Youth and Family News

BY MAYA LOTAN, DIRECTOR OF YOUTH & YOUNG FAMILY ENGAGEMENT

About a year and a half ago, I came with my family to Halifax, Nova Scotia. Many of my friends and family do not know where Nova Scotia is. But I always knew. As a teenager, I grew up on the Anne of Green Gables book series so I knew where Halifax was and even told my partner he would have to take me on a visit to Prince Edward Island (and believe it or not—Pandemic and all, he took me when there was an Atlantic bubble last summer).

My name is Maya and I have been the Director of Youth & Young Family Engagement for the AJC since January of 2021. I am a tour guide by training and have always been involved with Jewish education. I have a teaching certificate, a Master’s degree in Israel studies specializing in modern history, and a tour guide license from the Israeli Ministry of Tourism.

I have been to Jewish summer camps across the U.S and have worked with ‘semester in Israel’ programs, Israel summer programs, birthright tours and many more programs that build and strengthen the connection between Jewish communities around the world and Israel.

Since I started my role at the AJC, I have discovered a diverse Jewish community in Atlantic Canada. I have been in touch with Jewish families who came from Russia, Israel and across Canada as well as families who grew up here in Atlantic Canada. It is a slow process, but slowly I am getting to know our Jewish community and how I can better serve you as the AJC’s Director of Youth & Young Family Engagement.

Already, since January, we have had a slew of virtual programs including “Welcoming Shabbat b’Zoom” and online activities for Passover to allow families from across the Atlantic region to engage with one another (and, indeed, I immediately found myself sending activity packages to New Brunswick, PEI and Newfoundland). In Halifax, we even held an in-person outdoor Purim “Car-nival” (and, in the process, I’m still discovering how unreliable the weather is here in Atlantic Canada). Shavuot is around the corner and the annual holiday calendar cycle will begin again in early September with Rosh HaShanah. Until then, we plan to have more virtual and in-person activities around Jewish themes, PJ library books, shabbat, and more. And of course, we will continue to welcome the new babies who join the Atlantic Jewish community (and their parents) with our new “Shalom Baby” program that we recently launched.

I am very excited about working with the families in our community and creating a sense of the annual Jewish calendar that includes access to content and activities that connect us as Jews. And I have big dreams of expanding our activities to include more encounters around books, hobbies and in fact—anything that connects us as people. As you read through the pages of this magazine, I invite you to be in touch, to offer ideas, and to volunteer. So much of my work depends on you, your desires, and your requests. Sometimes a simple conversation starts rolling the ball for our next project and the next step in building our community. Just so you know, my door (or phone or Zoom account) is always open. Even if it takes time, it is possible. We’ll make it happen!