh, or what Chabad Lubavitch call the farbrengen), we will experience the seamless tapestry of Torah learning, tefillah (prayer), singing and eating that could be replicated by Jewish communities, with or without a local synagogue, throughout North America.”

On Nov. 27, 1 p.m., Temple Sholom’s Rabbi Dan Moskovitz will speak on These Are The Things – 10 Commandments for Living a Purposeful Life.

“Reform Judaism in general emphasizes the moral ethical commandments as being obligatory while the spiritual ritual commandments are more subjective to the individual worshipper with the autonomy to make meaningful, informed choices in their personal practice,” said Moskovitz. “My current rabbinate as senior rabbi of Temple Sholom is shaped by an emphasis on finding meaning through Jewish custom and practice, social justice work, inclusion, outreach to the unaffiliated and developing a relational community.

“I will present a passage from the Mishnah called Elu Dvarim, which details 10 commandments that, if followed during your life, receive reward now and for eternity…. I will present and we will discuss how the application of these particular commandments to your life, regardless of your faith tradition or whether or not you even have one, is one answer to the eternal question what is the meaning of life.”

Rounding out the presenters will be Rabbi Dovid Rosenfeld, Chabad Lubavitch, on Dec. 11, 1 p.m., with a topic to be announced.

Further information on presentations and presenters is available under events at burquest.org.

Community milestones … Temple Sholom endowment, awards for Alex Leslie, Sandy Shefrin Rabin, Hannah Moscovitch

Temple Sholom treasurer Daniel Gumprich, left, president Melody Robens-Paradise and Rabbi Dan Moskovitz. (photo from JCF)

Temple Sholom has a new $1 million endowment fund that will provide the congregation with stable, long-term income for the synagogue in perpetuity.

“We chose to establish this fund at the Jewish Community Foundation because we know that they will manage it carefully and expertly. We are thrilled that Temple Sholom will be able to rely on income from the fund to meet its needs for generations to come,” said the family who seeded the fund.

It was important to the family that they be able to leverage their giving to inspire others. So, in addition to seeding the fund, they established a program to match contributions, which not only maximized their own impact but that of every donor who joined them in giving.

“The foundation supported our staff and leadership to confidently approach congregants about contributing to the fund,” said Cathy Lowenstein, director of congregational engagement at Temple Sholom. “We were able to give everyone the opportunity to participate, which created the momentum necessary to reach our goal.”

“The endowment will ensure our ability to serve every facet of our congregation through dynamic programming, strong leadership and robust outreach for generations to come,” said Temple Sholom’s Rabbi Dan Moskovitz. “It also means we can undertake a long-term approach to planning, because we have the financial strength to adapt to the changing needs of our congregation.”

Many local Jewish agencies, congregations and other organizations have endowment funds at the Jewish Community Foundation, including the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver, Jewish Family Services Vancouver, the Vancouver Holocaust Education Centre, and others. In addition, individual fund holders often choose to support an organization through their own donor-advised or -designated funds.

Diane Switzer, chair of the foundation’s board of governors, said, “We are very proud to manage endowment funds on behalf of so many crucial organizations across our community, and we take our responsibility to manage these investments prudently extremely seriously. This is how we carry out the important work of building and enriching our community.”

People can make a contribution to the Temple Sholom Endowment Fund via jewishcommunityfoundation.com. They can also establish a fund for an organization or an area of need about which they care by contacting JCF executive director Marcie Flom at 604-257-5100.

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Alex Leslie’s Vancouver for Beginners was one of the works shortlisted for the 2020/2021 City of Vancouver Book Award. The honour recognizes authors of excellence of any genre who contribute to the appreciation and understanding of Vancouver’s diversity, history, unique character, or the achievements of its residents.

In the poetry collection, “[n]ostalgia of place is dissected through the mapping of a city where Leslie leads readers past surrealist development proposals, post-apocalyptic postcards, childhood landmarks long gone and a developer who paces at the city’s edge, shoring it up with aquariums.”

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Prairie Sonata by Sandy Shefrin Rabin was named one of the best books of 2021 by Kirkus Reviews. The novel tells the story of Mira Adler, a teenage girl growing up on the Prairies after the Second World War, and what she learns about life and love from her Yiddish and violin teacher, Chaver B, a recent immigrant from Prague. Kirkus called it “a compelling work with a wistful longing for days of childhood innocence. A poignant and eloquent reflection on tradition, family, friendship, and tragedy.”

Winner of the Independent Press Award, and named a 2021 New York City Big Book Award Distinguished Favourite in the young adult fiction category, Prairie Sonata has been introduced into high school curricula.

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The Canada Council for the Arts’ 2021 Governor General’s Literary Awards winners include, in the drama category, Sexual Misconduct of the Middle Classes by Hannah Moscovitch.

“Hannah Moscovitch’s play is an articulate, poetic, beautifully written play with characters who are complex and complicated,” noted the peer assessment committee. “A superb piece of writing that shines as a play, as a living piece of theatre and, no doubt, literature that will endure.”

In the drama, “[t]he archetypal student-teacher romance is cleverly turned on its head for the post-#metoo era…. Jon, a star professor and author, is racked with self-loathing after his third marriage crumbles around him when he finds himself admiring a student – a girl in a red coat. The girl, 19-year-old Annie, is a big fan of his work and also happens to live down the street. From their doorways to his office to hotel rooms, their mutual admiration and sexual tension escalates under Jon’s control to a surprising conclusion that will leave you wanting to go back and question your perceptions of power as soon as you finish.”