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"The Basketball Game" is a graphic novel adaptation of the award-winning National Film Board of Canada animated short of the same name – intended for audiences aged 12 years and up. It's a poignant tale of the power of community as a means to rise above hatred and bigotry. In the end, as is recognized by the kids playing the basketball game, we're all in this together.

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Tag: Richard Fruchter

Try to make the world better

Try to make the world better

Jewish Family Services Innovators Lunch committee, left to right: Sherri Wise, Tamar Bakonyi, Candice Thal and Shannon Ezekiel. (photo from JFS)

On May 14, Jewish Family Services held its 15th annual Innovators Lunch at the Hyatt Regency downtown. The sold-out event was hosted by CBC broadcaster Gloria Macarenko and featured keynote speaker Lane Merrifield of CBC’s Dragons’ Den. Attended by 620 donors, partners, sponsors and volunteers, it raised an unprecedented $380,000 towards programs and services designed to improve quality of life for 2,000 Lower Mainland residents.

This year’s theme at JFS is “community.” At the luncheon, Richard Fruchter, the agency’s chief executive officer, spoke of JFS’s mission to provide life’s necessities: “food, shelter, accessibility and emotional stability.”

The audience was shown a video presentation created by Michael Millman, which revealed the wide-ranging benefits of JFS’s work. A single mother spoke candidly and with feeling about her struggles. “Before I reached out to JFS, I struggled with everything. We lived on almost nothing,” she said. JFS staff provided housing, food and food vouchers, as well as trauma counseling. JFS partner agency Tikva Housing provided the family with a townhouse in a new development. “It’s a beautiful place, right on the Fraser River … a lovely home for us to have for many years,” she said, adding, “JFS has given us a life. A way to be happy. It’s just been a huge blessing for us.”

A senior with disabilities spoke about how a spinal cord injury felled him at the age of 36. JFS has helped him remain independent with its Better at Home program. In the video, Cindy MacMillan, director of senior services at JFS, explained that a grant from the United Way made it possible for the senior to remain at home. Now he has a housekeeper come in to look after his home, and also enjoys companionship with weekly visits from a JFS volunteer. “It’s working out, I look forward to them!” he said.

photo - JFS board member Jody Dales spoke about her own family’s struggles
JFS board member Jody Dales spoke about her own family’s struggles. (photo from JFS)

“It’s helped him realize that people in his community care about him,” said MacMillan. “It’s really Jewish values in action, in the broader community. Those values of caring and healing happen every time we make a match with a volunteer.”

JFS board member Jody Dales gave a passionate speech about her own family’s struggles. Dales saw her grandmother turn away help when she was struggling with poverty. Having survived the Holocaust, her grandmother still felt that others needed the help more than she did, Dales explained. As a result, Dales said she applauds anyone who comes forward to seek support. Rather than being a sign of weakness, she said, “Only the courageous are able to say, ‘Help me.’” She acknowledged that people tend to experience “a sense of shame in asking for help. But nothing is certain. It could be any of us at any time.”

Dales also explained how big a difference can be made by even a small donation and told the audience, “Let your empathy guide your decisions.”

Merrifield, co-creator of Club Penguin, an online community for kids, spoke about building community in the business world. Designed to be a safe, collaborative environment for play and learning, Club Penguin is founded on an ethos of mutual reliance and philanthropy. Eventually sold to Disney for $350 million, Disney recruited Merrifield to lead the project, ensuring that Club Penguin maintained the integrity of its original goal, “inspiring change in the world.”

Merrifield urged people to work towards social entrepreneurship, where human concerns guide business decisions. Rather than focusing on capital investment, he advised the audience to “invest in people because that’s what keeps us healthy. Revenue is not what you chase for its own sake,” he said. “It is the by-product of creating a great product with a great team.”

photo - Keynote speaker Lane Merrifield, left, and JFS chief executive officer Richard Fruchter
Keynote speaker Lane Merrifield, left, and JFS chief executive officer Richard Fruchter. (photo from JFS)

Right from the beginning, the business plan for Club Penguin was based on philanthropy. A portion of subscriptions went to families that live on less than $51 per day, he said. But “there was no fanfare,” said Merrifield. “We didn’t want this to look like a gimmick.” In the first year, the company gave away hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Merrifield spoke of the need to galvanize the community of kids, teaching them to invest in their community with a “coins for change” program. This virtual fundraiser even allowed children to “ring bells” to attract the attention of other subscribers. Over one billion digital coins were donated annually, for a range of humanitarian causes. Self-organizing kids formed virtual marches, becoming activists in their own right; held candlelit vigils and themed parties.

Merrifield brings the same spirit of social responsibility to his work on Dragons’ Den. He and his fellow panelists (“dragons”) hear pitches by entrepreneurs who are looking for investment and choose which ones to support. Merrifield said he looks for companies that “use recycled materials, hire disabled applicants, plant trees, and make an effort to reduce waste in their packaging and lower their fuel costs.” So far, he has not been disappointed. “Most companies have pretty good answers and that gives me hope,” he said.

On the subject of giving back, Merrifield encouraged people to consider donations – such as those to JFS – not as losses to oneself, but as “investments in the future, to individuals who continue to pay it forward.”

He also asked the audience to engage everyone they could to further the cause of fearless generosity. “Use your collective strength and influence to create change for good,” he said.

He advised, “Pool your talents and leave this world far better than it was when we came into it.”

Shula Klinger is an author and journalist living in North Vancouver. Find out more at shulaklinger.com.

Format ImagePosted on June 21, 2019June 20, 2019Author Shula KlingerCategories LocalTags CBC, fundraising, Innovators Lunch, Jewish Family Services, JFS, Jody Dales, Lane Merrifield, philanthropy, Richard Fruchter, tikkun olam
Helping more families

Helping more families

On Feb. 20, students at Vancouver Hebrew Academy packaged more than 200 mishloach manot bags full of non-perishable food items donated by the Marine Drive and Grandview Superstore locations. (photo from VHA)

The atmosphere at the Jewish Food Bank on Feb. 22 at the Peretz Centre for Secular Jewish Culture was almost festive. Adults chatted, kids played, as people made their way through the various lines. Vancouver Hebrew Academy students had already come and gone – having delivered more than 200 mishloach manot packages in anticipation of Purim – and Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada Jody Wilson-Raybould had stopped in to visit.

“We were thrilled to be able to distribute the Purim packages through the food bank,” Rabbi Don Pacht, VHA head of school, told the Independent. “It was the idea of Hodie Kahn and Rachael Lewinski, two die-hard VHA enthusiasts … Hodie is a past VHA parent and board member, Rachael is a current VHA parent (and a VHA alum) and board member. They have been largely responsible for building the program to where it is today. They saw this as a great way to bring the lesson of Purim into living colour. So much of the Purim theme revolves around helping others and bringing community together to celebrate – think mitzvot of sending food to neighbours and charitable gifts to those in need. What better way to celebrate as a community than to bring the joy of Purim to more and more families?”

photo - Several VHA students and teachers delivered the mishloach manot bags to the Jewish Food Bank on Feb. 22
Several VHA students and teachers delivered the mishloach manot bags to the Jewish Food Bank on Feb. 22. (photo from VHA)

“It’s a powerful symbol of love and friendship among our community,” said Richard Fruchter, Jewish Family Services chief executive officer, about the mishloach manot project in the agency’s February e-newsletter. He also noted that, during Wilson-Raybould’s visit, the minister spoke “with JFS about food security, housing and mental health services. She connected with the dozens of volunteers and hundreds of clients who benefit from this twice-a-month service.”

All of the items provided in the 200-plus mishloach manot gift bags were donated by two Real Canadian Superstore locations: Marine Drive and Grandview. “And they have [donated] for several years now,” said Pacht, stressing his gratitude.

In years past, the initiative has included other Jewish schools – Vancouver Talmud Torah, Richmond Jewish Day School, King David High School, Pacific Torah Institute and Shalhevet Girls High School – and “was an avenue to raise funds for all of the Jewish day schools,” said Pacht, as people donated to have Purim packages sent to friends, family and colleagues. Run under the umbrella of VHA, it was the “Vancouver Jewish Day Schools Purim Project,” he added.

“In past years, we have hosted the event at KDHS and had students from all the schools participate in various capacities,” explained the rabbi. “VTT, VHA and RJDS students packing, KDHS students setting up and cleaning up, PTI and Shalhevet students picking up items from Superstore, etc. We also have had parents from all of the schools volunteer their time to assist the packing process and deliver the packages on Purim day.

“This year, we took a step back and did not run the program as a fundraiser. With only 200 packages being prepared, that were then distributed through the Jewish Food Bank, we managed the entire process in-house.”

VHA also sent out “a mailing containing a Purim kit, with some information about the holiday and a few practical goodies as well,” said Pacht.

“What started in Ruth Huberman’s living room – at the time she was a VHA parent and board member (she now has several grandchildren attending VHA) – preparing about 100 packages, mushroomed into a program that reached the farthest corners of our community. We have over 1,200 families we connect with each year!” he said. “After 10 years of doing the same thing, we found it difficult to maintain the same momentum and enthusiasm. We are looking at various alternative models for next year. Something to refresh the program and keep the community engaged.”

Format ImagePosted on March 23, 2018June 7, 2021Author Cynthia RamsayCategories Celebrating the HolidaysTags Don Pacht, Jewish Family Services, Jewish Food Bank, Richard Fruchter, Vancouver Hebrew Academy, VHA

JFSA appoints Richard Fruchter

Jewish Family Service Agency has appointed Richard Fruchter as senior management consultant. He began working in this position on Jan. 7, and will be leading JFSA while the executive director search committee continues its efforts in identifying candidates and hiring of the long-term ED.

photo - Richard Fruchter
Richard Fruchter (photo from Jewish Family Service Agency)

“We are pleased to welcome Richard, who not only brings with him tremendous experience and a proven track record in not-for-profit organizations in Jewish communities in North America, but also has a thorough knowledge of our Jewish community, having served as the senior management consultant of the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver from 2013-2014,” said board chair Joel Steinberg.

“Richard will support the agency with his extensive knowledge in areas of finance, fundraising, communications, board governance and human resources – initiatives that were identified in our strategic plan. Prior to his tenure in Vancouver, he was the president and CEO of the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle and, over the last 30 years, he has been in top executive positions with federations, Talmud Torah [schools] and other general community organizations in Seattle, Wash., Minneapolis, Minn., and Tucson, Ariz.”

“It’s an exciting time at the JFSA as we build for the future,” said Fruchter. “I will be playing a strategic and advisory role with the board and staff to help JFSA continue to transform the lives of individuals and families, through quality services and innovative programming. The last few weeks, I’ve had the opportunity to visit some of our programs, see their impact, and learn more about how we respond to evolving community needs. I found our staff to be dedicated and committed professionals – passionately working day in and day out to care for their clients. Our board and volunteers are talented and willingly share their wisdom and resources to provide for our community’s welfare. During this transition, I look forward to having renewed and fresh conversations with our community members, leaders and donors about how JFSA can even more effectively service our community.”

Posted on February 27, 2015February 26, 2015Author Jewish Family Service AgencyCategories LocalTags Jewish Family Service Agency, JFSA, Joel Steinberg, Richard Fruchter
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