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Tag: gifts

Matana expands its services

Matana expands its services

Each Matana gift box focuses on a different vendor. (photo from thematanashop.com)

Matana, a subscription box company from Israel, has a new mission-driven brand and vision. Formerly called Blue Box, Matana, the Hebrew word for gift, signifies the mutually beneficial exchange between the artisans, whose products are included in each box, and the recipients. Since its launch, the company has delivered more than 2,000 boxes with products from dozens of Israeli small businesses.

With a mission to highlight the unique flavours and textures of Israel while giving Israeli artisans a global platform to showcase their products, Matana features a selection of one Israeli vendor’s products in each box, along with a postcard that shares the vendor’s story. Israeli vendors include small enterprises, family-run farms, kibbutzim, social initiatives and young entrepreneurs. Boxes include products that range from Shalva Tea, locally foraged teas packaged by adults with special needs; to Kuchinate baskets, which are woven by African refugee women; to Sindyanna olive oil, which is created by Jewish and Arab women working side-by-side; to Rusty’s Nut Butters and Treats, a woman-led business.

photo - Israeli vendors include small enterprises, family-run farms, kibbutzim, social initiatives and young entrepreneurs
Israeli vendors include small enterprises, family-run farms, kibbutzim, social initiatives and young entrepreneurs. (photo from thematanashop.com)

“Every day, I am inspired by the ingenuity of Israel’s artisans working in nature and blending traditional with modern techniques on an ancient land,” said Matana chief executive officer Emily Berg. “Their products are handcrafted with purpose and passion, and tell the rich and multi-faceted story of Israel. We are thrilled to support Israeli artisans and, through them, to share Israel’s diverse fabric with the world.”

A Toronto native who moved to Israel in 2012, Berg developed the idea for Matana when her then-boyfriend, now husband, was called to serve in reserve duty in Gaza in Operation Protective Edge in 2014. During the tense time, Berg wanted to find a way to showcase Israel’s many sides to a global audience while supporting Israel’s artisans, whose businesses suffered during the conflict.

“My fiancé was called to reserve duty and was basically gone from the first until the 40th and final day,” Berg told the Independent in an interview in 2016. “It was a very quiet period. People were not going out much. And, it was the first time I was able to really reflect on my life, purpose and future here.”

The company was initially called Blue Box as a tribute to the Jewish National Fund’s blue-and-white tzedakah box that she’s known since childhood. (See jewishindependent.ca/jnf-inspires-entrepreneur.)

Due to the business’s success and the high demand for the boxes, the company has transformed from a one-woman show operated out of Berg’s own Tel Aviv-Jaffa living room to include new partners Elad and Maya Borkow, who run the logistics department from a warehouse in Ramat HaSharon.

Matana (thematanashop.com) offers several subscription options, including a new seasonal quarterly box that features products from several different vendors. The next shipment is scheduled for Dec. 12.

Format ImagePosted on November 30, 2018November 30, 2018Author MatanaCategories IsraelTags Chanukah, Emily Berg, gifts, Matana
Give a gift of language

Give a gift of language

Tina Turner, the late Leonard Cohen, TV presenter and comedian Bill Maher, the bands Madness and Led Zeppelin, actor Richard Gere and others have recently been added to the list of celebrities like actors Tom Selleck and Ben Stiller, musician Mick Jagger and former president Barack Obama who, perhaps unknown to them, have helped learners of Hebrew around the world acquire new vocabulary. Two years after the publication of the book Hilarious Hebrew: The Fun and Fast Way to Learn the Language, a fifth print run – which is also an extended edition – has recently been published.

image - Hilarious Hebrew book coverCo-creator and Hebrew teacher Yael Breuer is convinced that, once readers find out that singer “Tina Turner does not hold a grudge,” for example, they are not likely to forget that the Hebrew word for grudge is tina.

“The method is a great way to memorize Hebrew vocabulary but, in fact, could be adapted as a teaching aid for any vocabulary in any language, and we have been asked about producing versions of the book for French, German and even Chinese speakers,” said Yael Breuer.

The book has been popular with Jews and Christians, tourists and students, and is sold in shops, Jewish museums and online. “The book was placed on the recommended book list by famous London-based Foyles bookstore and someone recently told me, half-jokingly, that our method could help lift the biblical curse of the Tower of Babel, which caused communication problems by separating people into speaking different languages,” she added.

image - Hilarious Hebrew page - ChinaHilarious Hebrew is divided into sections, which helps users identify words according to their need or interest, including vocabulary for vacationers, shoppers and restaurant-goers. It has been used as an aliyah gift to new immigrants to Israel by the Jewish Agency and has also been adopted as a language teaching tool by Edinburgh Hebrew congregation, who have started converting some of the book’s illustrations into animations. Hebrew tutorials, based on the method, are now available on the internet and co-writer Eyal Shavit, who is a musician, is in the process of composing a song using the Hilarious Hebrew method. “Just like the book, the song will teach Hebrew words in an entertaining way that will stick in the listeners’ minds,” he said.

For more information, see jewishindependent.ca/from-nonsense-knowledge. And event information about the book is available on hilarioushebrew.com; it is sold by Amazon.

Format ImagePosted on November 30, 2018November 30, 2018Author Pitango PublishingCategories BooksTags Chanukah, education, gifts, Hebrew, Hilarious Hebrew, language
Connect gifts to holiday

Connect gifts to holiday

Gifts can range from superhero socks to a journal to time with family and friends.

“When you consider the meaning of Chanukah, it’s about the Jewish struggle to maintain observance within a non-Jewish world,” writes Deena Yellin in the article “To gift or not to gift” on chabad.org. “The Maccabees’ victory was not just a military triumph but a win over assimilation as they succeeded in preserving the Jewish tradition. Chanukah presents a wonderful opportunity to convey the message of maintaining a strong identity despite outside pressures.”

In Yellin’s household, they “get out the Chanukah box filled with homemade decorations featuring menorahs and Maccabees that the children made in previous years…. We hang them up in our windows and around the candlelighting area. After all, publicizing the miracle is a big part of celebrating Chanukah.”

As well, every child lights their own chanukiyah, often one they’ve made themselves, and they invite people over. “One of the best ways to show children the beauty of the holiday is by sharing it with friends and relatives.”

Of course, food – latkes, sufganiyot and other deep-fried treats – is part of the celebration, as are games and crafts. Even gift-giving games. “One of my friends,” writes Yellin, “holds a ‘Mystery Maccabee’ project in which everyone picks the name of a family member from a hat so that they only need to buy a gift for that person. At their annual Chanukah party, everyone has fun guessing who got whose gift.”

Finally, many people use “Chanukah as an opportunity to teach their children to think of others who are less fortunate. One way to do this is by encouraging them to donate one of their gifts or some of their gelt to sick or needy children. Other philanthropic options are donating non-perishable items to a local food pantry or volunteering in a soup kitchen.”

***

Sarah Zadok, also in an article published on chabad.org (“Is giving Chanukah presents a non-Jewish custom?”), notes, “The word Chanukah shares a root with the word l’chanech or chinuch, which means ‘to mold’ or ‘to educate.’ Education, especially the education of children, is the foundation of what we celebrate on Chanukah.”

She allows that it is possible to educate and “to highlight the meaning of Chanukah through gift-giving. For example, giving your kids books or tapes or videos about the story of Chanukah…. Or, by drawing attention to the concept of the triumph of light over darkness – another powerful theme of the Chanukah story – you could invite your kids to bring ‘light’ where it is dark. You could, for example, make a project and bring it to a retirement home and brighten up someone’s day, or hand out cookies or latkes or winter coats to homeless people, or teach another Jew about our Chanukah traditions and invite them in to make a blessing over the candles with you.”

***

In the forward.com article “8 days of meaningful Hanukkah giving,” Shanee Markovitz writes, “it’s not about what we give as much as why we are giving it.” She offers night-by-night suggestions based on different themes.

Night 1 (Jewish values and roots): gifts like Chanukah Mad Libs for kids or a gift card to a Judaica store for adults.

image - Wonder Woman socksNight 2 (self-care): for kids, tablets that change the colour of bath water; for adults, essential oils for the bath or a massage.

Night 3 (dream big): for all ages, a journal or a pillow and/or pillowcase.

Night 4 (family and friends): again, for all ages, a picture frame for photos of/with family and friends.

Night 5 (hope): for kids, a night-night projector; for adults, scented candles.

Night 6 (gratitude): write someone “a letter of why you are grateful for them and leave them an empty card for them to write a letter and pass on the favour to someone else.”

Night 7 (surround yourself with warmth): for kids and adults, a sweater.

Night 8 (resilience): superhero socks for the kids and, for the adults, a goal planner or household tool kit (Maccabees means “Hammer,” after all).

***

Rabbi Rona Shapiro writes on ritualwell.org, in the article called “Chanukah gifts,” about using theme nights in an effort to practise moderation. Her family has had Big Gift Night (when each child gets one big gift from their parents); Grandparent Night (gifts from the grandparents); Book Night; Music Night (a night of songs); Cooking Night (make latkes and enjoy them with friends); Tzedakah Night (wrap presents to deliver to a children’s hospital or other charity); and Homemade Gift Night (such as a family photo album or scrapbook).

Shapiro suggests incorporating some new rituals into your celebration. For example, “Chag Habanot, the seventh night of Chanukah, is traditionally a women’s holiday (it falls out on Rosh Chodesh) when it was customary for women to give gifts and tell the stories of valiant Jewish women.”

For adults, she suggests presents ranging from personal blessings to wine, food and candles.

Format ImagePosted on November 23, 2018November 20, 2018Author The Editorial BoardCategories Celebrating the HolidaysTags Chanukah, children, gifts
Decembers of my childhood

Decembers of my childhood

 

This story comes from the book Life Doesn’t Get Any Better Than This: The Holiness of Little Daily Dramas (Read the Spirit, 2015).

***

My father used to take showers with the lady next door.

It was all pretty kosher. We rented half of a “duplex” house at 89 University Avenue in Providence, and the Winn family occupied the other half. “Duplex” means different things in various places; in Providence, a “duplex” was a house with two separate entrances and two mirror-image units. Ours had three floors and a basement suitable for Cub Scout den meetings.

book cover - Life Doesn’t Get Any Better Than ThisThe way the house was designed, the bathrooms on the second floor shared a common wall, tub alongside tub and toilets back to back. The insulation was fairly thick, but subdued sounds could get through, and soon after the Winn family moved into 91 University Avenue, my father and Ruth Winn discovered that they observed similar morning shower routines. The muffled knocking back and forth on the tiles at 7:15 a.m., then a cute neighborhood joke, is now a piece of family folklore.

My mother and Ruth became friends immediately; 40 years later and 400 miles apart, they still dearly love each another. Laughter is what started it all off, but it was a hurricane called Carol that really brought us all together.

For eight days, Providence was without electricity, and neighbors drew closer to one another. Cold food went into the Keoughs’ old gas refrigerator at 85 University Avenue, while our battery-operated radio was the source for news and entertainment. The Winns’ vast quantities of sporting equipment helped everyone pass the time until that late afternoon when we were sitting on our porches and my mother suddenly yelled, “The lights are on!” Everyone rushed inside.

The bonding held.

The Winns’ oldest son Cooper David Winn IV and I were classmates, though never best friends. Still, we spent lots of time together, as neighboring kids do, and some of the most memorable moments occurred around the December holidays. Chanukah at my house. Christmas at his house.

Mutual envy.

For me, Chanukah generally meant one gift from my parents per night, but factoring in additions from grandparents, other relatives and friends, I averaged 16 to 20 each season. Not bad. I would even feel a bit on the smug side as I walked to school in the morning reporting to Cooper on the prior night’s take.

That is, I felt smug until early Christmas morning, when I would race over to the Winns’ side of the house to inspect the mountains of presents, the massive quantities strewn about the living room, such a volume of stuff that even the recognition in later years that the haul included a suspiciously large amount of underwear and socks could not make me rationalize away my jealousy.

The feeling of Chanukah has remained with me: our old tin menorah and the look, the smell, the soft, smooth texture of its candles, sometimes dripping their orange wax across my fingers. There were the traditional songs, the latkes and applesauce, and our one decoration, “Happy Chanukah,” printed on colorful paper dreidels and placed across the dining room entryway. The sign was worn, faded, but it was our tradition, and for eight days it transformed the room into a chamber of happy expectation.

Most of my presents were modest. I loved to make Revell models of antique cars, and so something like a Stanley Steamer one night might be followed by a Stutz Bearcat the next. Another year it was accessories for my small American Flyer train set: one night it might be a new caboose, and another night a little building to place near the tracks. I remember categories of gifts, but the particulars have long faded.

Except for two presents that I’ve never forgotten.

The first was a 26-inch English bicycle. It arrived on the year when I went for the gold in the “eight small presents or one big present” option game. Friday was the designated night and, as soon as the candles were lighted and the songs sung, I dutifully complied with the “Close your eyes tight” directive. The waiting seemed to go on forever as I listened to my father’s grunts and a bumping noise coming up the cellar steps. When he approached the dining room, I heard the rhythmic, metallic sound of a spinning tire, and knew that my yearlong series of unsubtle hints had been acknowledged.

Later we went to synagogue and, before the service began, I stood in the foyer for what seemed like hours, watching as every person entered, brushing the snow off their coats and stomping their boots. I scanned the arrivals, looking for Joey or Sammy or Ricky or anyone else I knew. “Guess what! I got an English bike!”

Other Chanukahs, though, were not as festive. My parents constantly struggled financially, one of the consequences of my father’s checkered career and made worse, later, by the albatross of medical bills from my sister’s long illness.

My father was always involved in the paper business. During the eight years when we lived on University Avenue, he worked for at least six different companies in waste paper, paper chemicals and wholesale tissue. Each position would begin with optimism and end with him returning home one night carrying his electric typewriter.

He always bounced back, always landed another job somewhere, somehow. Yet the process was draining, and the weeks or months between paychecks grim. One of those dark periods coincided with Chanukah.

I knew things were tough that season. We didn’t starve, but everything had to be cut back as we tried to make do on the salary my mother earned fitting women into corsets at the Peerless Department Store. “I know it’s hard,” she would say, “but some day our ship will come in.” I believed her. Sometimes I could even visualize “our ship,” a small speck on the horizon slowly, surely heading right for us.

“Our ship,” burdened with riches, was still far out to sea when Chanukah began. This year, I knew, would not be like other years. The grandparents and a few of my parents’ friends came through, but, my parents explained, I would need to understand that they just couldn’t afford presents this time. Just this year. Next year will be better.

Chanukah overlapped Christmas, fortuitously. The Winns were busy with their preparations, so I didn’t see much of Cooper. I was glad school was already on vacation; there was no need to report to friends on my Jewish version of an empty stocking.

That Christmas morning I didn’t rush next door.

On the final night of Chanukah, my parents surprised me with a gift. It was a small one, they warned. Nothing very special. But I’d been so understanding of what was happening that they wanted me to have it. I felt a slight twinge of guilt over their sacrifice as I accepted the little package.

Inside the box was a plastic model for my collection, a replica of a Chris Craft cabin cruiser. Probably cost about $2.95. I glued it together the next day and, for years, until I went off to college, the little boat sat on a shelf in my bedroom. It was far from being my fanciest model. Long discarded, the thought of it means more to me now than it ever did back then.

When I look back on all those Decembers of my childhood, those often wonderful days of mystery, anticipation, celebration, I know for a fact that I received many dozens of presents over the course of the years. They form an indistinct blur. After all, a long time has passed.

In truth, of all those gifts, I can actually remember only two. Only two. One was 26-inch English bicycle. Shiny black, three-speed, with a headlight powered by a generator that spun alongside the tire and its own silver air pump latched to the frame.

The other was a plastic model boat.

Rabbi Bob Alper (bobalper.com) is a full-time stand-up comic, performing internationally.

Posted on December 16, 2016December 15, 2016Author Rabbi Bob AlperCategories Celebrating the HolidaysTags books, Chanukah, gifts, memoir
Holiday treats for your pets

Holiday treats for your pets

Chanukah-themed pet gifts can be found aplenty on the internet. Some examples? A bowtie for your dog, cat or ferret from moderntribe.com.

image - Songs for your cat from amazon.ca
Songs for your cat from amazon.ca.

Pets are integral members of the family and there are many options to include your furry companion in Chanukah’s gift-giving celebration. Though most local pet stores will carry plush toys, chew bones and a variety of other treats for your pet, there are some truly cute and creative clothing and toys that are available via the internet – and which, if ordered soon, should make it in time for the holiday.

Moderntribe.com, a U.S. site, has a good selection of Chanukah-themed collars and leashes for your pet as well as plush toys including catnip-stuffed dreidels and gelt. For your cat and smaller dog, there are also Chanukah-themed bow ties and other clothing. Or perhaps a book titled How to Raise a Jewish Dog could be enjoyed by the whole family? The site has a section dedicated to such items.

image - A cat collar by ThePerkyPet from etsy.ca
A cat collar by ThePerkyPet from etsy.ca.

Etsy.ca has both a Canadian and U.S. site and, in a similar way to eBay, allows vendors to post a variety of products for sale. What makes this site different is that most of the products are globally sourced and handcrafted by individual vendors. There is a great selection of Chanukah toys and gifts for your pet, especially on the U.S. site, though some of the vendors may not ship to Canada, so check that out first. A search of “Chanukah pets” on the site should bring up something your pet will enjoy. Etsy has a good selection of pet toys, T-shirts, hats and bandanas – including a dreidel-patterned harness outfit and double-sided bandanas that are also appropriate for your ferret!

Amazon.ca and Petsmart.ca are also good sites to browse because they both have shipping from Canada; but when using their search program make sure that you try a variety of spellings for the word Chanukah.

While it is a lot of fun to include our pets in the gift-giving tradition during Chanukah, it is also important to remember that the most important gift you can give your pet during this busy holiday season is your time. Time to exercise him or her, time to just show you return the love they give you every day of their lives.

image - Gelt that won’t make your dog sick from petsmart.ca
Gelt that won’t make your dog sick from petsmart.ca.

It is also a time to be aware of the dangers that your pet may encounter at this time of year. Chocolate gelt can easily become accessible to dogs – and chocolate is very toxic for animals. Also, the temptation to treat your pet with the delicious food we humans indulge in at Chanukah can make them very sick. Latkes, with their onion component, can cause damage to red blood cells and the sugar and fat found in traditional doughnuts can cause digestive disorders in your pet. So, make sure your children know and show your love in other ways, perhaps with a stuffed singing dreidel, which can be found at multipet.com. It will be a hit with both dogs and kids, though after a few spins, you might be thankful that Chanukah, and the dreidel’s use, only comes once a year.

Leanne Jacobsen is a writer and longtime dog owner, as well as the director of sales at the Jewish Independent.

Format ImagePosted on November 20, 2015November 17, 2015Author Leanne JacobsenCategories Celebrating the HolidaysTags Chanukah, gifts, pets

Generosity gene

My wife is a lovely person. She reads every word I write. The last time I wrote a light, humorous commentary describing her few imperfections, she raided our mailbox and mugged the mailman (depriving a magazine of a great story). As I say, she’s almost perfect. But who’s perfect? They say that even Saint Francis of Assisi occasionally had fried pigeon as a lunchtime snack.

My wife’s fault is her generosity, especially at this time of year. We have a huge family: kids, grandkids, even great-grandkids – and the usual battalions of gift-hungry aunts, uncles, nephews, nieces, etc. And none of them entered the world through immaculate conception. In short, they all have birthdays. And graduations. And they celebrate every holiday known to man, including Abraham Lincoln’s cousin’s birthday. Then there’s Lag b’Omer, which only three rabbis in Sefad understand, handsomely celebrated with gifts from my wife.

In my wife’s lovely hazel eyes, if Sammy, the grandchild, gets a B in Sandpile 101 or an A in Arithmetic 101, guess what: Sammy gets a present from his grandparents, who must now dine on peanut butter and orange marmalade sandwiches.

So, now we get to the point. My wife’s constantly giving away the store. Even our Proverbs say that if you’re eating kosher peanut butter sandwiches for lunch, don’t buy your neighbor a rib steak. Or something like that.

Again, back to my wife. She was born without the basic selfishness gene for self-preservation. Worse, my fate is linked to hers. I once did an accounting: 40 gift-potential relatives plus friends, of which she has many due to her give-it-away gene. Now multiply by events – birthdays, anniversaries, holidays, illnesses. (“Uncle Henry has a cold, we’ll buy him a new bathrobe.” Me: “New robe? How ’bout a hanky?”)

I have a few weapons in my arsenal, too. A fleece-lined coat for Joey? It’s on sale, says the wife. Fifty bucks! “Guess what he did the other day,” I tell her. “Oh, I promised not to tell. Oops! Did I give it away? He said, ‘You seem to be putting on weight.’” Due to Joey’s misdemeanor, we compromise on a remote controlled toy car. Cost: $11.95. Joey will never know how close he came to a genuine fleece-lined coat. In like manner, we negotiate the entire list one by one. I’m very creative about the behavior, and sometimes the remarks of the subject.

The wife and I have this small economic disparity to negotiate. I love the clink of a quarter falling into our dresser change drawer; she loves the cha-ching of the cash register. The former, income; the latter, outgoing.

She’s particularly bad with kids’ gifts. I cite experts on adolescent psychology who warn us about the dangers of materialism. How ’bout when he grows up, makes $30,000 a year and because of your annual over-the-top gift giving, wants a $400,000 house – and Fannie May approves the loan, contributing to the U.S. default rate and my taxes?!

I do all I can to moderate her mania. I even lecture the kids on the popularity among their peers of Walmart shirts. And I tell the tale of the loner, the outcast who showed up at school in a pricey JoS. A. Bank shirt resulting in extreme loneliness. Result: “Grandma, would you give me one of those Walmart shirts next year?” A lesson for his adult life. I even quote Dickens, as well as the Bible. Mr. McCawber of David Copperfield – with the wisdom of Frederick Hayek – said, “income, 100 pounds; expenditure, 110 pounds. Result: misery. Income, 100 pounds; expenditure, 90 pounds. Result: joy.”

I’ve worked on this character flaw of hers for years. I guess I’ve been successful. For our 50th wedding anniversary, she gave me a pair of socks. Though I must admit, Jimmy, our first grandchild – upon graduating from high school, a feat shared by several hundred thousand kids – was gifted with a used (just a little) Honda Civic. I’m lucky it wasn’t a Lexus.

Ted Roberts is a freelance writer and humorist living in Huntsville, Ala.

Posted on December 12, 2014December 10, 2014Author Ted RobertsCategories LifeTags generosity, gifts
Unique, fun and giving gifts

Unique, fun and giving gifts

Lisa Pozin’s co-op features changing vendors, constant quality, available at the store and online. (image from givinggifts.ca)

Owning a small retail business may seem unconnected to making our planet a better place, but each purchase made in Lisa Pozin’s gift shop makes a positive difference in someone’s life.

Pozin started the company Giving Gifts about four years ago online. “I have been working at Temple Sholom as a program director since I was at university,” she said in an interview with the Jewish Independent. “I dreamt about having my own store before but I’m not a risk taker. I had a job, then I had three kids in three years. When I was on maternity leave with my youngest one, I decided it was time. Renting a retail space is expensive, and I wasn’t sure it would work, so I started online.”

photo - Lisa Pozin owns Giving Gifts & Co. at 4570 Main St
Lisa Pozin owns Giving Gifts & Co. at 4570 Main St. (photo by Olga Livshin)

Although her university degree in criminology and anthropology never prepared her for entrepreneurship, her job at Temple Sholom gave her practical business experience. “I got involved with the Temple’s gift shop. I liked it, liked finding artists and producers of interesting items. It appeared I have a good eye for what other people would want to buy.”

For Temple Sholom, of course, the items for sale have to have a Jewish connection (sholomjudaica.ca), but for her own shop, Pozin concentrated instead on selling only fair trade and eco-friendly gifts.

“I’ve always been a conscientious shopper myself. I think it’s part of being Jewish – trying to make a difference. I wanted to contribute to changing the world through shopping. There is this movement ‘Buy to Change’; I wanted to be part of it, wanted people to find special products in my shop, products which help the world. I sell things that help someone make a better life.”

Each product line has meaning. “We have necklaces called Giving Keys,” Pozin offered as an example. “They are keys with a word engraved on them, ‘strength’ or ‘courage.’ They’re meant to be passed on. When you get this key, you must give it away at some point to a person who needs the message on the key. The necklaces are made by formerly homeless people in L.A.”

Giving Gifts carries scarves made in Ethiopia by women transitioning out of the sex trade. It sells a series from Barefoot Books, a small children’s book company run by two mothers.

Each of Pozin’s vendors contributes to charities and, through them, so does Pozin. Ten percent of every sale made in the store is donated to various charities. “Mostly, they are children’s charities,” said Pozin. “A couple years ago, I started a donation campaign and we built a school in Kenya.”

When she finally opened a physical shop about a year and a half ago – Giving Gifts & Co. at 4570 Main St. – Pozin set it up as a co-op. “It’s a new concept in retail,” she said. “Giving Gifts is a permanent vendor at the store. The other vendors change. Each vendor rents a space from me for a certain amount of time – one day a week or some such – and sells his products and everything else in the store. This way, I don’t have to be in the store all the time and I help local artisans, jewelry and clothes makers, to sell their things. One of my vendors is a florist. Another is a perfumer. We have a wonderful community.”

Pozin offers shoppers both variety and convenience. She maintains an online presence (givinggifts.ca) and her services include shipping. “We ship almost every day. People shop online for gifts from small towns all over B.C. Even in Vancouver, they sometimes don’t have time to come to the store during working hours, so we ship to them.”

The shop manages to sustain itself. Pozin spends two days there and the rest of the week she still works at the synagogue.

“I love my work as a program director at Temple Sholom,” she said. “I work with families and teens. I run a seniors yoga class. It’s wonderful to work there, but I love my store, too. I’m excited when people buy from me. Together, we make a difference. We support good values and benefit the planet. There are more and more stores like that coming up everywhere. I hope the store will be successful at some point soon.”

In less than two years, Giving Gifts & Co. has acquired an excellent reputation. Earlier this year, it was a nominee in City of Vancouver’s first annual Awards of Excellence, which were presented in June, and it also made it into the latest edition of the Lonely Planet tourist guide.

“From Bakelite antiques to artisan chocolate bars and handmade kids wear, it’s well worth a browse if you’re in the neighborhood,” reads the guide entry. “The vendors are changed every few months to keep things lively, so there’s almost always something tempting to buy.”

Olga Livshin is a Vancouver freelance writer. She can be reached at [email protected].

 

Format ImagePosted on November 28, 2014November 27, 2014Author Olga LivshinCategories LocalTags gifts, Lisa Pozin, Temple Sholom
Chanukah gifts aplenty

Chanukah gifts aplenty

Shlomo and Hagar Yekutieli’s tablecloths feature many different designs, including Chanukah and other holiday motifs. (photo from shlomohagar.com)

As Chanukah appears on the horizon, our thoughts inevitably turn to two things: gifts, and fatty foods. If you’ve distributed all the socks, dreidels and menorahs in years past and are all out of ideas, rest assured, there’s more out there. Lots more.

Light it up

Most families are going to need Chanukah candles as the festival approaches, so a gift of decorative candles never has time to get stale. If your pet peeve is Chanukah candles that drip hard-to-remove wax all over your countertops, you’re not alone. A good alternative is Safed Candles’ dripless Chanukah candles at $9.95 for a box of 45 (traditionsjewishgifts.com). Another option: Rite Lite Judaica sells eco-friendly, hand-dipped multicolored beeswax Chanukah candles ($17.99) or regular hand-dipped candles at $15.04 without the eco-friendly label.

Decorate with it

Vancouver couple Shlomo and Hagar Yekutieli manufacture beautiful tablecloths decorated with Jewish motifs, among them menorah designs. Using 100 percent cotton fabric and a combination of vegetable and regular dye, the pair has been crafting cloths from their home for the past 26 years. They have designs for all the Jewish holidays, as well as waterproof sukkah hangings. Prices start at $35 and go up to $180 depending on the size of the table. For information, visit shlomohagar.com or call 604-603-4629.

Just for laughs

Cafepress.com is a website with a variety of cute gift ideas for Chanukah, some of them bordering on ridiculous. There are T-shirts that say “I Wanna be a Maccabee ($22+), baby clothes that ask “Got gelt?” and $23 baseball jerseys with the words “Blowing the shofar can get you only so far.”

Play it

Who needs Monopoly on Chanukah when you can play the Maccabee Adventure Game? (amazon.com, $29) In this board game, players must lead a band of Maccabees to find enough oil to light the menorah, trying to avoid the roaming remnants of the Seleucid Empire on the way. The game comes with instructions in Hebrew and English and offers around 45 minutes of entertainment for up to four players age 8 and older.

Read it

image - Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins book cover
Read about Hershel of Ostropol, who gives a Jewish village the gift of celebrating Chanukah by taking care of some nasty goblins that haunt the synagogue.

Chanukah is all about kids, so if you’re stuck for a gift for the special children in your circle, look no further than Eric Kimmel’s Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins (Scholastic, 1990, scholastic.com, $3.71 paperback). In this story, Hershel of Ostropol gives a Jewish village the gift of celebrating Chanukah by taking care of a series of nasty goblins that haunt the old synagogue, blow out Chanukah candles, throw potato latkes on the floor and break dreidels.

Illustrated by the careful hand of Trina Shart Hyman, the goblins are mesmerizingly hideous and the story of their defeat is at once scary, defiant, courageous and humorous as they are shown to be cowards, easily fooled by Hershel’s tricks. This book is a must for any Jewish kids’ bookshelf, a text that gets pulled out year after year and captivates kids as young as 3 and as old as 8.

Make it

A great resource for Chanukah crafts for kids is Crafting Jewish by Rivky Koenig (Mesorah Publications, 2008, artscroll.com, $26.99). Featuring a chapter for each of the Jewish holidays, the Chanukah section has seven crafts and two recipes, as well as ideas for a doughnut and ice cream party where everyone makes his/her own dessert combinations. The crafts are varied and include creating a glowing glass menorah, making dreidel-stamped gift wrap, crafting clay dreidel charm jewelry and building a Chanukah tray made from a large picture frame. The activities are beautifully explained, with a list of needed items, an estimated duration for the craft and a picture on the opposite page showing the finished product as inspiration. If there’s a crafty kid in your house, this book will be well used.

Lauren Kramer, an award-winning writer and editor, lives in Richmond, B.C. To read her work online, visit laurenkramer.net.

Format ImagePosted on November 21, 2014November 19, 2014Author Lauren KramerCategories Celebrating the HolidaysTags books, Chanukah, Eric Kimmel, games, gifts, Lights, Maccabee, Rivky Koenig, T-shirts, tablecloths, Trina Shart Hyman, Yekutieli
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