{"id":27781,"date":"2018-02-09T03:55:04","date_gmt":"2018-02-09T11:55:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/?p=27781"},"modified":"2018-02-07T20:38:59","modified_gmt":"2018-02-08T04:38:59","slug":"okanagan-celebrates-25th","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/2018\/02\/09\/okanagan-celebrates-25th\/","title":{"rendered":"Okanagan celebrates 25th"},"content":{"rendered":"

Steven Finkleman, vice-president of the Okanagan Jewish Community, takes a moment to enjoy some Israeli dancing. (photo by Misty Challmie)<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

When the founders of Kelowna\u2019s fledgling Jewish community decided to open a building, they couldn\u2019t call it a synagogue.<\/p>\n

The B.C. government of the day would contribute a third of the construction costs toward a community centre but nothing if it were a church or synagogue. So, a small group of dedicated volunteers named it the Okanagan Jewish Community Centre and got the funding.<\/p>\n

The building \u2013 also known as Beth Shalom Synagogue \u2013 features a sanctuary alongside a large kitchen, library and daycare. Twenty-five years after its dedication in the heart of British Columbia\u2019s Okanagan Valley, a dozen original members and 50 supporters celebrated the milestone with Israeli dancing, humour and heartwarming stories.<\/p>\n

Steven Finkleman, who led the event, reminisced about how a few retired couples kept the Jewish religion \u201calive in these boonies\u201d by getting together at various houses. Members gathered regularly for services at a church after they formalized their community at an inaugural meeting in 1983.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe met at St. Michael\u2019s Anglican Church. For us, it was St. Moishe\u2019s,\u201d said Finkleman, who grew up in Winnipeg. \u201cThe question wasn\u2019t, \u2018Do we need a building?\u2019 It was, \u2018If someone dies, where do we put them?\u2019 So a cemetery was most important.\u201d<\/p>\n

As more Jews moved into the Okanagan, momentum grew. Then-newcomer Mel Kotler, a businessman from Montreal who ran the Western division of Fabric-land, helped launch the community\u2019s first cemetery drive. The committee bought pews, bimah artifacts and an ark from a synagogue that closed in Moose Jaw, Sask. Members contracted Emil Klein, a retired rabbi living in nearby Winfield, to lead services in houses and at St. Moishe\u2019s.<\/p>\n

Soon, they picked out a burial site overlooking a lake north of Kelowna, making it the only Jewish cemetery between Metro Vancouver and Calgary. After shifting the focus to establishing a centre, lawyer Robert Levin met with developers of a new subdivision in Kelowna\u2019s North Glenmore area to negotiate a location. They agreed the Jewish community would put in a daycare to serve the neighbourhood as part of the deal.<\/p>\n

Plans were drawn up for a $400,000 building, and a successful fundraising dinner followed. Once built, two former members of the Moose Jaw synagogue helped carry in two Torahs for the dedication in October 1992. More than 300 people attended the ceremony, which included a six-foot challah. Among the dignitaries were British Columbia\u2019s former premier, Dave Barrett, member of the Legislative Assembly Cliff Serwa and B.C. Liberal leader Gordon Wilson.<\/p>\n

Today, about 60 families \u2013 with Orthodox, Conservative and Reform backgrounds \u2013 support the centre. Visiting rabbis and cantors lead services, and children learn about Judaism at Hebrew school. Rabbi Shaul Osadchey and Cantor Russ Jayne of Calgary\u2019s Beth Tzedec Congregation currently travel to Kelowna four times a year for Jewish holidays.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey have the skill set we don\u2019t have,\u201d said Okanagan Jewish Community president Mondy Challmie. \u201cWhen people have questions of a religious nature that we\u2019re unable to answer, we encourage them to email or call Rabbi Osadchey.\u201d<\/p>\n

To celebrate the 25th anniversary, Cantor Russ sang a Hebrew-English version of Leonard Cohen\u2019s \u201cHallelujah.\u201d Israeli dancers \u2013 who have practised every week for 14 years at the centre \u2013 performed. Member of Parliament Stephen Fuhr and Kelowna Councilor Mohini Singh gave speeches. And everyone shared a nosh, a slideshow and plenty of laughs.<\/p>\n

As the party wound down and people folded up the chairs, Finkleman reflected on the biggest challenge for this tight-knit but tiny congregation.<\/p>\n

\u201cGenerating interest, support and commitment in a small community \u2013 distant from a major Jewish centre \u2013 was difficult. It still is a challenge, but, when the building opened, it served as a focal point for recent arrivals in the Okanagan. We were very honoured to have some of the original members present. We miss those who are no longer with us.\u201d<\/p>\n

For more information, visit ojcc.ca<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Don Plant<\/strong> is a retired journalist and member of the Okanagan Jewish Community in Kelowna. He\u2019s now studying archeology and helped excavate an Early Bronze Age site in Israel last summer.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Steven Finkleman, vice-president of the Okanagan Jewish Community, takes a moment to enjoy some Israeli dancing. (photo by Misty Challmie) When the founders of Kelowna\u2019s fledgling Jewish community decided to open a building, they couldn\u2019t call it a synagogue. The B.C. government of the day would contribute a third of the construction costs toward a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":27782,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[7813,6433,218,5919,856,7814],"class_list":["post-27781","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-local","tag-beth-shalom","tag-jewish-life","tag-judaism","tag-ojc","tag-okanagan","tag-steven-finkleman"],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":8}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27781","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27781"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27781\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/27782"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27781"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27781"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27781"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}