Shabbat Message - November 5, 2021
This message has 651 words and will take a little more than 3 minutes to read.
The week started with a reminder of the bigger picture we are a part of.
Our board chair, Candace Kwinter, and I attended the meeting of the board of the Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA), where we discussed important topics like the ways people are giving, living, and connecting on a continental level. Seeing 170 people on the call, representing Federations in communities across the United States and Canada, was a powerful reminder of the communities and people who play a role in our collective success.
You make our collective success possible, and we were hard at work on your behalf this week.
We teamed up with our partners, Tanja Demajo of Jewish Family Services (JFS), Alice Sundberg of Tikva Housing, and Nico Slobinsky of the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs to meet with Paul Mochrie, Vancouver’s new city manager to introduce him to our community and our work. Our vice president, global and local engagement, Shelley Rivkin, provided an overview of the community, before we delved into areas such as the JCC site redevelopment project, and major initiatives around food security and affordable housing.
We also hosted Isobel Mackenzie, BC’s seniors’ advocate for a tour of JFS’ The Kitchen with Nico and Tanja, which followed a similar tour we hosted last week for Vancouver Police Department Chief Adam Palmer and Deputy Chief Howard Chow. It is important that the people who serve our community at large understand the role the Jewish community plays in addressing issues that affect everyone and concern us all.
Commemorating Kristallnacht
Our partner the Vancouver Holocaust Education Centre’s commemoration of Kristallnacht featured a keynote by author Judy Batalion about female resistance fighters in Hitler’s ghettos. I want to thank the survivors, their families, and everyone who participated and attended. The VHEC shared stories of other forms of resistance, including small and personal acts of defiance, based on museum artifacts in their collection. You can find them on Facebook.
Newcomers, get ready!
Over the past two years we have seen the number of newcomers to our community grow exponentially. Earlier this year, we and our partners launched BeyachadBC to help newcomers, and for this year’s BeyachadBC’s Welcome Tour, we are visiting Vancouver, the Tri-Cities and Langley. These visits are integral to supporting our growing community, whose expansion outside of Vancouver has grown during COVID. Register here to join us.
"You know the old saying: 'Two's company, five's a crowd'." – Groucho Marx as Otis B. Driftwood
Turning to a happy, even hilarious, note, the Chutzpah! Festival kicked off last night with a screening of the Marx Brothers classic, A Night at the Opera. Supporting arts and cultural events is part of what makes community life richer. Aside from the incredibly talented performers you’ll enjoy, festivals like Chutzpah! are a valuable inroad to community life for people who aren’t connected in other ways (as well as for those of us who are).
We’re going to Israel. Are you coming?
It’s time to plan ahead for success, and it takes almost nothing from you. Well, just one little step.
Planning for the community mission to Israel is underway, but in order to make it a success we need you to register. Registering simply tells us you’re interested. There’s no payment involved at this point. There’s no commitment. All we need to know is that you’re interested. And all that takes is for you to register. Just get your name on the list. While you're at it, sign up for our info night on Monday.
Why the rush? Because for a mission this big we need our ducks in a row early, and you have a part to play in that. When the time comes for international group travel—and it will come—we all need to be ready to seize the opportunity. This is our chance to experience Israel together, as a community, and it will be one of the most memorable and special journeys of our lives.
Shabbat shalom.
Ezra S. Shanken
Chief Executive Officer