Lauren Kramer

Brightening education

Students in Uganda at work in a BrightBox, a solar-powered classroom. (photo from Simbi Foundation)

This year’s graduating class at Vancouver Talmud Torah made a significant impact to the lives of thousands of refugees in the Bidibidi refugee settlement in Uganda. Their connection to the refugees on the African continent is a story that goes back to two young Jewish men who grew up in Vancouver and are determined to enhance education and create lifelong change in the lives of displaced people.

As co-founders of the Simbi Foundation, Ran Sommer and Aaron Friedland have established a template for BrightBoxes, which are sustainable solar-powered classrooms that are shipped to refugee settlements in Uganda and other countries. Each box costs $55,000 Cdn and includes a shipping container with solar panels, laptops, projectors and digital aids, as well as all the installation costs at its destination.

The foundation has installed five BrightBoxes in the Bidibidi settlement, where 240,000 refugees reside, and one in the Palorinya settlement, where there are 170,000 refugees. Each week, a BrightBox serves 6,000 learners.

“We’re able to reach that many learners because we connect the solar energy from the BrightBox to other classrooms in the area. They all become connected by the electricity and wi-fi generated by the BrightBox, which means the entire school population is connected simultaneously. The power of this 40-foot shipping container is its ability to connect the surrounding school blocks,” Sommer explained.

Back at VTT, the school established the Grade 7 Mitzvah of Valuing Philanthropy program in 2008. Each year, the graduating class chooses charities or causes that are meaningful to the group and fundraises to support those causes. This year, the school decided to fundraise exclusively for the Simbi Foundation.

“After learning about the power of a BrightBox to dramatically transform lives in the Bidibidi refugee camp in Uganda, we decided to go bold and big by dedicating all money raised to this one cause only,” said Jennifer Shecter, director of communications and admissions at VTT. “We wanted to make a giant impact this one time.”

The Grade 7 class dedicates several months of study and exploration to the MVP program and Shecter said the students become emotionally invested and feel genuine pride in their fundraising efforts. “In years past, students ran bake sales, garage sales, babysitting services, movie screenings at VTT and other initiatives to boost their MVP contributions,” she said. “This year, all those options were not available due to COVID so several of our students passionately worked the phones (or texted) family members and friends to donate.”

Several students contributed in excess of $1,000 each to the program, with the average donation ranging between $180 and $250 per student. A total of $38,000 was raised.

Shecter said the students’ connection to Friedland and Sommer, and their understanding of the scope of this project, enabled them to convince others to jump on board and donate to the cause.

The two co-founders spent time in the classroom with the Grade 7 students, explaining the purpose of the BrightBoxes and the extent of the research that motivates the Simbi Foundation’s decisions. The students were assigned to groups to study solar energy, the BrightBox curriculum and other topics relevant to education in the refugee settlements.

“We had two elements happening in parallel: the students were learning about our program and fundraising for it,” said Sommer. “So, they knew exactly what their fundraising efforts were contributing to. Because of that, they were able to surpass their fundraising goal. We were extremely impressed and honoured with VTT and the students’ efforts.”

Shecter added that VTT has had a relationship with Friedland for the past five years.

“VTT students meet with Aaron every year to learn about new initiatives and participate in his programs, like the Simbi reading and literacy program, and they find Aaron and Ran to be enthusiastic, approachable and relatable,” she said. “Our students thoroughly enjoyed each interaction with them and felt a sense of pride knowing members of their community are creating avenues for real change for individuals with many barriers to education and prosperity.”

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

Help find son, brother

Bernard Grempel with his sister, Ettie Shurack. (photo from Grempel family)

Ettie Shurack’s life has been upside down since May 14, her emotions a chaos of desperation, pain, anxiety, frustration and grief, peppered with pinpricks of immense gratitude, appreciation and, always, a glimmer of hope.

May 14 is the date her brother, Bernard Grempel, age 28, went missing. He was last seen at 11 p.m. on the SkyTrain and on bus 340, heading towards the North Delta/Surrey area. Since that time, Shurack, her husband, her parents, friends and volunteers in the Jewish community and beyond have been searching relentlessly for any traces of the young man who mysteriously disappeared. They have scoured the bus routes, knocked on the doors of strangers in those neighbourhoods, interviewed commuters on the transit system and sought out footage from video cameras in relevant areas.

Shurack has created a Tehillim (Psalms) signup sheet with the goal of having the entire book of Tehillim recited until Grempel has been found. She has launched weekend searches, posted flyers, liaised with RCMP in multiple cities of the Lower Mainland and her family is offering a $20,000 reward for anyone with information leading to his safe return home.

She’s emerged, five weeks into the search, feeling very disillusioned with the efforts of the RCMP to help locate and bring her brother home. She noted that the photograph of Grempel initially used was more than a year old. She was also concerned that a police release requested the public’s assistance in locating a missing person who, the release stated, “is apprehendable under the Mental Health Act.”

“Yes, he has mental health problems, but he was living on his own prior to disappearing. I’m confused why they would state he should be returned to the hospital,” she said.

“A mental health diagnosis does not equate to suicide,” she said, responding to one of the theories of what might have happened to Grempel. “My brother was taking his medication daily, seeing his counselor regularly and attending appointments with his psychiatrist. His mental health team had seen him the week he went missing.”

If determination had a face and name, it would be Ettie Shurack. She, her husband and parents are deeply committed to continuing the search for their missing son and brother and thank those who share their quest.

“I ask the public to continue helping with our search parties and to share our search on social media. In Surrey, 64th and Scott Road, and 72nd and Scott Road, are our focal points but we ask that anyone and everyone in the Lower Mainland continue to keep their eyes out for him.”

She asks that anyone with information or the ability to help email her at [email protected] gmail.com or call 778-838-5095. She has a WhatsApp group at 631-320-8225 and a Facebook page called Let’s Find Bernard Grempel.

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

Casting positive impact

Aaron Friedland, creator and host of the podcast Impact in the 21st Century. (photo from Aaron Friedland)

If you’re looking for a new, uplifting podcast to cast away the oppressive weight of pandemic blues, consider Impact in the 21st Century, recently launched by Vancouverite Aaron Friedland. The Vancouver-based founder of the Simbi Foundation, which promotes literacy and education worldwide, felt it was time to give voice to the inspiring things that people are doing.

“There’s a lot of really bad news and horrible things going on and, as a species, we seem to be more interested in those stories,” Friedland told the Independent in a recent interview. “There are lots of podcasts available that celebrate big businesses and a very capitalist ideology. Our goal is to help showcase the amazing, impactful things that many brilliant people are doing and that often go unnoticed, and to mainstream what positive impact really means.”

To date, Friedland has interviewed Neil deGrasse Tyson, an astrophysicist and scientific educator; David Suzuki, an academic, broadcaster and environmentalist; Maryanne Wolf, a Jewish author and Harvard academic researching the brain; Ndileka Mandela, the granddaughter of Nelson Mandela; and Alex Honnold, a rock climber and subject of the movie Free Solo. “It’s so nice to be the one doing the interviewing, and the people I’m speaking with are such brilliant minds with brilliant insights to share,” Friedland said. “I feel deeply privileged to be getting that information firsthand.” The plan is to release a new podcast every two to three weeks.

The Royal Bank of Canada has sponsored Impact in the 21st Century, but Friedland said he’s always looking for more sponsors. “Our goal is to reach a point where we have enough podcast sponsors that, with each episode we release, we can build another Bright Box,” he said. The Bright Boxes, which cost $55,000 per box, are classrooms comprised of shipping containers, refurbished with solar technology and aimed at enhancing learning in overcrowded classrooms in places that have little or no access to electricity.

Friedland’s next podcast will be an interview with Canadian cultural anthropologist Wade Davis. His dream interviewees are Elon Musk and David Attenborough, but he’s biding his time until those happen. “It could be they’re not ready yet,” Friedland quipped. “We look for subjects who have a track record of creating longstanding positive impact, and whose vision and values really align with ours.”

Listeners can stream Impact in the 21st Century anywhere they access their podcasts, or online at simbifoundation.org.

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

Choices event will inspire via Zoom

Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver women’s philanthropy co-chairs Sue Hector, left, and Shawna Merkur. (photos from Jewish Federation)

There’s good news and bad news for the annual Choices gala, which celebrates Jewish women’s philanthropy in Metro Vancouver. The good news is Choices will be held this year, despite COVID-19. The bad news is it will be held exclusively on Zoom, as there is no alternative safe way to convene a large gathering during the pandemic.

The 16-year-old event raises tens of thousands of dollars each year for Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver’s annual campaign. Last year, 240 donors raised $52,302. Average attendance is 500 and has been as high as 620 some years.

“Every year, the amount raised varies, based on the different expenses of the event and the amounts raised through games, raffles and silent auctions,” said Sue Hector, who co-chairs Federation’s women’s philanthropy with Shawna Merkur.

“Choices is, at its essence, an event that inspires women of all ages to give to the Jewish community or to get involved in our community,” Merkur said. “It’s all generations in the room, all coming together for Jewish Federation to help our community. It’s really quite a beautiful thing.”

In fact, Choices has been so successful over the years that there have been complaints from the men’s campaign because they have no event like it, Hector said.

When the event is in person, the cost per person is $54, which covers the expenses of the actual event, while the Federation fundraising component comes from raffles, silent auctions and games held during the event. However, women need to make their Federation annual donation when they register for Choices and the minimum donation is $136. That said, no one is turned away based on their inability to afford that donation.

This year, because there will be no food served and no physical venue required, there’s no cost to the event. Instead, organizers are asking women to make an optional $54 donation to Federation’s COVID relief fund.

“That fund is being used to help agencies in the Jewish community manage the stress of the pandemic, from the Jewish schools to the Jewish food bank,” Hector said. “A task force has come together to work on this, interview the different agencies to find out what their needs are and determine how they’ll distribute the funds raised.” (See jewishindependent.ca/the-road-to-recovery.)

The virtual event Nov. 8 at 5 p.m. will feature a community speaker, Hannah Amar, a young single mother who benefited from Tikva Housing’s programs. She will share her journey from near-homelessness to a new home at the Ben and Esther Dayson Residences. “I think her story will really speak to the women watching,” Merkur said.

A main event speaker, Michelle Hirsch, will deliver her talk from Cleveland, Ohio. A member of Jewish Federations of North America’s national women’s philanthropy board and the Jewish Agency for Israel North America, Hirsch organized the Amazon Prime initiative on behalf of the National Youth Leadership Council in response to Hurricane Harvey. (For more on both speakers, click here.)

“In some ways it’s easier this year because we don’t have a lot to organize – no raffle, no caterer or venue and no silent auction,” Hector said. “But, we still wanted everyone to come together in some fashion, and Zoom is the only way. In such crazy, uncertain times, it’s nice to have something familiar and, hopefully, this virtual event will uplift people and give them courage and hope to face what we still have to face.”

To register for Choices – chaired this year by Courtney Cohen, Leanne Hazon and Sherri Wise – visit jewishvancouver.com/choices-form.

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

Childbearing choice

Michael Scholar Jr. directs Lungs, which is at Studio 16 Nov. 13-22. (photo from Mitch and Murray Productions)

If you’ve not been to the theatre in many months, consider treating yourself to a COVID-19-safe performance of Lungs, opening at Studio 16 in Vancouver Nov. 13, and running to Nov. 22. Michael Scholar Jr. is the Jewish director of the play, which stars real-life married couple Aaron Craven and his wife, Kate Craven, who is also a member of the Jewish community.

Audience numbers will be limited to 25 in this two-actor performance, in which the couple discusses whether or not they should have a child. The discussion takes place over many years and the debate is over whether childbearing is the morally correct choice in a world brimming with overpopulation, hatred, racism and climate change.

“The ideas and issues brought up in this piece really resonate right now in the pandemic, with regards to questions like, Are we taking care of the planet, our neighbours and ourselves?” Scholar told the Independent. “This really resonates with us as artists and, to approach this during the pandemic, seems really timely.”

Lungs was written by Duncan McMillan, a British playwright, and debuted in 2011. Aaron Craven, the co-producer and owner of the Vancouver theatre and film production company Mitch and Murray Productions, determined a two-actor play starring a husband and wife would satisfy COVID-19 safety protocols. With small audiences and barriers between the actors and audience, the show will go on.

Scholar notes that Lungs is a much-loved play to mount not just because of its relevant subject matter, but also because of its production simplicity. “The author’s notes say there’s not to be any costume changes, furniture or set pieces, so 60 scenes happen without any indication as to where and when they are,” he said. “They keep jumping forward in time and it’s up to the audience to figure out where and when they are taking place. So, theatrically, it’s a relatively simple, low-fi production.”

While there’s no overtly Jewish content, Scholar believes that to be a Jew is to wrestle with G-d and, at the heart of this play, is a wrestling match about childbearing in a morally tenuous moment in time.

For ticketing information, visit mitchandmurrayproductions.com.

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

Unpacking Israel education

Dr. Noam Weissman, senior vice-president of OpenDor Media. (photo from OpenDor Media)

King David High School is one of 50 Jewish high schools worldwide participating in Unpacked for Educators, a series of educational videos and podcasts on Israel created by OpenDor Media with the goal of providing a nuanced, thoughtful and thorough approach to Israel education.

“Theirs is high-quality material available for free, and usually those two things don’t go hand in hand,” said Rabbi Stephen Berger, head of Jewish studies at KDHS. “OpenDor Media is passionate about education and Israel and we are blessed to be able to work with them.”

The videos, approximately 10 minutes each, deal with a wide range of material that ranges from lighthearted topics like falafel, Eurovision and hip-hop music to contemporary conflicts, terrorism and the Israeli settlements. The goal is for educators to select the subjects they want to address with their students and use the videos and podcasts as points for discussion, debate and engagement.

“For years, Israel education has been behind other education, so our goal here was to sandwich nuance with love and to educate rather than indoctrinate,” said Dr. Noam Weissman, senior vice-president of OpenDor Media. “We want our students to end their sentences with question marks, to foster curiosity and deepen exploration by showing multiple sides to an issue. We love Israel and, yes, it’s complicated and nuanced, with lots to debate. We have to allow our young people to make up their own minds and deliver good education.”

OpenDor’s mission is to change Israel education the world over and make Jewish and Israel education available and accessible to everyone, regardless of their location. Other participating schools are in South Africa, Australia, the United Kingdom, Israel, Hungary and the United States. In Canada, KDHS is among six participating schools.

OpenDor is working on increasing the number of podcasts and videos in its repertoire, and hopes to reach a point where Jewish schools, of all religious denominations, can be unified about how to engage their students with Israel education. To that end, in terms of sharing resources and improving pedagogy, Weissman said, “We make a whole suite of videos and podcasts you can pick from, so, if you don’t like one, pick another. We’re not telling schools what to teach – we’re trying to help them develop tools for how to teach.”

That’s a great resource at KDHS, Berger said. “Sometimes, our teachers don’t know all the information either, and these videos help our educators develop professionally. The videos are there to spark thought, and then to stop, explain and discuss with students. It’s not a movie. What OpenDor is doing is so well needed.”

Weissman said Seth Rogen’s opinions on the Israel education he received growing up in Vancouver are telling. “The Seth Rogen fiasco is another example of a Jew going through an educational institution and saying, ‘they did a disservice to me,’” he said, referring to a conversation between Rogen and Marc Maron in an episode of Maron’s WTF podcast in July. In that podcast, Rogen stated that he was “fed a huge amount of lies about Israel my entire life.”

“I don’t blame Seth Rogen, but I think the Jewish community needs to look inwardly and ensure Israel content and education is accessible to everyone,” Weissman said. “Israel education is at the point where we as a field know how to do this well. We have the resources, confidence and context to make a nuanced experience possible for all students.”

The videos and podcasts are targeted at ages 18 through 34. They are freely available on YouTube and are an educational resource for Jews of any age seeking to understand events in Israeli history. For more information, visit opendormedia.org.

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

The world needs us to change

Nigel Savage, president and chief executive officer of Hazon, is one of the keynote speakers for Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver’s annual campaign opening on Sept. 8. (photo from JFGV)

Nigel Savage, president and chief executive officer of Hazon, is looking forward to addressing the Vancouver Jewish community Sept. 8 as one of the keynote speakers for Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver’s annual campaign opening. “The pandemic is a reminder of why we have and why we need central institutions like federations for the Jewish community,” he said.

“Hazon is working to turn the Jewish community outwards, address environmental sustainability and to use that process to strengthen Jewish life,” explained Savage in an interview with the Independent. “I think of the Vancouver Jewish community as one made of people who choose to live in the Pacific Northwest and have a sensibility of caring for the world and its natural resources, so I want to sketch out what may be possible for all of us in the long term.”

Savage was a professional fund manager in London, England, where he worked for NM Rothschild and was co-head of UK equities at Govett. After nine years in the financial world, he opted to take a sabbatical year and study at Pardes in Jerusalem. “I had an amazing time and stayed on in Israel as I tried to figure out what I wanted to do with my life,” he recalled.

A friend invited him to join a hike from the Mediterranean Sea to the Sea of Galilee, and Savage, who described himself as “a chubby, nerdy, intellectual English kid who grew up in Manchester and never really set foot outdoors,” agreed. He loved the hike and, as he began doing more physical activities outdoors, recognized it as a great way to bring Jewish tradition to life and connect with others. “We didn’t enter Jewish history in a synagogue or JCC. We entered it in relationship to the land of Israel, with a relationship to food, land, climate, language. That’s what the Torah is a record of,” he said.

Savage’s time in Israel was the impetus for the creation of what is today one of the largest faith-based environmental organizations in the United States. Hazon’s goal is to strengthen Jewish life and contribute to a more environmentally sustainable world. It calls itself the “Jewish lab for sustainability” and strives to effect change through immersive experiences and by inspiring individuals and communities to commit to change – particularly with respect to food systems.

Hazon is focused on Jewish outdoor, food, farming and environmental education (JOFFE) and, since its inception in 2000, has been dedicated to helping establish and inspire change. “In the Bay Area, there’s Urban Adama and Wilderness Torah, and, in north San Diego, there’s Coastal Roots Farm. In Boulder, there’s the Milk and Honey Farm and, in Toronto, we have Shoresh,” he said.

“In each place, people are doing slightly different programs with similar goals,” Savage explained. “Those goals are to reconnect the Jewish community to land and food, to reconnect people to Jewish tradition, to reconnect people to each other and to use that process to strengthen Jewish life and create the kind of world we believe in.”

Savage’s list of accolades suggests that he is achieving his goal at Hazon. In 2015, he was awarded an honourary doctorate by the Jewish Theological Seminary and he’s been named a member of the Forward 50, the annual list of the 50 most influential Jewish people in the United States, on two occasions.

He noted that September 2022 is the start of a new seven-year cycle in Jewish life. “Imagine if the Vancouver Jewish community began to envision Jewish life in Vancouver over the next seven years. If we wanted the Vancouver Jewish community to be on the cutting edge of Jewish communities around the world around issues of sustainability by 2029, what would that look like?”

Savage suggested that every Jewish institution in the city could begin a process to establish a coherent food plan over the next seven years. It might include policies regarding use of plastic bottles, whether to serve meat and soda, carbon neutrality goals for community buildings, and other actions in relation to food and land use.

“At Hazon, we want to treat these questions as real questions and involve people in the Jewish community, from teenagers to rabbis. We want to start a real conversation which draws on Jewish tradition, the best of what’s happening in Vancouver and Canada, and use that process so that, by 2029, the Vancouver Jewish community has integrated food polices in all its institutions that reflect our values.”

Hazon’s goal is to invite communities to unpack questions like these and to act as a resource on matters of sustainability and Jewish efforts to promote it.

“If we think about the nature of obesity, diabetes and heart disease, these are chronic illnesses,” Savage noted. “The world needs us to slowly and steadily change how we’re living so that all these people can live sustainably on this planet. Right now, we have a 10- or 15-year window to change the trajectory of Jewish civilization. We can’t complete this task by ourselves, but neither are we free to desist from it.”

Savage will be joined at the Federation campaign launch by fellow keynote speaker Sarah Hurwitz, author of Here All Along: Finding Meaning, Spirituality and a Deeper Connection to Life – in Judaism (After Finally Choosing to Look There) and former speech writer for the Obamas. To register for the event, which starts at 5 p.m., go to jewishvancouver.com/faco2020.

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

Making yoga more accessible

For Miriam Leo-Gindin, founder of the Yoga Buggy, COVID-19 has meant more opportunities to bring her passion for yoga to Vancouver youth – free of charge.

Leo-Gindin, 41, a former school teacher who has taught yoga in various capacities, including at Vancouver Talmud Torah, founded her Vancouver-based nonprofit organization in 2017. Until recently, she was offering free Zoom yoga classes to kids, but, thanks to sponsorship from the Canadian Red Cross, she’s been able to offer physically distanced classes at McSpadden and Woodland parks to local children and their families.

photo - Miriam Leo-Gindin — Miriam Leo-Gindin *(photo courtesy)*

“I’ve been doing yoga since I was 19 and it helped me get through some of my own health issues,” she told the Independent. “I founded Yoga Buggy to bring yoga to all kids and families, including those who are underserved, have financial difficulties or don’t have access for other reasons.”

The “buggy” part of Yoga Buggy refers to its mobile nature. Leo-Gindin’s classes are portable, so she is able to bring them to before- and after-school programs and to parks, so that families don’t have to travel far to participate. In addition to the Red Cross, her organization also has received funding from the B.C. Recreation and Parks Association.

Pre-pandemic, Leo-Gindin was doing around 25 classes per week all over the city, in Vancouver schools, YMCAs and neighbourhood homes, while also planning expansion into Burnaby, Richmond and Coquitlam. When COVID-19 began, she launched Community Zoom Yoga, offering two sessions a week for 12 weeks. The classes had a variety of themes, from community kindness to staying healthy, and were geared at children ages 5 through 12. There were also classes for preschoolers and teens.

“Yoga is really fun and kids enjoy it,” she reflected. “It brings out their creativity, helps build their attention span, makes them feel more confident, and can play a supportive role in dealing with anxiety, depression and behavioural issues.”

The website notes, “Yoga Buggy’s trauma-aware practitioners strive to offer as welcoming a space as possible. Choice in how to participate is always at the forefront of our classes and events. If there are any sensory, learning or additional supports that could be of benefit to any of the participants, please let us know so that we can offer as hospitable a space as possible. This information is kept private and confidential.”

Yoga Buggy has 15 active teachers and will continue its work through the fall. Leo-Gindin hopes to develop a yoga teacher training program and to start a YouTube channel to increase her reach even further with kids yoga classes. For more information, visit yogabuggy.com.

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

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Note: This article has been updated to make clear that, while Miriam Leo-Gindin taught yoga at Vancouver Talmud Torah, she was not on staff at the school.

Providing comfort and hope

Shiva Delivers organizers Madison Slobin, left, and Becca Schwenk. (photo from Shiva Delivers)

When 25-year-old Vancouverite Becca Schwenk considered how she could make a small impact to reflect Jewish compassion, care and kindness for local Black families during the Black Lives Matter protests, the Jewish ritual of shivah came to mind. She knew the power of shivah meals to soothe people in times of grief, so she and her longtime friend Madison Slobin, 26, decided to coordinate Shiva Delivers, a collective effort whereby Jews would cook a dinner meal for a Black household in Vancouver.

“We hoped it would lighten their load and bring a bit of joy,” Schwenk said. In emails, Facebook and Instagram posts sent to members of the Jewish community, the pair noted that “this past week has been one of grieving for Black folks. Not only have Black lives been disproportionately impacted and lost due to COVID-19, but we have witnessed police officers murder Black people in broad daylight, as well as in their own homes. As Jews, we know what it feels like to experience a collective tragedy, especially in the past two years, as antisemitic violence has been on the rise. We also know how much it has meant to us when other communities have demonstrated their solidarity.”

They encouraged volunteers to “cook with your loved ones, and have critical conversations about unlearning anti-Blackness and racism. It’s a beautiful thing when we can hold one another accountable, free of judgment, and keep our hands busy in some challah dough,” they wrote.

Their message spread quickly through social media and, within 24 hours, they had volunteers signing up to cook meals. Ultimately, they received 90 meals that they were able to deliver to 48 Black families in the Lower Mainland, from Surrey to East Vancouver and the University of British Columbia.

“People made beautiful, multiple course dinners including salmon with dessert, brisket and matzah ball soup, roast chicken with vegetables and delicious cakes,” Schwenk said. “It was really clear that considerable effort went into each dish and we felt really proud to drop these meals off.”

Those preparing the meals represented the diversity of the Vancouver Jewish community and deliveries came from Orthodox Jews, mixed families, rabbis and people from all political spectrums.

“We didn’t explain much about our initiative when we sent out the notification, but people just got it,” Slobin said. “We were unified by the instinct to do tzedakah through our collective love language of delicious food. I found it beautiful that our community is so united about the idea that Black lives matter, and that they really wanted to provide comfort to Black families during this time.”

The two friends are both professionally involved in human rights work. Slobin works for Vancouver Aboriginal Child and Family Services, while Schwenk is a diversity and inclusion consultant for Cicely Blain Consulting. Even though they’re not planning to organize a second Shiva Delivers event immediately, they hope it will inspire members of the Jewish community to do more.

“This was a way for us as a community to say, ‘We know how valuable comfort and nourishment are in moments like these, and we’ve got your back,’” Slobin said. “I want to see how folks draw inspiration from this and tap into the potential for solidarity beyond the Jewish community.” She noted that other Shiva Delivers initiatives were held in other parts of Canada and in the United States.

Feedback from recipients of the meals was overwhelmingly positive and grateful. “Thank you so much for doing this,” one recipient wrote. “We are grieving such a tremendous loss of life in the middle of this pandemic, where we are isolated from our wider community and loved ones. This helps a lot.” Another recipient said the display of kindness and generosity towards the Black community at this time was especially meaningful: “It means so much to be seen in our grief, and held and cared for in this way. Such community-to-community support is so deeply valuable and I truly believe it is our way forward into a collectively liberated world. Thank you for looking out for us and sending us love in my personal favourite love language – good food!”

Reflecting on the power of their event, Schwenk and Slobin said it provided “a glimpse into a hopeful future of what solidarity can look like. It allowed us to imagine a world where traditions are not only respected, but provide cross-cultural comfort.”

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

Honouring community

In her recently published book, Shalom Uganda: A Jewish Community on the Equator, Vancouverite Janice Masur writes about her life in Kampala, Uganda, where she moved as a child of 5 and stayed until the age of 17 in 1961, leaving just before Uganda achieved independence in 1962. The small Jewish community of Kampala has been all but forgotten, its history mostly undocumented and lost to time.

JI: How did the idea for this book come about, and when did you begin researching and writing it?

photo - Janice Masur — Janice Masur *(photo courtesy)*

JM: The idea originated in a modern East African history class I attended at Simon Fraser University. I began writing in 2005, traveling to interview octogenarians and nonagenarians, who [earlier in their lives] had arrived in Kampala. They included Holocaust survivors, individuals who might otherwise have gone to Kenya but could not afford to pay the required head tax, and those who arrived on work contracts of two to four years.

JI: Why was it important for you to try to capture the history of Jewish life in Kampala?

JM: I wanted to both document and honour my small Jewish community on the equator, an imploded star vanished in the diasporic galaxy. While many people are familiar with the Abayudayah who, in 1921, converted to Judaism in passive rebellion against British rule, my community is almost completely forgotten. There’s not even a cemetery to mark the existence of 23 secular families who, without a rabbi, Torah or synagogue managed to create a small, cohesive, but unreligious community. There is a great paucity of research literature on this topic and I have been told that, presently, Shalom Uganda is likely the only scholarship devoted to the Jewish community in Kampala.

JI: How did spending some of your formative years in Kampala leave a lasting imprint on your life?

JM: To this day I love mangos, and growing up in Kampala has made me feel comfortable in the company of all ethnic groups. This long-forgotten colonial world included boarding school attendance and, though much-hated, this education provided me with some excellent life lessons.

JI: Do you have any inclination to return to Uganda to visit or live?

JM: I have not had the courage to return yet, and think that perhaps memories are best left to glitter in the distance. I know that the town is much more densely populated and built up now than it was when I left, and that the red murram country roads are in ill repair.

JI: Who do you believe will benefit most from reading this book?

JM: My intent is to place this book in all major libraries worldwide. It seems that all who have read Shalom Uganda so far seem to have learnt a new fact, enjoyed the memoir or want to tell me how their life was or wasn’t similar to mine. So, I believe that the book will be well read among a Jewish following or among scholars thirsting for information about Jewish history and life in far-flung places last century. I hope others enjoy reading my writing effort. It is a relief to have the story out in the open.

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