philanthropy

A light for the nations

Linor Attias, deputy director of international emergency operations for United Hatzalah, inspired Raquel Esrock’s bat mitzvah project: Maple Syrup and Mitzvahs. (photo by Robin Esrock)

In a critical medical emergency, life and death depend on the help one receives and how quickly it arrives. By the time an ambulance shows up, it can be too late to stabilize the victim of a heart attack, apply a life-saving torniquet or deliver CPR. However, United Hatzalah, a rapid medical response service in Israel, can get trained medics on site within 90 seconds of an emergency call.

Linor Attias, the deputy director of international emergency operations for United Hatzalah, addressed a small fundraiser at a living room in West Vancouver on Dec. 2. She wore the orange vest of a first responder, shared stories of everyday heroes, tearing up over the tragedy of Oct. 7. As the emcee for the event, I knew there was much to discuss, but I started with a simple fact. Founded in Jerusalem in 2006, United Hatzalah has responded to more than seven million medical emergencies and saved the lives of tens of thousands of people.

Supporting both patients and Magen David Adom, UH has become an integral part of the Israeli cultural fabric. A lifesaving group of more than 8,000 unpaid volunteers, including Jews, Arabs, Druze and Christians, treat everyone and anyone in need, without charging a penny.

After a six-month training period and on-call internship, volunteers use an app that geo-locates their proximity to a medical emergency. When someone calls one of Israel’s three emergency numbers for help (instead of one number, 911, for all emergencies, Israel has different numbers for medical, fire or police) United Hatzalah’s system immediately locates the nearest five volunteers. It pings their app, and they can be on site in three minutes with a fully stocked medic bag. The paramedic volunteer stabilizes the patient, performs life-saving first-aid if needed, and remains until an ambulance arrives.

photo - United Hatzalah’s volunteer paramedics can be on site within 90 seconds of an emergency call — United Hatzalah’s volunteer paramedics can be on site within 90 seconds of an emergency call. *(photo from UH)*

“It’s not just about the person who is not well or injured,” explained Attias. “Everyone surrounding them feels calm and safe knowing someone is handling the situation. When the ambulance arrives, they take over.”

If a volunteer happens to be at work that day, they could be back at their desk within 20 minutes.

Volunteers sign up from all backgrounds: rich, poor, religious, secular, shopkeepers, teachers, accountants, surfers, mechanics, students, and retired grandparents, too. If they’re unavailable, they simply toggle a switch in the app and the algorithm automatically moves to the next volunteer.

UH volunteers are registered, well-trained and passionate to help. Like Attias, many found their way to UH after being impacted personally by a medical emergency. In her case, it was hearing how an ambulance showed up too late to save her uncle, the victim of a bombing attack. For an Arab volunteer, it was the Jewish UH volunteer who saved his father during a heart attack. Two books have been published filled with incredible stories of universal compassion and head-scratching rescues.

At UH’s headquarters in Jerusalem, there are Haredi staff and volunteers working alongside Muslim and secular colleagues. Attias also has directed UH volunteer groups to disasters abroad, rushing to underserved areas after earthquakes in Morocco and Türkiye.

“They hate Israelis in Türkiye,” she told those gathered. “Then they see the Israeli flag on the vest of the rescue worker saving their life, and it’s ‘thank you Israel, thank you!’ We saved 19 people from the rubble.” She still keeps in touch with the family of a 7-year-old girl she saved in Türkiye; the father sent messages of support on Oct. 8.

Attias suffers post-traumatic stress disorder from what she witnessed during the Hamas attack in 2023. She was on the ground, a first responder, her own life at risk; other UH volunteers were murdered and kidnapped. She was part of a UH team that set up critical triage camps to treat the wounded. When a UH volunteer livestreamed the number of bodies, Attias could not believe it was real. Today, UH operates a psycho-trauma unit to help volunteers and the public deal with what they experienced that day.

Attias spoke about how United Hatzalah is preparing for the next Oct. 7. United Hatzalah plans to be better prepared to save more lives. They are running simulated training exercises for volunteers, complete with smoke machines and make-up artists, hoping to acclimatize responders to the chaos that would exist. In the aftermath of Oct. 7, UH has seen a boost in volunteers. People are signing up to give something back, to show their appreciation and to feel less powerless, said Attias.

The ubiquitous orange vests of UH volunteers are seen throughout Israel, often riding a distinctive Ambucycle or Ambuscooter, skirting traffic or entering public markets. This is a crowdsourced, localized and turbocharged emergency medical response system that is being studied and adopted by other parts of the world, including India and Brazil, and the state of Idaho. Jeff Klein, who sits on the board of United Hatzalah Canada, shared that Vancouver City Council was also exploring the model before UH Canada shifted its efforts to support Israel in the wake of Oct. 7. Countries and communities have different cultural attitudes when it comes to volunteering and liability, but a model that works in Israel can work anywhere, with adaptations.

United Hatzalah is funded entirely by donors and receives no money from the Israeli government.

“We don’t call them donors, we call them partners,” explained Attias. Funds go directly towards life-saving medical equipment, she said, and partners receive updates about how that equipment – be it an Ambucycle, oxygen kit or medic bag – has been used. It’s all transparent, and UH is widely regarded as one of the key charities making a meaningful difference in modern Israel.

Attias showed us a picture of all-female volunteer group gathered in a circle after a recent training exercise. There are women wearing hijabs next to Orthodox Jews wearing wigs. Secular, religious, people of all shades, all smiling, all participating in a noble cause greater than oneself. Attias believes this is Isaiah’s prophecy of Israel acting as “a light for the nations” in action, spreading universal compassion, community and life-saving technology where and when it is needed most.

It’s impossible not to be inspired. A doctor in the room, non-Jewish, donated a rapid response ebike. Even my daughter, Raquel, gearing up for her bat mitzvah, committed to a crowdsourced fundraiser for three life-saving oxygen kits – to contribute towards her UH Maple Syrup and Mitzvahs project, which is raising funds for both the oxygen kits and two child-resuscitation kits, visit tinyurl.com/55ur7fm7.

To become a United Hatzalah partner and learn more, visit UH’s website, israelrescue.org.

Robin Esrock is the bestselling author of The Great Canadian Bucket List, and a travel columnist for Canadian Geographic.

Stories create impact

Choices keynote speaker Mandana Dayani, centre, with event co-chairs, left to right, Gail James, Briana James, Lola Pawer and Lisa Boroditsky. (photo by Rhonda Dent)

On Nov. 16, Choices once again celebrated the work of Jewish women philanthropists. This year’s theme, “L’dor Vador” (“Generation to Generation”), reflected the more than 400 people who attended the 21st annual event, which took place at Congregation Beth Israel.

“We saw so many younger, first-time attendees,” said Ricki Thal, associate campaign director at Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver.

The event’s four co-chairs also represented the theme: Gail James and her granddaughter, Briana James; Lola Pawer and her daughter, Lisa Boroditsky.

Briana James introduced the keynote speaker, business leader and activist Mandana Dayani. In doing so, James said “our future shines bright,” with Dayani leading the way in philanthropy and activism, fighting antisemitism and advocating on behalf of women’s rights.

Dayani took the stage with her husband, Peter Traugott, presenting her material in conversation with him.

A Hollywood film producer with credits including HBO, Apple TV and Netflix, among others, Traugott also holds a master’s in business administration from Harvard University. He set a light-hearted tone, quipping, “This is my first at this – [being] Mandana’s ‘plus one’!” Speaking about their Jewish life in Los Angeles, where several members of the Dayani family live close by, he described a cross between Everybody Loves Raymond and My Big Fat Greek Wedding.

Traugott asked Dayani about her experiences as a new immigrant in New York. She spoke of the culture shock, the lights and traffic in New York. She also spoke, with gratitude, about HIAS (Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society), which supported her family’s flight from Iran, found her father a job as a shoe salesman and found them a place to live, where they became part of the community.

Dayani said her earliest memories of Iran are of “the morality police, the fear in everyone’s eyes.” She recalled having a gun pointed at her when she was just 4 years old. She is now 43.

Her family, who had wanted to leave Iran since the revolution in 1979, finally got a visa to Italy in 1987. They fled there, “leaving everything behind.” The experience has left her, she said, with an enduring sense of “how quickly this escalates, seeing my country taken over by lunatics.”

Despite having to live “with no safety net, starting over and over again, with no money,” Dayani said, “I’ve never missed a Shabbat in my life…. Shabbat is everything to us.”

Dayani’s grandfather was a rabbi and the family Orthodox. She understands the sacrifices that had to be made to maintain their traditions and feels “a responsibility” to do so as well, she said. As for integrating into American life, she described watching TV to learn how to dress, speak and behave as an American. She said, “I feel very Persian. Being a Persian Jew, that’s integral to who I am.” She also describes herself as “deeply patriotic – the US saved my life.”

Dayani takes her two daughters everywhere, she said. “If I meet my heroes, they meet my heroes. If I’m going to the UN General Assembly or the White House, they come with me.”

She and Traugott are trying to raise active, responsible citizens. “We have conversations about what’s happening in the world and they’re always rooted in kindness, through the lens of compassion,” she said.

Dayani advises caution when it comes to internalizing the messages we see online. “If we cave to the algorithms, we’ll believe that everyone hates Jews and it simply isn’t true,” she said, adding, “So many people stand with us and love us. The kids are good!”

In response to a question from Traugott about her process as a storyteller, Dayani spoke about “using storytelling to create impact,” to change society in significant ways.

Dayani acknowledged that anger spurs some of her work, such as her fight against the first Trump administration’s policy of attempting to deter migrants by separating children from their parents. She recalled her fears as a child, landing in New York, not wanting to let go of her mother’s hand. “I can’t think of a worse thing you could do to the most vulnerable population in the world,” she said. This sentiment led her to travel to Texas to see the policy in action, as the disconnect was just too powerful, she said. “The country that saved me is doing this?”

Her strategy in situations like this, she said, is to “call all the women I know who are smarter than me” to together “redirect the world’s attention to what we want them to look at. Real issues. It worked.”

She explained, “We received hundreds of millions of dollars of donated advertising…. I was so moved by how everyone showed up.”

The advertising aspect – the dissemination of information – was absolutely essential, she said, noting that “20% of the pro-Hamas information being spread on social media right after Oct. 7 was disseminated by bots, not real people…. It was planned. There was spin on the day it happened.”

When Mandani posted a video about this online within days of Hamas’s attack, the post got some 50 million views within a couple of hours. Death threats started coming in.

“I am a progressive leader and none of those people were speaking up,” she said, referring to other human rights and anti-hate activists.

Even though, as Traugott noted, Dayani doesn’t just work for a single demographic, but rather does outreach on behalf of various groups who have experienced different kinds of trauma and marginalization, she lost friends after Oct. 7 – or, as she put it, “so-called ‘thought leaders’ remaining silent because they couldn’t stand 10 negative comments” on their social media accounts. Dayani said the people she thought were her peers lacked the courage to stand up for justice when it came to Jews.

Among many other initiatives, Dayani founded, in 2024, the Calanet Foundation for young people, to harness “the power of Jewish stories in response to the branding work done by the Palestinian contingent.” After Oct. 7, she saw “so many black squares on people’s feeds,” as a mark of Jews’ grief. She also wanted people to focus on “the desert flower growing out of a crack,” the calanet (Hebrew for anemone), which symbolizes strength and resilience. She quoted the adage “They tried to bury us – they didn’t know we were seeds.”

One of Calanet’s projects is One Mitzvah a Day, which entails expressing thanks to those who stand up against antisemitism and/or in support of Israel – “one text a day, such as expressing gratitude to Trader Joe’s for selling Israeli feta,” said Dayani, noting that 5.5 million messages have been sent since the project’s January launch. Traugott pointed out that “most of the allies weren’t Jewish.”

Dayani asked the audience to consider “the power of this room, when everyone does the work.” She said, “Just do what you’re doing today – keep showing up.”

Shula Klinger is an author and journalist living in North Vancouver.

A last solidarity cycle

The inaugural Solidarity Cycle, in 2017. (photo by P. Simson)

We didn’t ride 100 kilometres, or even quite 50. It was a glorious symbolic ride in celebration of the many years of Solidarity Cycle, a much-beloved event that has seen dozens of cyclists and hundreds of supporters unite bike and heart to raise more than $400,000 for the Stephen Lewis Foundation Grandmothers to Grandmothers Campaign.

Even though Solidarity Cycle has pushed its last pedal – the event having been canceled this year – three members of Tikun Olam Gogos, who rode in the inaugural event back in 2017 and have served in numerous capacities every year since, just couldn’t let go.

Monday, Sept. 8 was a perfect day as Marie Henry, Darcy Billinkoff and I set out: not a drop of rain, not a wisp of smoke, just sunny skies with occasional clouds and a light breeze.

Nothing could keep us down, not Darcy’s fractured ribs, Marie’s stress injuries or my right hip, waitlisted for replacement. Could this “Wride of the Wrecked” be a clue to Solidarity Cycle’s demise?

There were more portents to come, but first it was time to ride.

Many features of our route to Westham Island came with joyful reminders of the previous cycles: cornfields reminiscent of the years of Chilliwack corn and chili celebration dinners, acres of sunflowers like those popping the Pemberton Valley ride the year of pandemic and big smoke, and kilometres of dike trails like those we traveled in Pitt Meadows. The one-lane, wood-deck river crossing onto the island was a refreshing antidote to that !@#$%!!! (oops, I mean challenging-but-fun) Golden Ears Bridge.

We reached our designated turn-around point, the Reifel Bird Sanctuary, to find the birds behind locked gates.

Even more dismaying, Emma Lea’s dairy bar was shut tight. NO ICE CREAM?! Clearly, the closed signs said it was time to wave a regretful goodbye to the ride that has fueled our summers and our love for the grannies these past eight years.

But, still, we weren’t quite done.

We topped off our ride with Heineken and lunch on the deck of the Riverhouse Restaurant and Pub, an indulgent reminder of many post-cycle beer and burger banquets. We always suspected we consumed more calories than we burned.

In the absence of a formal event this year, I did not solicit sponsorships. However, I set up a fundraising page to show my appreciation for the many people who have supported Solidarity Cycle over the years. Please do visit the page because there is a message there for you: slf.akaraisin.com/ui/grandmotherscampaign2025/p/BarbaraHalparin.

Without the yearly opportunity Solidarity Cycle has afforded you, I urge you not to forget the grandmothers and grand-others aiming to alleviate the scourge of HIV/AIDS that continues to significantly impact Africa. Here are some other ways you can continue your steadfast support for them, now that crucial international aid has been withdrawn.

First, attend Tikun Olam Gogos’ other fundraising events. Second, be on the lookout for another in our fabulous concert series in the near future. Third, buy our merch! We sell our signature tote bags, pouches and other items, including our special edition O Canada line, at Fancy This Gifts (5044 48 Ave., in Ladner), by appointment at Joyce Cherry’s home boutique (604-261-5454) and on our website, tikunolamgogos.org.

You can also find our goods at several upcoming craft fairs: St. Thomas Aquinas Secondary School (Nov. 2); Dunbar Community Centre, St. Faith’s Church and St. Thomas More Collegiate (all Nov. 22); St. James Community Square (Nov. 30); and Kensington Community Centre (Nov. 30).

And, please – share your fundraising brainwaves with us because, of course, we are looking for a successor to Solidarity Cycle!

Harper speaks at local event

At the Canadian Shaare Zedek Hospital Foundation (CSZHF) event on Sept. 7, which marked the foundation’s 50th anniversary: left to right, Col. Ilan Or, Israeli defence attaché to Canada; Rafi Yablonsky, CSZHF national director; Dr. Marla Gordon, CSZHF Western region board member; Dr. Arthur Dodek, CSZHF Western region board member; former prime minister Stephen Harper; Dr. Robert Krell, 2025 Western Region recipient of the Kurt and Edith Rothschild Humanitarian Award; Rabbi Andrew Rosenblatt of Schara Tzedeck Synagogue; Ilan Pilo, CSZHF Western Canada director; and Sam Sapera, CSZHF board chair. (photo by Alina Ilyasova)

Former prime minister Stephen Harper was on friendly ground when he addressed a packed sanctuary at Congregation Schara Tzedeck earlier this month. The former Conservative leader, who led the country from 2006 to 2015, is known as a stalwart ally of Israel and the audience of mostly Jewish Vancouverites welcomed him heartily.

The Sept. 7 event was the first fundraising gala for the newly formed Western region of the Canadian Shaare Zedek Hospital Foundation. The event and the surrounding campaign succeeded in funding nine incubators for the hospital’s pediatric department.

The event featured Harper in conversation with former BC premier Gordon Campbell, who told the audience that, of the prime ministers he served with concurrently when he was premier from 2001 to 2011, Harper was his favourite.

Harper said people ask him why he supports Israel so strongly.

“Has it got to do with religion or your view of the Jewish community?” he asked rhetorically. “I mean, there are a million reasons, but, as prime minister of Canada, the reasons were really simple. Here is this one country in the Middle East that shares our values and that is a friend of this country – and the people who are the enemies of that country are enemies of this country.”

Harper told the audience that there are a lot of loud voices condemning Israel and threatening Jewish Canadians, but, he said, they are not unanimous. “There are still a lot of people in this country that understand the value of our Jewish community, that are friends of the state of Israel, and that thank you for everything you do,” he said.

Harper lauded Israel for its actions to set back Iran’s nuclear program, arguing that the brief Israel-Iran conflict has positively realigned the region. People had warned that Israel’s attack on Iran’s nuclear capability was a dangerous escalation that could “lead to World War Three,” he said.

“We know that not only was [the nuclear program] set back considerably, but the United States and Israel sent a real message that, if we see it again, we’re going to do the same thing again.”

The results of the Israeli actions were overwhelmingly positive, Harper said. There was a very limited Iranian response – and, notably, no other nations coming to Iran’s aid, he said.

There were broader repercussions around Israel’s action against Iran and in the larger regional conflict, he added. Hezbollah was decapitated and the Lebanese government is now trying to push Hezbollah out. Hezbollah’s allies in Syria lost power. Hamas is massively degraded.

Campbell expressed dismay at Prime Minister Mark Carney’s statement that Canada would recognize Palestinian statehood at the United Nations if the Palestinians meet a number of conditions.

“My problem with that … the Palestinian Authority has never done one of the things that the prime minister said,” Campbell said.

“I’m trying to give the new government a chance,” Harper replied, calling the Carney government a “kind of improvement” on the previous administration. “The only interpretation you can put on it is in fact rewarding the events of Oct. 7th.”

Harper said he cannot recall any precedent for Canada, or any other country, recognizing a state that does not exist.

“But, on top of that,” he said, “Who exactly are you? … There is no leadership among the Palestinian populations, including the [Palestinian Authority], that actually unequivocally recognizes the right of a Jewish state to exist. It’s great to say, ‘I favour theoretically a two-state solution,’ but the problem is this other state would be a state that does not support a two-state solution. You’d actually be moving further away from that objective.”

While Israel’s military actions have improved the geopolitical situation in the Middle East, Harper acknowledged there has been a concurrent spike in antisemitism in Canada.

“I really feel a lot of sympathy for ordinary Jewish people who face this in their private [and] professional lives and feel intimidated,” he said. “I guess that the only advice I can give you is to be resolute.… You can’t let those occasions slip. You can’t let them go by.”

Harper said he has been accused of dismissing criticism of Israel as antisemitic, an assertion he rejects.

“Being opposed to policy of the government of Israel is not antisemitic,” he said. “But being opposed to Israel because it is the only Jewish state in the world is the definition of antisemitism.”

Harper spoke, as he has previously to Jewish audiences, of his father, Joseph, who came of age during the Second World War, when the world was existentially threatened by fascism.

“One of the consequences of that is he grew up just as a very determined opponent of antisemitism in a period – we’re talking the ’40s, ’50s – where some of these things were expressed openly. He was very vocal in opposing that. And, frankly, he is just turning over in his grave watching some of what is happening today.”

Despite almost a decade out of office, the former Conservative prime minister did not shy away from politics, crediting the Liberal party with running an excellent campaign earlier this year and identifying shortcomings in the Conservative party’s approach.

Harper cited Donald Trump’s intervention in the campaign as a factor and anxieties around the Canada-US relationship for upending conventional wisdom, including polls that had predicted a Conservative landslide before former prime minister Justin Trudeau resigned.

“I do think the [Conservative] party has to take a hard look at what went right and what went wrong,” said Harper. “The Liberals displayed incredible tactical flexibility, and we did not show the same level of flexibility.”

Of the Conservatives, he said: “We ran a very principled campaign, but we need to show a lot more adaptability when circumstances change.”

Harper and Campbell also addressed economic issues. The former prime minister said the challenges presented by the current American administration are a chance to diversify Canada’s trade relationships.

“If we have an opportunity to be a genuine globally connected economy, instead of just kind of an economic appendage to the United States, which in some ways we have become, I [see] opportunity,” he said.

Both Harper and Campbell, in their time, were advocates for the economic benefits of resource extraction.

“Resources are not the only thing we have, but it’s a big, big comparative advantage,” Harper said. “We’re the country that has an unlimited range of natural resources in a rule-of-law environment, far removed from conflict zones. Do you know how rare that is in the world when it comes to vital resources? And that’s what we have. And we’re not getting them out of the ground, and we’re not getting them around the world.… We’ve got to get our energy to Asia. We’ve got to get our energy to Europe.… It will bring billions of dollars into Canada, create thousands and thousands of jobs in Canada. We are up against the clock, and the clock doesn’t care much about us.”

The Sept. 7 program began with a video showcasing Shaare Zedek Hospital’s achievements in maternal and neonatal care, as well as the range of advanced medical procedures for which the hospital is known. The religious and ethnic diversity of the hospital’s staff and patients is a particular source of pride for the facility’s leadership and their Canadian supporters.

Harper spoke highly of the hospital, which treats more than a million patients a year.

“The Shaare Zedek Hospital is, to me, emblematic of just so much of what has made Israel a remarkable country,” he said. “[It has] become a world-leading institution that services people beyond politics, race, religion, ethnicity … just a tremendous institution.”

The event was presented by the Canadian Shaare Zedek Hospital Foundation in partnership with the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver, Congregation Schara Tzedeck, the Jewish Independent and the Jewish Medical Association of British Columbia. Organizers expressed special thanks to CJPAC, the Canadian Jewish Political Affairs Committee, for their community support.

Ilan Pilo, Western Canada executive for Canadian Shaare Zedek Hospital Foundation, announced the success of the event, which resulted in funding for nine “Giraffe” incubators – each one costing $50,000 – for the hospital where 22,000 Israeli babies are born annually.

Dr. Robert Krell was awarded the Kurt and Edith Rothschild Humanitarian Award. (See jewishindependent.ca/harper-speaks-at-gala.) The award was presented by Dr. Arthur Dodek, a member of the board of the Jewish Medical Association and of the CSZHF, and Sam Sapera, chair of the board of the CSZHF, which marks its 50th anniversary this year.

The event was co-emceed by the Jewish Medical Association’s Dr. Marla Gordon and Zach Segal, who was a Conservative candidate in this year’s federal election.

CHW expands helping efforts

Israeli journalist Rolene Marks, chair of WIZO’s Hasbara Division, was the keynote speaker at CHW Vancouver Centre’s Opening Lunch and Fashion Show on Sept. 14. (photo by Cynthia Ramsay)

“I know that, as a community, you are feeling vulnerable and you are feeling that you have to be the mouthpiece or, as I call it, the litmus test, for however Israel is prosecuting a war so many miles, so far away, from you,” Israeli journalist and advocate Rolene Marks told those gathered at CHW Vancouver Centre’s Opening Lunch and Fashion Show on Sept. 14. “And I want to tell you that, although Israel’s not perfect – even though we are the only country in the world expected to prosecute a perfect war – you can be proud of the state of Israel.”

photo - Left to right: Claudia Goldman, Rolene Marks and Toby Rubin at the Sept. 14 event — Left to right: Claudia Goldman, Rolene Marks and Toby Rubin at the Sept. 14 event. *(photo from CHW)*

Marks, who, among other things, chairs WIZO’s Hasbara Division, was the event’s keynote speaker. Toby Rubin, president of CHW Vancouver Centre, welcomed the 150-plus guests at the Richmond Country Club Sept. 14, acknowledging the presence of Judy Mandleman, Rochelle Levinson and Claudia Goldman – three local Jewish community members who have been presidents of national CHW. She noted that the current national president, Tova Train, would be speaking, as would Lisa Colt-Kotler, chief executive officer of CHW, and Marks.

“This luncheon today is raising funds for two very important projects that we have here locally,” said Rubin. “One is JOLT, and the other is Franny’s Fund [which supports six youth advocacy centres across Canada, including the Treehouse Vancouver Child and Youth Advocacy Centre]. JOLT is the Jewish Outreach Leadership Training program at Canadian Young Judaea, and provides camperships to seven camps across Canada, including our very own Camp Hatikvah. Today, we are honoured to have with us the president of Camp Hatikvah, Joanna Wasel, who, along with the camp director and staff has worked with CHW these past two summers with the campers.”

Last year, Wasel and staff spearheaded making keychains and bracelets for Israeli soldiers, which Colt-Kotler and Train hand-delivered on a visit last January to patients at the Gandel Rehabilitation Centre at Hadassah Hospital, said Tobin.

This year, campers in Hatikvah’s first session created their own version of the Maccabi Games, as a fundraiser for HaGal Sheli (My Wave), “a surfing program that is used to help people combat stress, anxiety and PTSD,” said Rubin. “And you can only imagine, since Oct. 7, how important that program is.”

The initiative raised more than $7,000 for HaGal Sheli, said Rubin, who also noted that the brunch’s table decorations of books, toy cars and pens would be given to Treehouse Vancouver. Many of the books were donated by Vancouver Talmud Torah, she said.

Train, who came to the event from Toronto, spoke about being from Edmonton, calling herself “a Westerner at heart.”

“I never imagined myself taking on the role of national president,” she said, “but I’ve always believed with my whole heart that, if I cannot serve Israel by wearing a uniform, then my obligation is to serve in every other way I can. That’s why CHW speaks so deeply to me. For more than a century, this organization has invested in education, health care and social services. And, today, especially after Oct. 7, those needs have never been greater – Rolene shared with me a statistic this morning that more than 10,000 IDF soldiers have been treated for mental health issues across the country since Oct. 7.”

After a video about CHW’s various impacts, Colt-Kotler presented a plaque to Bernard Pinsky, in his role as chair of the Ronald S. Roadburg Foundation.

“CHW, at our core, is philanthropy, and we were founded, as you know, in 1917, by a very dedicated, special woman named Lillian Freiman,” said Colt-Kotler, describing Freiman as “an example of philanthropy” and “of dedication to the Jewish community,” and as “the essence of what a CHW woman is … an empowered woman.”

photo - Lisa Colt-Kotler, chief executive officer of CHW, presents a plaque to Bernard Pinsky, chair of the Ronald S. Roadburg Foundation — Lisa Colt-Kotler, chief executive officer of CHW, presents a plaque to Bernard Pinsky, chair of the Ronald S. Roadburg Foundation. *(photo from CHW)*

She continued, “We created the Lillian Freiman Society to recognize individual donors for their generous philanthropy, starting at $100,000, and the Ronald S. Roadburg Foundation generously donated to Michal Sela Forum … to combat domestic violence, to provide innovative solutions for the protection from and prevention of intimate partner violence,” said Colt-Kotler.

Pinsky said he pushed the foundation to have women’s empowerment as one of its focuses because, from the time he was a teenager, he has been influenced by his sister, Helen Pinsky, who attended the brunch.

“She’s a real feminist,” he said. “And somebody who taught me that women’s empowerment and women’s protection is very, very important in life, and I think it’s no less important today than it was over 50 years ago, when she talked to me about it.”

When Marks took to the podium, she acknowledged the Israel Defence Forces soldiers, who are “fighting 24/7 to protect the state of Israel.”

“I also want to take a moment to acknowledge the over 900 soldiers who have fallen in defence of the state of Israel and the many who are wounded, both physically and who carry those invisible wounds,” said Marks.

“It is an absolute imperative that I mention that we still have 48 hostages languishing in the hell of Gaza,” she added. “Every second counts…. We want them home now.”

Marks specializes in media, public relations and training on Jewish- and Israel-related issues. She hosts a radio program called Modiin and Beyond and is a contributor on Johannesburg’s Chai FM. She co-founded Lay of the Land, hosts The Israel Brief on YouTube and serves as a national spokesperson for the South African Zionist Federation. She is currently doing a doctorate at Middlesex University London, in media, politics and antisemitism.

“I’m the W in the CHW [Canadian Hadassah-WIZO] – I represent World WIZO, Israel’s foremost women’s organization in terms of working for empowerment,” said Marks. “And we have seen, certainly in the last two years, the voices of Jewish women and the experience of Israeli women on the 7th of October completely erased from the feminist landscape.”

Israel is fighting a war on multiple fronts, she said, acknowledging how vulnerable the diaspora community feels because of what is put out in the media, which filters onto the streets and makes it into government policy.

“I know that every day you hear the accusations: genocide, mass starvation, bombing of civilian infrastructure, like hospitals. And I can tell you that, as somebody who is living through the war and covering the war, the situation is not what you are being painted out to answer for.”

Marks was in Gaza a few weeks before the CHW brunch.

“I saw mountains – mountains and mountains – of humanitarian aid marked United Nations, UNICEF, World Food Program, and more. Things like medical kits, baby formula, flour, oil, pasta, hygiene kits, all languishing in the sun. Now, accompanying the few of us that went in, apart from our incredible soldiers, were two journalists from Australia’s ABC [network]…. The IDF said to us, we’re here to answer questions, but, guys, go off, find your stories; there was no interference. And these two journalists stood in front of a big mountain of aid marked United Nations and, in his piece to camera, the correspondent said, ‘This is the image that Israel wants you to see with regards to humanitarian aid.’ And you could hear the collective jaw drop from the rest of us, including colleagues from the Arab media, because we know what we saw. But my point is this: the bias and the narrative-building start in the field.

“I’ve had several instances where I’ve gone into the field with the foreign media,” she said. “And, despite what they have seen, they have turned it into an agenda that they can push to put the pressure on Israel, and to put the pressure on you as a community.”

Marks stressed that “we can hold our heads up high as a community and as a people. There is nothing dirty about the Z word.”

Zionist, she said, “just means a belief in the existence of the nation-state of the Jewish people in our ancient homeland.”

In the fight against antisemitism, everyone must play a role, said Marks, whether “sharing on your social media or writing letters to the press or getting involved in your community organizations. We are a people that have survived millennia of blood libels, persecution, and attempts to erase our history and our narrative.”

This can include something like wearing a Magen David, she said: “When you show your pride and you show your strength, you stand up to the hate, you stand up to the misinformation.”

She added, “The truth always comes, but we need your help to make that happen. When people accuse us of genocide, I can tell you, as somebody who has been working on the ground, the complete opposite is true.… Our army inoculates children against polio in the Gaza Strip, and drops leaflets, and moves civilians out of harm’s way.”

She recommended people follow Israel’s COGAT (Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories) website, where you can track the humanitarian aid going to the Gaza Strip and related news.

Referring to the murder of American activist Charlie Kirk, she said “it was symptomatic of something very, very frightening that is spreading around the world, and that is a move to disengage in discourse, a move to shut down conversation. And it is so important that we have these conversations. It is so important that we interrogate the truth and the facts.”

In the question-and-answer period, Marks suggested the lack of support from allies like Canada, France, the United Kingdom, Australia and others, is “a big campaign to deflect from problems that are domestic.”

“It’s very, very distressing for us in Israel to see our allies taking the side of Hamas, and also treating us like the naughty child of the world,” she said. “And part of that is, we believe, that many countries have forgotten or don’t know what it’s like to live under constant threat. We live under constant threat … wars within wars.”

Marks recalled what Israeli President Isaac Herzog told British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in a recent meeting: “Friends can sometimes disagree – but don’t reward terror.”

While in Vancouver, Marks also spoke at a CHW-Community Kollel event on Sept. 12.

photo - The fashion show part of CHW Vancouver Centre’s opening event featured local community members sporting clothes from Maison Labelle Boutique and After Five — The fashion show part of CHW Vancouver Centre’s opening event featured local community members sporting clothes from Maison Labelle Boutique and After Five. (photo from CHW)

The Sept. 14 speeches and brunch were followed by an intergenerational fashion show, with models sporting clothes from Maison Labelle Boutique and After Five. Walking down the runway were grandmothers, mothers, daughters, granddaughters and friends.

Harper speaks at gala

Dr. Robert Krell will be honoured at the Sept. 7 gala of the Canadian Shaare Zedek Hospital Foundation’s Western region. (photo from CSZHF, Western region)

Ilan Pilo had recently arrived in Canada from Israel in 2013 when he attended a Jewish National Fund gala in Toronto honouring Stephen Harper, Canada’s then-prime minister. Pilo thinks it may have been the largest kosher dinner ever on Canadian soil – but what struck him most was the rapturous enthusiasm among attendees for the country’s head of government.

“Harper was, and has been, one of the most genuine and strong allies and voices on behalf of Canadian Jewry and Israel,” said Pilo, now Western Canada executive for the Canadian Shaare Zedek Hospital Foundation.

Pilo will dine again with Harper, when the former prime minister is the keynote speaker at the first-ever gala of the Canadian Shaare Zedek Hospital Foundation’s Western region, which takes place Sept. 7.

“In these challenging times, we all deserve to get some hope and strength by having a strong ally like him speaking in front of us,” said Pilo. “We all were astonished and so proud to hear his great support, his genuine support for Israel, and just now we need it more than ever.”

The gala, which also marks the 50th anniversary of the Canadian Shaare Zedek Hospital Foundation, will see the Kurt and Edith Rothschild Humanitarian Award bestowed upon Dr. Robert Krell.

The founding president of the Vancouver Holocaust Education Centre, Krell is a child survivor of the Shoah and a renowned Vancouver-based psychiatrist, academic, author and educator, who has devoted his life to supporting survivors, educating on genocide and combating intolerance. In 2020, he was inducted into the Order of Canada.

The Kurt and Edith Rothschild Humanitarian Award is named in memory of the late Kurt Rothschild, a Canadian philanthropist, Jewish community leader and co-founder of the Canadian Shaare Zedek Hospital Foundation. Along with his wife Edith, Rothschild devoted his life to strengthening the Jewish people, the state of Israel and institutions like Shaare Zedek Medical Centre in Jerusalem; he also served as president of the World Mizrachi movement. The award recognizes exceptional individuals whose integrity, leadership and service have left a meaningful impact both locally and globally.

Krell told the Independent that he has felt a special connection with Shaare Zedek Medical Centre in Jerusalem since he read Dr. Gisella Perl’s 1948 memoir, I Was a Doctor in Auschwitz.

Imprisoned in the death camp, Perl, a gynecologist, was forced to work under the notorious Dr. Josef Mengele in the camp’s women’s infirmary. She performed countless life-saving – but excruciating – procedures without anesthesia, including secretly conducting abortions to save pregnant women from certain execution. Later, while serving in the maternity ward at Shaare Zedek Medical Centre, she would say a silent prayer before every delivery, “God, you owe me a life.”

“So, Shaare Zedek has been on my mind for a long time and, therefore, to be asked to be an honouree of that particular hospital talked to me,” Krell said.

The hospital’s maternity ward delivers 20,000 babies annually – by comparison, that’s three times as many as Vancouver’s BC Women’s Hospital & Health Centre. About 1,000 of those newborns are premature and the Sept. 7 gala is the culmination of a campaign to generate revenue to purchase five new $50,000 incubators for the Jerusalem hospital.

Krell is especially honoured, he said, to receive the award in the presence of Harper.

“It’s a great honour to be with someone who is truly admired for their statesmanship,” he said. “It’s been a long time since we’ve seen a statesman in Canada.”

Pilo noted that Krell’s selection for the award was unanimously supported by the award committee, which was chaired by Rabbi Andrew Rosenblatt, and included Dr. Arthur Dodek, Marie Doduck, Shannon Gorski-Averbach and Dr. Jonathon Leipsic, as well as Pilo.

“We were aiming to find the right person to be awarded for the first time ever with the Kurt and Edith Rothschild Humanitarian Award in the Western region,” Pilo said. “The committee agreed, without any hesitation, that our award recipient should be Rob Krell, since he is renowned for support of Canadian Jewry and Israel. His lifelong efforts at preserving the memory of the Holocaust and his dedication for children, which aligns with our incubator drive, [made it] so natural that he is the right person to receive this award.”

Pilo credited the foundation’s national executive director, Rafi Yablonsky, for securing the former prime minister’s presence at the celebration, which will be emceed by Dr. Marla Gordon. Dinner co-chairs are Yael Segal and Carol Segal. Community partners for the event are the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver, the Canadian Jewish Political Affairs Committee, Congregation Schara Tzedeck, the Jewish Medical Association of British Columbia and the Jewish Independent. Tickets are at hospitalwithaheart.ca.

Making space for kids to play

Simon Fraser Elementary School’s playground, which opened in 2024, was a beneficiary of financial support from the Dayhu Family Foundation. (photo from Dayhu Family Foundation)

For more than 30 years, the Dayhu Family Foundation, formerly known as the Ben and Esther Dayson Charitable Foundation, has helped create playgrounds both locally and in Israel.

“My mother and father always liked the idea of children playing,” said Shirley Barnett, chair of the Dayhu Family Foundation, about her late parents, Esther and Ben Dayson.

In Vancouver, finding the monetary support for playgrounds can be orchestrated by parent advisory councils (PACs) within the public schools. The PACs initiate the fundraising drives, sometimes years in advance, through a multitude of means, from bake sales and lemonade stands to other forms of financial outreach.

According to Barnett, the PAC at Simon Fraser Elementary School was an enterprising group that canvassed the neighbourhood in search of support for their playground project. Dayhu Group of Companies, a real estate investment, development and property management company with a large development near the school, was approached and quickly recognized that this was a worthy endeavour. Before the playground, put together by Habitat Systems, opened in 2024, Simon Fraser had to make do with an area ill-suited for children’s recreational activities.

“My son Jonathan said to me, ‘Didn’t we build two playgrounds in Israel and one at the JCC? Why don’t we just stick with playgrounds and fund a couple because children need to play?’ It is such a good fit for us,” Barnett explained.

photo - Shirley Barnett at Dayhu Family Foundation’s first venture into playgrounds – the Dayson Playground in Modi’in, Israel, which was built in 1993 — Shirley Barnett at Dayhu Family Foundation’s first venture into playgrounds – the Dayson Playground in Modi’in, Israel, which was built in 1993. *(photo from Dayhu Family Foundation)*

The foundation has a long history of providing financial support to cultural, educational and social causes both within and outside the Jewish community of Greater Vancouver. Its first venture into playgrounds started with the Dayson Playground, a Jewish National Fund project, which was built in Modi’in (outside of Jerusalem) in 1993.

The second playground was also in Israel. Launched in 2018, the Ben and Esther Dayson Outdoor Learning Centre at the Ilanot School in Jerusalem was designed for children with special needs, as the Ilanot School serves children with severe motor and cognitive impairment, including many with cerebral palsy. Its pupils come from many cultural backgrounds, including Jewish, Muslim and Christian.

“We have also been very involved with the JCC for many years, and so we helped the early childhood education playground, on my son’s initiative, in 2012, at the current JCC,” Barnett said of the Dayhu initiative at the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver.

A new project at Britannia Community Elementary School is a good fit for the foundation as well, said Barnett, who described the reactions from both Simon Fraser and Britannia as “phenomenal.”

“These are schools that really needed help. The parent committees at Simon Fraser and Britannia have worked so hard to bring about these playgrounds. They are in need and the parents can’t raise much money,” Barnett said.

“A playground can make a huge difference in getting kids outdoors and getting them active, rather than them just running around a gravel field. I think it is obvious that kids need to play. We trust their design, we trust their need and their rationale.”

With both elementary school playground projects, Dayhu operated swiftly after being approached, understanding that there is a process involved before work can commence. Dayhu is not involved in the creativity or development of these projects; rather, it looks at a site and how much money has been raised. When it sees that more funds cannot be raised, it steps in as the lead donor.

Cassandra Torok, a parent at Britannia, said that, after four years of advocating and fundraising for an expansion and upgrade to the school’s playground, the East Vancouver community felt stuck, unable to obtain the money needed.

“Meeting Jonathan and Shirley was this amazing tipping point for our school’s playground project,” Torok said. “Her family’s generosity and openness gave our community the support and agency needed to reach the fundraising goals that felt impossible before. Providing the necessary funds to meet students’ needs was a surprising gift that we are so grateful for.

“Without her, her family’s and Dayhu’s philanthropic commitment, we know that we would not be getting the playground needed at our school, the playground our children deserve to grow, develop and improve their well-being as a whole,” Torok added.

image - A rendering of the proposed playground enhancements at Britannia Community Elementary School, which will be built with financial assistance from the Dayhu Family Foundation — A rendering of the proposed playground enhancements at Britannia Community Elementary School, which will be built with financial assistance from the Dayhu Family Foundation. *(image from Dayhu Family Foundation)*

Britannia school expects to have shovels in the ground within the next few months. When it opens, the playground will also be accessible to the larger community after school hours, on weekends and during the summer months.

Dayhu’s efforts have led others to back the creation of playgrounds. At least one other family foundation saw what Dayhu had supported at the JCC and was motivated to help fund similar projects, said Barnett.

“It is a huge accomplishment to be an inspiration for someone else,” Barnett said. “We are not trying to promote our philanthropy. I would love it if someone read this article, and said, ‘You know, we have a few dollars and there is a neighbourhood school with a gravel field, maybe we could do something there.’”

Sam Margolis has written for the Globe and Mail, the National Post, UPI and MSNBC.

A night of impact, generosity

At the JFS Innovators Igniting Change event May 27, Arnold Silber, left, presented the Lighting the Way Award to his lifelong friend, Syd Belzberg. (photo by Rhonda Dent Photography)

The JFS Innovators Igniting Change event May 27, presented by Shay Keil, was a celebration of community, generosity and the drive to create lasting impact. The event raised more than $505,000 that will go directly toward providing food, counseling and emergency support to individuals and families in need. It will go a long way in ensuring that vulnerable members of the community have access to critical resources during times of hardship.

One of the most moving moments of the evening came with the premiere of a client video, sharing stories of resilience and hope. The video offered a reminder of the lives touched by Jewish Family Services Vancouver’s work and left few dry eyes in the room. It was a call to action, showing that, together, we can build a stronger, more caring community.

photo - Shay Keil, presenting sponsor of the JFS Innovators event, with JFS Vancouver chief executive officer Tanja Demajo — Shay Keil, presenting sponsor of the JFS Innovators event, with JFS Vancouver chief executive officer Tanja Demajo. *(photo by Rhonda Dent Photography)*

Another moving moment was when Arnold Silber presented the Lighting the Way Award to his lifelong friend, Syd Belzberg. It was a deeply personal tribute to a man whose quiet generosity and steadfast vision have helped shape a more compassionate community.

Silber reflected not only on Belzberg’s decades of dedication, but also on the enduring friendship between two people who share a deep belief in tikkun olam, repairing the world.

Stable Harvest Farm, a project close to Belzberg’s heart, stood out as a shining example of how one person’s passion can blossom into something that nourishes and uplifts so many. It was a reminder that behind every act of kindness is a person who chooses to care – and that choice can change lives.

As with any successful event, the Innovators Igniting Change evening wouldn’t have been possible without the support of its sponsors and community partners. Their contributions were integral.

– Courtesy of Jewish Family Services Vancouver

New tractor celebrated

On May 28, near Mbale, Uganda, the Abayudaya Jewish community celebrated the arrival of a tractor, gifted to them by Harmony Foundation of Canada. (photo from Elisha Higenyi & Tarphon Kamya / JRU)

On May 28, near Mbale, Uganda, the Abayudaya Jewish community celebrated a unique occasion – the arrival of a long-dreamt-of tractor.

For decades, the Abayudaya have lived as small and vibrant Jewish communities in a predominantly Christian and Muslim region; their faith rooted in a century-old embrace of Judaism. Life in this rural area is beautiful but challenging. Clean water is hard to find, health care is distant and most families, living on $2 a day, can’t afford to provide their children basic education. A tractor may seem unremarkable to many of us, but, for the Abayudaya and their neighbours, it is life-changing. With it, they can cultivate more land, increase yields, feed more families and send more children to school.

This gift of a tractor was made possible by the Harmony Foundation of Canada, which is supporting sustainable agricultural initiatives with the Abayudaya Jewish community in Uganda through Jewish Response Uganda. JRU is a nonprofit founded by members of the Abayudaya in 2017. The organization has worked to improve lives by offering training in sustainable agriculture, helping farmers grow high-value crops, and supporting initiatives in education, health care and women’s empowerment.

photo - With a tractor, the community can cultivate more land, increase yields, feed more families and send more children to school — With a tractor, the community can cultivate more land, increase yields, feed more families and send more children to school. *(photo from Elisha Higenyi & Tarphon Kamya / JRU)*

In a region where religious divisions often deepen hardship, JRU has chosen a path of inclusion. Today, Christians, Muslims and Jews work side by side in JRU programs, united by shared needs and a common hope for a better future. This inclusive approach fosters interfaith cooperation, mutual respect and a stronger, more united region.

For more information, watch the Harmony Foundation’s video The Abayudaya; Jews of Uganda on YouTube. You can email JRU at [email protected], or be in touch with Tarphon Kamya, project manager of JRU ([email protected]), or Elisha Higenyi, spiritual leader at JRU ([email protected]).

– Courtesy Harmony Foundation of Canada

Helping bring JWest to life

A sketch of the new Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver, by Acton Ostry Architects. (© Acton Ostry Architects)

The JWest capital campaign’s goal of raising $161 million is only possible with the generous spirit and foresight of community members who rally to this generationally important project. Daniella Givon and Bernard Pinsky’s gift is an example of bringing the future JWest campus closer to reality.

photo - Bernard Pinsky and Daniella Givon — Bernard Pinsky and Daniella Givon’s gift is an example of bringing the future JWest campus closer to reality. *(photo from Bernard Pinsky and Daniella Givon)*

Both joined the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver (JCC) immediately after settling in Vancouver in 1979. Givon, who grew up in Israel, found friendship and community by joining Israeli folk dancing and becoming involved with Canadian Hadassah-WIZO. Pinsky, a lawyer who grew up in Winnipeg, got to know the JCC by working out in its gym. He noticed how JCC activities and just being around the JCC brought community members together in meaningful ways that sparked and fostered increased community participation.

“I realized that the JCC is a critical connector and gateway to deeper involvement in the Jewish community,” he said.

Pinsky began his local volunteer work with the Canadian Jewish Congress in 1981 and, over the ensuing 44 years, served in leadership roles for many Jewish organizations, including the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver, the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs’ national board and Beth Israel Synagogue. Today, he is board chair and director of the Ronald S. Roadburg Foundation, one of the lead donors to JWest.

Givon served as Vancouver regional president for Canadian Hadassah-WIZO and took leadership roles in the Jewish Museum & Archives of British Columbia and the Cherie Smith JCC Jewish Book Festival.

Pinsky and Givon, children of Holocaust survivors, continue a legacy of community involvement in their respective families. Givon was inspired by her mother’s many years of leadership in the parent-teacher association of her Israeli school and her grandfather’s participation as a board chair of his moshav’s governing council. Pinsky recalled how his grandfather headed the Zionist Federation of Manitoba, among other leadership positions.

“It’s inconceivable to me to imagine our community without a JCC, and our building is tired,” Givon noted. “A tired, crowded building attracts a limited number of people.”

Pinsky agreed that the JCC is in need of replacement.

“Right now, things are squeezed into pre-set spaces that restrain increased participation,” he noted. “The new JWest will have more space for Jewish organizations, flex spaces for more programming and an expanded daycare. We’ll be able to offer more programs that attract young families, which is a crucial way to build for the future.

“And it’s not just the Jewish community that uses and will continue to use this important facility,” he said. “Former BC premier Christie Clark sent her son to the JCC daycare. I became friends with Terry Yung, who is a current MLA, and his wife, Sarah Kirby-Yung, a city councilor, because we met at the JCC. They’ve been very connected to and helpful for the Jewish community.”

With just $19 million left to raise to achieve the $161 million target, JWest is poised to break ground in early 2026.

JWest recently submitted its development permit application with a new JCC as pictured here. In line with the guiding principle of responsibly using community funds, the design maximizes efficiency, with an increased number of multi-purpose spaces. For example, the JCC auditorium and theatre have been combined and will feature a state-of-the-art, automated, retractable seating system. Operating as a campus, the JCC and King David High School will be more integrated, with greater cross-sharing of spaces.

Visit JWestnow.com to learn more and share the link to get others excited about the project. The newly updated site includes a detailed look at the project and construction timeline, fresh renderings of the JCC, a list of the donors to date, news articles and information on the project team.

– Courtesy Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver