Shabbat Message - July 30, 2021

 

This message has 625 words and will take a little more than 3 minutes to read.

 

We are heading into some of our busiest weeks of the summer, as we prepare to launch the 2021 Annual Campaign. Back in 2016 the Annual Campaign focused on community security, which led to the establishment of our Community Security Advisory Committee, chaired by Bernard Pinsky, and the hiring of our director of security, Daniel Heydenrych.

This week, Bernard and Daniel helped train dozens of Muslim community organizations.

Invited by the Vancouver Police Department, they were the only non-police presenters at the event, which is a testament to the credibility of our work on community security. Not only was this an opportunity to share important knowledge with another faith-based community, it strengthens our relationship with the local Muslim community. Kol hakavod!

The Honourable Bill Blair, Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, reviewed security upgrades at the JCC today.

The upgrades over the past number of years were supported by the federal government’s Security Infrastructure Program (SIP) grants and our Annual Campaign. Bernard and Daniel joined us, as did Alexis Doctor, the JCC’s membership director, Jason Marques, the JCC’s building manager, and Nico Slobinsky, senior director with CIJA. I want to thank our advocacy agent, the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs, for organizing this visit.

Together, we’re making an impact around the world, too. On Monday, our board approved allocations for Israel and Global Engagement programs, and these are two highlights:

Creating an Innovative & Entrepreneurial Ecosystem in Kiryat Shmona

In our partnership region of the Upper Galilee Panhandle, we’re working with the Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles and Tnuva–Israel's largest food manufacturer–to establish a Unistream Entrepreneurship Centre. The intensive three-year program leverages education, leadership, and entrepreneurship as platforms to cultivate leadership skills. Teens establish fully-functioning startups, which inspires an entrepreneurial mindset in underprivileged youth, and ultimately helps break the cycle of poverty in the region.
 
Cultivating Teens to Become Tomorrow’s Leaders in the Former Soviet Union

Engagement in the Jewish community is essential in making communal responsibility an inseparable part of a young person’s Jewish identity. That’s been harder during COVID, when in-person events, including JDC’s Active Jewish Teens (AJT) programs, were put on hold. Teens in the Former Soviet Union have excellent potential to engage in and give back to local Jewish communities. Yet, until recently, teens lacked their own space to become empowered to act upon this potential. AJT has partnered with BBYO and Genesis Philanthropy Group to help teens become the leaders on which their communities will rely for years to come.

We know how crucial that is, because we have exceptional volunteers serving throughout our organization.

This week, we welcomed three leaders in new positions at Federation and the Foundation.

We are delighted to announce that our board appointed Michelle Pollock, chair of our Israel and Global Engagement Committee, to the executive committee. Michelle is a member of CIJA’s Local Partnership Council and a past president of the JCC. She has a strong love of Israel and together with her husband Neil was honoured by JNF.

Our endowment program, the Jewish Community Foundation, welcomed two new governors: Karen James and Ted Koffman. Karen brings a wealth of experience from an incredible variety of roles. She is a past chair of the Federation board and serves on the Board of Governors of the Jewish Agency for Israel. Ted and his family have been active in the Jewish Community for many decades. He is a partner and head of the Business Law Group at McCarthy Tetrault, where he has worked for over 35 years.

With so much on the go this summer, the long weekend is a welcome break. But the heat warning is serious business. Our partner, Tikva Housing, has put out the call for portable air conditioners to keep their clients cool. If you have one to donate, please email them. And please be in touch with the vulnerable people in your lives, including seniors, to make sure they are OK. It’s a great way to do a pre-Shabbat mitzvah—or two!

Shabbat shalom and happy BC Day!

 

Ezra S. Shanken
Chief Executive Officer