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June 17, 2005
B.C. men to head Hillel
Wosk, Thau appointed to Jewish student group board.
PAT JOHNSON
In what are being hailed as landmark appointments, two Vancouver
men have been selected to sit on the international board of the
Jewish campus organization Hillel. Isaac Thau and Mordehai Wosk,
both B.C. philanthropists and leaders in the local Jewish community,
attended their first meeting of the board May 17 in New York.
There are about 50 members of the board of governors, from all around
the world, but the only other Canadian member is Edgar Bronfman,
who is the board's chair.
Thau, a lawyer who runs a private investment holding company and
chairs a family foundation, is also the incoming chair of the Jewish
Community Foundation of Greater Vancouver. He said he reacted to
his appointment to the board of Hillel International with "a
little bit of awe."
"It's quite illustrious company that one keeps there,"
Thau said. "I'm very happy and pleased to be involved with
people who care as deeply and are as committed to Jewish life as
the individuals on that board."
Thau was not involved with Hillel as a student, but has been central
to the Vancouver branch's work recently. He led a feasibility study
on Hillel's expansion to permanent facilities at Simon Fraser University,
chairs its strategic growth committee and is set to lead a capital
campaign to obtain a permanent facility for Hillel on the campus
of the University of British Columbia.
Jewish students need Hillel now more than they did when he was a
student, Thau said.
"The atmosphere on campus has changed dramatically," said
Thau. "The pressures on students around issues of Israel and
the pressure just of assimilation have become quite large. The students
are looking for places to gather, to get information and just get
away from some of the stress and tensions that exist on the campus."
The announcement that two Vancouverites were selected for the prestigious
board is a statement of the maturity of Hillel Vancouver, said Thau.
"I think it speaks volumes about the commitment of Hillel and
of the leadership that exists within Hillel here that there's been
two appointments," he said. "I think these appointments
are a recognition of where Vancouver sits on the Jewish map these
days. I don't believe we are off the map anymore."
Wosk, a doctor of psychology and vice-president of Vancouver's Liberty
Investments, comes to the Hillel board from a different perspective.
He has been involved with Hillel for most of his life, beginning
as a student, then serving as executive director at UBC from 1987
to 1990. He is currently the chair of Hillel Vancouver's foundation.
The importance of Hillel, Wosk said, comes from the opportunity
it presents to reach Jewish young people at a time when lasting
life choices are being made.
"Eighty per cent of Jewish [young people] show up on campus
at one point or another," Wosk said. "It's the only place
in the world, in any institution, where that happens. And it's at
a crucial decision-making time, with profession, with relationships
and with values. One foot has come out of the door of the family
home and the other foot is out into the world. So there are so many
influences and on campus there is so much anti-Israel sentiment,
from not only the students, but from the professors and the unions
and the media in general that the poor students, what little Jewish
identity they might have is often scared away."
Hillel Vancouver's executive director said the appointment of two
Vancouverites is a dramatic development.
"It's really sent ripples throughout the Hillel International
community," said Eyal Lichtmann. "It's not only good for
Hillel ... It's not often that you get a Vancouver philanthropist
sitting on an international board representing the interests of
Vancouver. It doesn't just make Hillel look good, it makes all of
the Vancouver Jewish community look good.
The appointments reflect a growing connection between Hillel Vancouver
and Hillel International, Lichtmann said. The Vancouver chapter
was recently fully accredited by the international body and Vancouver
is the only Canadian recipient so far to receive a "strategic
grant" from Hillel International. The local branch used the
$70,000 to develop the strategic plan and feasibility study led
by Thau.
Pat Johnson is a B.C. journalist and commentator.
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