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Rescuing Afghan women MPs

photo - Corey Levine has helped bring many Afghan women MPs and their families to safety in Canada. She will speak about her experiences at the Wallenberg-Sugihara Civil Courage Society event honouring her

Corey Levine has helped bring many Afghan women MPs and their families to safety in Canada. She will speak about her experiences at the Wallenberg-Sugihara Civil Courage Society event honouring her. (photo from Corey Levine) The Wallenberg-Sugihara Civil Courage Society’s…

Weekly vigils enter new year

photo - Kfir Bibas was abducted before his first birthday. His second birthday is this Saturday

Kfir Bibas was abducted before his first birthday. His second birthday is this Saturday. (photo by Pat Johnson) The Gregorian calendar has turned over a new year, but the vigils for the Israeli hostages continue without interruption. Daphna Kedem, who…

Choose your next PM

By the time Justin Trudeau emerged from the front door of Rideau Cottage last week to announce his intention to end almost a decade as Canada’s prime minister, any element of surprise had evaporated. His future was sealed – and…

Leadership keeps us afloat

There are so many huge transitions lately when it comes to world leaders in the news. From impeaching the South Korean president to the fleeing of Syria’s Bashar Al-Assad, or the issues around Netanyahu, Trump or Trudeau, there’s political change…

Their wait to return home

photo - Thomas Hand and the survivors of the massacre at Kibbutz Be’eri hope to return home in 2026

Thomas Hand and the survivors of the massacre at Kibbutz Be’eri hope to return home in 2026. (photo by Gil Zohar) Kibbutz Hatzerim, eight kilometres west of Be’er Sheva, best known for its drip-irrigation plant, also houses the newly established…

Surveying Canadian Jews

“Canada’s Jewish community is divided over Israeli and domestic Canadian politics, even though rising antisemitism and war seem to have increased the emotional attachment of Canada’s Jews to Israel,” writes sociologist Robert Brym in the executive summary of Arguments for…

Sachs heads new office

photo - Michael Sachs is the first director of Western Canada for the Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Centre

Michael Sachs is the first director of Western Canada for the Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Centre. (photo from FSWC) The role is new, but the face is familiar. On Sept. 15 last year, Michael Sachs took the helm as the…

Campbell’s art at Zack

photo - Artist Olga Campbell and her grandson Arlo, for whom Campbell wrote her memoir, Dear Arlo: Letters to My Grandson

Artist Olga Campbell and her grandson Arlo, for whom Campbell wrote her memoir, Dear Arlo: Letters to My Grandson. (photo from Olga Campbell) Recently, Olga Campbell published her third book, a memoir, Dear Arlo: Letters to My Grandson. Campbell’s new…

The complexities of humanity

photo - Mitch and Murray Productions’ presentation of Heroes of the Fourth Turning co-stars, left to right, Jennifer Clement, David Kaye, Elizabeth Barrett, Aaron Craven and Nyiri Karakas

Mitch and Murray Productions’ presentation of Heroes of the Fourth Turning co-stars, left to right, Jennifer Clement, David Kaye, Elizabeth Barrett, Aaron Craven and Nyiri Karakas. (Shimon Photo) This is a story about the interesting and intersecting balance of faith,…

An inspiring Shabbat Shira

photo - Cantor Shani Cohen

Cantor Shani Cohen and Wendy Bross Stuart (photo below) team up for another Shabbat Shira concert at Temple Sholom, on Feb. 8. (photo from Temple Sholom) “I’m looking forward to the Shabbat Shira concert as an opportunity for our community…

Robinson kicks off book fest

photo - The JCC Jewish Book Festival opens Feb. 22 with Selina Robinson talking about her memoir, Truth Be Told

The JCC Jewish Book Festival opens Feb. 22 with Selina Robinson talking about her memoir, Truth Be Told. (photo from JCC Jewish Book Festival) This year’s JCC Jewish Book Festival opens Feb. 22 with Selina Robinson talking about her recently…

Kiki more than a muse

History is fickle. Who becomes known as great in their field, whose work is displayed in museums or taught in schoolbooks? When there is a tangible product – a building, a painting, a book, whatever – the chances seem higher…

Lifelong lessons from camp

photo - Selina Robinson (centre front) was a counselor at Camp Miriam for four summers. She is pictured here, in 1981, with the Sayarim (Grade 5s) in that year’s first session

Selina Robinson (centre front) was a counselor at Camp Miriam for four summers. She is pictured here, in 1981, with the Sayarim (Grade 5s) in that year’s first session. (photo from Camp Miriam) Little did I know how much Camp…

Out-tripping’s many benefits

photo - Canoe trips are a vital part of the camp experience, not only because of the physical activity they involve but also because of the deep personal growth they foster

Canoe trips are a vital part of the camp experience, not only because of the physical activity they involve but also because of the deep personal growth they foster. (photo from Camp Hatikvah) At Camp Hatikvah, one of the most…

Where Jewish pride grows

photo - Camp Solomon Schechter builds identity and combats antisemitism

Camp Solomon Schechter builds identity and combats antisemitism. (photo from Camp Solomon Schechter) During Tisha b’Av, a day of mourning and reflection, the entire camp community of Camp Solomon Schechter in Tumwater, Wash. – 300 campers, ranging from 3rd to…

Why work at summer camp?

photo - camper ziplining (photo from Camp Kalsman)

(photo from Camp Kalsman) We know that today’s university and college students have lots of choices for summer jobs – but here are 10 reasons why working at a Jewish summer camp is the absolute best opportunity for someone who’s starting to think…

Camps post-pandemic

image - table with camp enrolment from FJC's 2023 Trends Report

The Foundation for Jewish Camp recently released its latest census results, Trends Report: State of Jewish Camp 2023. The research indicates that Jewish camps in Canada and the United States have settled into a new normal within the post-pandemic world.…

אייר קנדה מרחיבה את טיסותיה בשדה התעופה של ונקובר

אייר קנדה הודיעה לאחרונה על הרחבת טיסותיה מבסיסה שבשדה התעופה של ונקובר. חברת התעופה הלאומית של קנדה לא הודיעה בשלב זה על מועד חידוש טיסותיה לישראל אייר קנדה החברה מציעה עתה שלושה קווים חדשים לארצות הברית: לטמפה, ראלי ונאשוויל. זאת…

אין סוף לאנטישמיות

לבעיית האנטישמיות כנגד יהודים וישראלים בעולם. אין ספק שמדינות המערב נכשלו בטיפול שורש בבעייה חמורה זו ואני חושש למראות קשים יותר בעתיד גל האנטישמיות הנוכחי החל צובר תאוצה לאור הריגתם בעזה של עשרות ואלפי אזרחים בהם נשים וילדים רבים. יש…

A Dickens of a musical

photo - Anthony Santiago, at front, plays Fagin in Gateway Theatre’s production of Oliver!, which runs until Jan. 4

Anthony Santiago, at front, plays Fagin in Gateway Theatre’s production of Oliver!, which runs until Jan. 4. (photo by David Cooper) Charles Dickens wrote Oliver Twist in 1837. His eponymous main character, an 11-year-old orphan, has the audacity to ask…

Writing the human condition

photos - Maya Arad and Eshkol Nevo are featured in the JCC Jewish Book Festival prologue event Jan. 19

Maya Arad and Eshkol Nevo are featured in the JCC Jewish Book Festival prologue event Jan. 19. The JCC Jewish Book Festival begins its 40th year with a discussion that’s sure to be as intriguing as it is relevant. The…

Coffee and sympathy

In Startup Nation, Dan Senor and Saul Singer’s 2009 book about Israel’s successes in innovation and entrepreneurship, the authors credit the hothouse environment created by the country’s many challenges not as a barrier but as a catapult to its accomplishments.…

Thinking the best of others

Imagine teenagers, hanging out and sharing the usual in-group slang, but they’re saying “Lashon hara? Lamed hay! Tell it to me anyway!” This sarcastic chant was new to me, when Miriam Anzovin, the famous Jewish Talmud influencer, mentioned it on…

Impacts of summer wildfires

photo - Businesses in Valemount, BC, stepped up to help thousands of Jasper evacuees, but now find themselves struggling

Businesses in Valemount, BC, stepped up to help thousands of Jasper evacuees, but now find themselves struggling. (photo from Spencer Hall) A member of the miniscule Jewish community in Valemount, a town in east-central British Columbia, reflected on the challenges…

Fighting antisemitism

photo - In Toronto, Yoseph Haddad, left, with Daniel Koren, founder and executive director of Allied Voices for Israel, which sponsored Haddad’s Canadian tour

In Toronto, Yoseph Haddad, left, with Daniel Koren, founder and executive director of Allied Voices for Israel, which sponsored Haddad’s Canadian tour. (photo by Dave Gordon) In recent years, Arab-Israeli activist Yoseph Haddad has become known for his efforts to…

Standing up to the PM

photo - MK Dan Illouz opposes legislation that would enshrine the exemption of Haredim from military service

MK Dan Illouz opposes legislation that would enshrine the exemption of Haredim from military service. (photo from Knesset) Dan Illouz, a Montreal-born Likud rookie member of the Knesset, is making a name for himself in Israel’s Parliament by speaking against…

Women enrich Judaism

Rabbi Elyse Goldstein delved into the impact of women’s evolving roles in Judaism during a webinar hosted by Kolot Mayim Reform Temple on Dec. 8. Her talk – Open Doors, Open Hearts: How Women Have Enriched Judaism – was part…

Revisiting magic in Victoria

photo - Linda Dayan Frimer signs books at the Indigo in Victoria’s Mayfair Mall

Linda Dayan Frimer signs books at the Indigo in Victoria’s Mayfair Mall. (photo by David J. Litvak) Victoria has always been a magical place for BC artist and author Linda Dayan Frimer. She has exhibited her art at the Empress…