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Prisoner exchange was a difficult choice for Israel’s government says Choices speaker

By Diane Koven Israel’s release of more than 1,000 prisoners in exchange for kidnapped soldier Gilad Shalit was a prime example of a very difficult and painful choice, said Miri Eisin, a retired Israel Defense Forces (IDF) colonel who worked in Israeli intelligence for two decades.

Eisin was the keynote speaker, October 25, at the Choices event presented by the Jewish Federation of Ottawa’s Women’s Campaign at Agudath Israel Congregation. The sold-out event marked the fifth anniversary of the special annual event.

Eisin, also a former IDF and government spokesperson, is a passionate, engaging speaker. As someone who has served in the army, whose husband is a career soldier, and who is the mother of

children who will all serve in the IDF, Eisin’s perspective on the prisoner exchange was very different from commentaries that have appeared in the international media.

“Do you realize that Israel is the only country in the world ... that will negotiate with terrorists about a soldier?”

Eisin asked the audience.

“We do it for a variety of reasons, but, at the end of the day, it is something the government has decided to do,” she said.

“We make lots of choices in life, and they are not always rational choices ... the government made a decision that came from the heart. The decision that was made was aimed at me and at you,” she said.

It was a decision to reassure Israel’s mothers that their sons are important

and valued and that when they send their sons to the army, they can be certain that the country is behind them no matter what.

“I think that the Jews get it. I think it is a Jewish value ... the sense that if you save one life, you have saved the world.

This is about a whole cultural value system that is one of our own choices,” said Eisin. “The rest of the world does not get it,” she added, saying the media views the situation in black and white, merely as a numbers game.

“Israel has many difficult choices to make, difficult decisions which enable it to be both a Jewish state and a democracy, and it is always a fine balance,” said Eisin.

It is rare for an event to be eagerly awaited from year to year, to be bigger (Continued on page 2)

Keynote speaker Miri Eisin, a retired Israeli intelligence officer, at the Women’s Campaign Choices event, October 25.

(Photo: Peter Weiser)

Dragon Boat Israel expects big first year

By Michael Regenstreif Just six months from now, Israel will experience it’s first-ever dragon boat festival – Dragon Boat Israel – May 17 and 18, on the Sea of Galilee (Lake Kinneret). All signs are pointing to a hugely successful event. Most available spots for dragon boat teams – 20 from Israel and 20 from other countries, most particularly Canada – are already filled.

The remaining spots are expected to sell out much sooner than later.

And it all started right here in Ottawa when a group of women associated with the Lion of Judah philanthropy program – Lions are women who each donate a minimum of $5,000 per year to the An-

nual Campaign of the Jewish Federation of Ottawa – decided that it would be fun to enter a team in the 2009 Ottawa Dragon Boat Festival.

The Ottawa Dragon Boat Festival, founded in 1993, has grown annually and is now one of the National Capital Region’s most popular annual events.

The Lions of Judah formed a dragon boat team – dubbed “The Sea Lions” – which quickly established itself as a spirited team of both dragon boaters and fundraisers on behalf the charities supported by the Ottawa Dragon Boat Festival. They’ve now taken part in three Ottawa Dragon Boat Festivals.

(Continued on page 2 )

Dragon Boat Israel Chair Debbie Halton-Weiss (front row, centre) with other members of the Sea Lions at the 2010 Ottawa Dragon Boat Festival.

(Photo courtesy of Marcia Cantor)

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Page 2 – Ottawa Jewish Bulletin – November 14, 2011

Choices event is bigger and better every year (Continued from page 1)

and better year after year, to attract women from every segment of the community as well as new and willing sponsors – and to end 15 minutes before the estimated closing time. Choices is all that, and more.

“We have all chosen to be here, each for a different reason. Because a friend asked you to join her table, because you wanted to show your solidarity with other women in our community, because this is an easy and enjoyable way to support the work of our Jewish Federation of Ottawa and, in turn, over 20 organizations in our community in need of our support, because you heard there are exciting give-away prizes, be-

cause you wanted to get away for an evening – whatever the reason, we all made the same choice,” said Choices Chair Sandra Zagon in her welcome to the 300 women (and a scant few men) in attendance.

Women’s Campaign Chair Susan VinerVered stayed with the ‘choices’ theme in her remarks.

“We all have a choice: to watch, to spectate, to sit on the sidelines, or to become involved, to help, to assist,” she said, thanking everyone for choosing to attend the event, and for choosing to support the Annual Campaign of the Jewish Federation of Ottawa.

Keynote speaker Miri Eisin (centre) with Women’s Campaign Chair Susan Viner-Vered (left) and event Chair Sandra Zagon at the Choices event, October 25.

(Photo: Peter Waiser)

Ottawa to be well represented at Dragon Boat Israel (Continued from page 1)

A 22-person dragon boat team includes 20 paddlers seated in 10 rows of two in the long, shallow, canoe-like boat, with a steersperson in the stern, and a drummer in the bow who sets the rhythm and pace for the paddlers.

Buoyed by their success in the Ottawa festival, members of the Sea Lions began to think ambitiously about bringing a dragon boat festival to Israel.

From the beginning, Federation Chair Debbie Halton-Weiss has been one of the

prime movers behind getting the Sea Lions team going in Ottawa and in establishing Dragon Boat Israel. She is the enthusiastic chair of Dragon Boat Israel.

As Halton-Weiss explained, the grand vision of bringing dragon boating to Israel encompasses building community, supporting selected Israeli charities, fostering cultural awareness and promoting tourism in Northern Israel.

“We wanted to bring people to Israel in a new and different way,” Halton-Weiss told

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the Bulletin. “We saw other sporting-fun-adventure activities that were raising money and thought dragon boating would be a new way of doing it.

“It is also to bring people to the North and work with our P2Gether community, and it is an opportunity for people to come to Israel as part of a team,” she said.

Halton-Weiss said the dragon boat festival was also a way for Canada’s Jewish federations to “think outside the box” in their efforts to engage new people and groups and encourage them to visit Israel.

Among the new groups who will be visiting Israel for the first time thanks to Dragon Boat Israel are breast cancer survivors – most of whom are not Jewish. Dragon boating, as a participatory sport, has been embraced enthusiastically by the breast cancer community in recent years and teams travel the world participating in dragon boat festivals.

“There are five teams of breast cancer survivors coming from Canada alone, with much interest from further beyond, including Israel,” said Halton-Weiss.

Israelis have quickly embraced the idea of dragon boating.

“Some Israeli teams have already regis-

tered and more are coming on board all the time,” said Halton-Weiss, who expects a full complement of 20 teams from Israel to participate.

Nowhere in North America is dragon boating more popular than in Ottawa, and four local teams have already registered for Dragon Boat Israel. Halton-Weiss expects at least one more Ottawa team to jump in before the 20 international spots sell out.

Dragon Boat Israel has chosen two organizations doing exciting work with disadvantaged youth in Israel to benefit from the fundraising component of the event. Youth Futures provides mentoring services to about 7,000 disadvantaged youth in 32 localities, mostly in the Negev and Galilee; while Net@ trains disadvantaged high school students in high-tech and leadership, opening opportunities for them in elite Israel Defense Forces units and in Israel’s high-tech industries.

Visit dragonboatisrael.com for more information on Dragon Boat Israel.

The Jewish Federation of Ottawa is organizing an extended tour of adventure activities, May 10-20, which includes attendance at the Dragon Boat Israel festival. Visit jewishottawa.com for more information.

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Photo: Peter Waiser

The first shipment of dragon boats arrives at the Sea of Galilee at the end of October.

November 14, 2011 – Ottawa Jewish Bulletin – Page 3

Page 4 – Ottawa Jewish Bulletin – November 14, 2011

Region’s first cancer survivorship centre opens

By Benita Baker Count yourself lucky if you or a loved one has never been diagnosed with cancer.

The statistics are alarming: one in two of us will get cancer sometime in our lives.

A diagnosis of cancer can leave a patient overwhelmed, grasping for answers, not understanding the information, uncertain about the decisions to be made, feeling frightened and out of control.

While medical resources are available to treat the disease, support services dealing with the emotional, physical, practical, social and psychological impact of cancer have been limited.

With the November 3 opening of the Maplesoft Centre, Eastern Ontario’s

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first cancer survivorship centre, that is changing. The facility, located on the grounds of the Richard and Annette Bloch Cancer Survivors Park at the corner of Alta Vista and Riverside Drive, will address the well-being of the whole patient. It will provide innovative programs and workshops complementing medical treatment and tailored to the individual needs of those living with cancer.

Through programs such as restorative yoga, art and music therapy, nutrition consultation, and ‘look good, feel better’ workshops aimed at helping women manage the appearance-related effects of cancer, patients and family members will have a variety of unique mechanisms for coping with the disease and its effects.

The programs will be offered free of charge and without medical referral. Of course, this kind of facility would not be possible without generous community support. The $2 million fundraising campaign to sup-

The Maplesoft Centre, Eastern Ontario’s first cancer survivorship centre, opened November 3.

port the centre’s programming, spearheaded by the Survivorship Taskforce, is 75 per cent complete.

Campaign Co-chair Steve Baker chose to get involved because he was upset about the void in the cancer care process. “I recognized how frustrating and isolating it is to be diagnosed with cancer and have a million questions and not be able to get answers,� said Baker. “The oncologists only have so much time and

can do so much. The centre is the place to go for answers.�

Other members of Ottawa’s Jewish community who have taken on significant roles on the Survivorship Task Force include Kevin Barwin, Garry Heidinger, Chuck Merovitz, Jason Shinder and Sharon Steinberg. “When I first heard about the survivorship centre I knew I had to become a part of this fantastic facility,� said Steinberg. “Not only was I anxious to be able to benefit as a cancer survivor, but I also became part of the task force in order to do my part to give back. I want to do everything I can to make sure others will continue to benefit for years to come.�

Chuck Merovitz was a guiding force in establishing the Richard and Annette Bloch Cancer Survivors

Park, and has continued to be actively involved with the Ottawa Regional Cancer Foundation (ORCF). “My mother died of cancer when she was only 56,� said Merovitz. “I always thereafter equated cancer with death. Bonnie and I were vacationing in Palm Springs when I saw the sign for the Richard and Annette Bloch Cancer Survivors Park. As I never thought of cancer being juxtaposed with survivor, I was intrigued. “We stopped to visit the park and I was very impressed with the messages of hope and inspiration that were conveyed. I immediately told Bonnie that I would work to establish a survivors park in Ottawa. In the course of creating the park, I met [ORCF President and CEO] Linda Eagen. She was so pleased about the park that I

offered to let the ORCF take it over. They did, and together we finished the job of building the park. Since then I have been a fundraiser for ORCF.�

The ORCF’s Courage Campaign Cabinet, which is committed to raising $50 million for a variety of local cancer projects, is co-chaired by Ottawa lawyer Fred Seller.

The dollars raised by the Courage Campaign enabled the construction of the Maplesoft Centre building and have also contributed to the Irving Greenberg Family Cancer Centre at the Queensway Carleton Hospital and the Ottawa Hospital Cancer Centre. Serving with Seller on the campaign cabinet are Rabbi Reuven Bulka and Jeff Polowin.

The ORCF, which is dedicated to increasing cancer survivorship in Eastern Ontario, is guided by a 15-member board of directors including Marcia Cantor, Robert Gould, Gregory Sanders and Mark Thaw. “We need to raise another $600,000,� said Baker. “Knowing how vital this centre is to our community, I am confident that we will get the support needed to reach our goal.�

For further information, or to make a donation to the Maplesoft Centre, contact the Ottawa Regional Cancer Foundation at 613-247-3527 or visit ottawacancer.ca.

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November 14, 2011 – Ottawa Jewish Bulletin – Page 5

Kosice: A once thriving Jewish community

By Gloria Schwartz This past summer, my husband, Allan Wolfsohn, and I travelled to Kosice, Slovakia, the birthplace of my father, Arthur Schwartz.

Kosice had a thriving community of 12,000 Jews until the Holocaust. My father was one of the few hundred who survived.

We began by visiting the Jewish Community Centre and discovered our tour guide, Angela, herself a survivor, looks after the mikveh, the burial preparations, the one kosher kitchen, and calls the men to shul for minyan.

Angela walked us to the Old Synagogue. Built in the late 1800s, it has been abandoned for decades. When the Soviets liberated Kosice in 1945, they used this shul as a stable. Under communism, it was used as a book repository.

Recently, a major restoration has begun and the shul will reopen as a museum of eastern Slovak Jewry in 2013. Among the ruins, I found boxes of discarded prayer books, some dating back to the 1860s. These books, confiscated by the Nazis from Jewish households, were destined for burial. My grandfather must have davened with some of these books, so I decided to alter destiny and rescue as many of these treasures as I could fit into my knapsack.

The next shul we visited was the New Old Synagogue built in 1927. My father’s bar mitzvah took place here in 1936. It was restored in the 1990s to its former glory. Allan and I said Kaddish for my grandparents who were killed at Auschwitz along with my eight-year-old Uncle Robert and numerous other relatives.

Before we left the shul, Angela opened several hidden compartments, meant for book placement, on the wooden high back chairs next to the ark.

She pointed inside and I could see some hand writing. She couldn’t speak much English, but someone else would later translate and explain that this shul was used as a ghetto in 1944. A Jew had written, “We are here. We don’t know what will happen to us.” My heart ached.

Next door, we saw a small prayer room that is currently used for Shabbat services. While there are only a handful of observant Jews left in Kosice, the New Old Synagogue fills up on High Holidays.

I asked to see the mikveh and Angela took us down an old stone flight of stairs into darkness. The mikveh was built in the mid-1800s when Jews were first permitted to live in Kosice. My grandmother and her mother had

used this mikveh. My father had also come here to bathe; it had been open to men on certain days because many homes didn’t have bathtubs.

The mikveh was completely decayed, but I could tell that the painted tiles had once been lovely. We also saw the newer mikveh that is now used on rare occasions when an Orthodox woman comes to Kosice.

After the tour, we walked to the train station. In 1944, the Jews of Kosice were marched out of the city and were forced to live in a brick factory ghetto. Train tracks conveniently led from the brick factory to the station.

My father, then 21, a worker in a forced labour camp, had to work at the station for three weeks as the Jews were deported from the brick factory via Kosice to Auschwitz. He saw the cattle cars and inhumane conditions, but didn’t know where the Jews, including his family, were going.

Miraculously, his two teenaged sisters survived Auschwitz and he reunited with them after liberation.

Years ago, the original station was demolished and replaced by a modern one. I stood on the platform and watched trains come and go.

I could almost see the ghosts of Kosice.

We then went to the for-

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Allan Wolfsohn and Gloria Schwartz in the New Old Synagogue, built in 1927, in Kosice, Slovakia.

mer Neolog (Reform) Synagogue. It is now used as a concert hall and the Star of David that was on its dome roof now sits in the Jewish cemetery as a Holocaust memorial.

When we came home, Allan and I told my now 88year-old father what we’d seen.

I wonder how much longer Jewish life will continue in Kosice. Who will run the kosher kitchen, the mikveh, the shuls and the burial society when Angela is gone?

The message written in the synagogue in 1944 is as meaningful today as it was then: “We are here. We don’t know what will happen to us.”

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Page 6 – Ottawa Jewish Bulletin – November 14, 2011

Helping our children and our community grow and thrive I am blessed to have three accomplished children – aged 19, 24 and 28 – and one amazing son-in-law, all connected Jewishly, each in their own unique way. I can take some credit for their Jewish journey, but I also believe they were given many opportunities through our community that they took advantage of, and are even spreading elsewhere.

As youngsters, they attended Temple Israel Religious School, went on to become teaching assistants and participated in youth groups, camps and various travel-to-Israel programs. My eldest, Jessica, went to New York City for a year after her undergrad to participate in Avodah, a Tikkun Olam program, where she met Aaron, now her husband, and with whom she moved back to Ottawa.

Aaron was on the steering committee for openOttawa, the young adult symposium held last May, and Jess was a member of Young Women’s Leadership Council. They had started to develop a strong core of Jewish friends before careers dictated their lives, and they moved to Toronto over the summer. Tearful over our loss, but proud knowing they have gone on to involve themselves in the UJA Federation of Greater Toronto, the Annex Shul and are working to recruit a Toronto team to participate in Dragon Boat Israel in May.

Federation Report Debbie Halton-Weiss Chair Josh, my middle child, attends medical school in Winnipeg and was introduced to a medical school exchange to Israel that was started in Ottawa by P2Gether Chair Dr. Lisa Rosenkrantz. Knowing of its success and value, he took the lead in introducing this initiative to his classmates, who will participate in a similar experience in Israel next June.

Lauren, the youngest, declared, somewhat out of character, that she would attend the March of the Living in 2010. We were surprised by her confidence, as she knew none of the other participants, who all knew each other. In the end, she had a life-altering experience, marching arm-in-arm with David Shentow, a Holocaust survivor from Ottawa. She went on to work at Winnipeg’s B’nai Brith Camp last summer to spend time with new friends she had made from the March.

I speak of my children, not to show off their achievements – of which, of course, I

am proud – but as examples of the emerging generation, made up of many individuals who are interested in becoming engaged and further involved in the Jewish community. The openOttawa participants spoke clearly of their commitment, and generated a number of innovative ideas, which the Federation is not just exploring, but acting upon: • Approximately 20 young adults are now sitting on our Federation boards and members’ committees. When a personal request was made, the response was 100% positive; • Director of Initiatives for the Emerging Generation Samantha Banks has been hired to consolidate and move forward on programming targeted at the young adult population; • jnet, a grassroots initiative is working closely with Federation to create and implement jnetConnect, Ottawa’s network for young adults. The idea is for young adults to be put in touch with a local ambassador who will connect them to activities and resources with a given location. Forty ambassadors are currently being recruited.

• A series of informal Shabbat dinners to be held throughout the city, where young adults can gather in small groups, will be started in the very near future; • Micro-grants, a tool that leverages

small amounts of money to create a larger impact in supporting grassroots young adult initiatives, has already begun; • The Federation, in partnership with the Ottawa Jewish Community Foundation, is looking at ways to revitalize our Annual Campaign and our entire fundraising efforts. A committee has been struck that will involve participation from the emerging generation to ensure we are working together in ways that are attractive and bring fresh ideas to the community. Stay tuned for lots more on this subject in future issues of the Bulletin.

By the time you read this, I will have just returned from the Jewish Federations of North America General Assembly in Denver, which I will be attending with Federation President and CEO Mitchell Bellman who was asked to make a presentation on openOttawa. Then I’ll be heading to Israel to welcome six new dragon boats that were shipped from China to Israel for the Dragon Boat Israel Festival in May 2012.

The Dragon Boat Israel Festival and openOttawa are two examples of Ottawa taking the lead and meeting with success. As with our children, we, as a community, have so much to be proud of – and have considerably more to do to ensure that our children, and our community, continue to grow and to thrive.

Opportunities to help others abound Story has it that a rebbe came to a town disguised as a poor person. The shamash asked a wealthy community member if the pauper could eat at his home. The wealthy man refused, explaining the pauper was too simple to dine at his table.

The rebbe had his meal at the home of a less-distinguished community member who was happy to share his meagre rations with the impoverished guest.

Several weeks later, the rebbe returned, this time with his full entourage. In a show of respect, all the townspeople came to greet the stately carriage drawn by several horses.

The wealthy man asked the rebbe to allow him the privilege of being his host. The rebbe accepted the offer and thanked the man graciously.

As soon as he rushed home to prepare for his guest, the rebbe said to his wagon driver, “Take the horses and deliver them to the rich man’s house. We are going to eat with the family that hosted me several weeks ago.”

The next morning in shul, the wealthy man came over to the rebbe, obviously perturbed and insulted.

“You accepted my offer to stay at my home. But then you went off with someone else and sent me your horses,” he protested.

“When I was here a few weeks ago,” the rebbe explained, “you were offered an opportunity to host me, and you declined.

When I came to town this time, you rushed to invite me to your home. The only differ-

From the pulpit Rabbi Ari Galandauer Young Israel ence between this visit and the last visit is that last time I came alone, and this time I came with my horses. Apparently, you had no interest in hosting me, you were interested in hosting my horses. So I sent you my horses.”

Parshat Vayeira opens with Avraham sitting outside his tent, disappointed he cannot cater to any guests. Finally, God takes mercy on him. The verse states, “He [Avraham] lifted his eyes, and he saw: and behold three men were standing upon him. And he saw and he ran toward them from the opening of the tent, and he bowed toward the ground.”

There is repetitious usage in this verse that seems absolutely redundant. The word: vayar (he saw) appears twice. What does the second appearance of this word add?

Rabbi Meir Bergman explains that a kind and open heart is not the key to being a baal chessed, someone who performs acts of kindness. One must also focus on perceiving people’s needs. There are many times when we would be willing to do a favour, but opportunities pass because we don’t notice that

someone is in need of our help.

The Torah teaches us the first step toward being a baal chessed, in the true spirit of our forefather Avraham, is vayar – we have to have our eyes open. Indeed, when the Talmud wants to describe someone as the opposite of a baal chessed, it says, “Ozem einav – one who shuts his eyes from charity,” because charity does not begin with one’s wallet, but with one’s eyes.

A Jew once came to the rabbi of Brisk

before Pesach inquiring whether it was permissible to use milk for the four cups of wine. The rabbi said milk could qualify if there were no other option. He then instructed his attendant to send the family enough money to purchase wine and meat for the holiday. The rabbi understood that a person wouldn’t ask if it was permissible to use milk at the Pesach seder if chicken or meat were on the menu. Opportunities to help others abound. We need only to open our eyes.

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November 14, 2011 – Ottawa Jewish Bulletin – Page 7

Remarkable Israeli scientists receive the Canada Gairdner International Award On the last Sunday evening in October, I joined about 50 people, mostly drawn from the scientific and academic communities – including the University of Ottawa, Carleton University and Canadian Friends organizations of some of Israel’s top academic centres – in attending a reception at Kinneret, the official residence in Ottawa of Israel’s ambassador to Canada.

Ambassador Miriam Ziv hosted the reception in honour of two renowned scientists – Howard Cedar, MD, PhD, and Aharon Razin, PhD, of the Department of Developmental Biology and Cancer Research at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem – who were visiting Canada as recipients of the 2011 Canada Gairdner International Award. They received the award at a gala dinner, October 27, hosted by the Gairdner Foundation at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto.

The Gairdner International Award recognizes and rewards “the achievements of medical researchers whose work contributes significantly to improving the quality of human life.” The Gairdner is Canada’s foremost award for medical research and is often a precursor to the Nobel Prize. Since 1959, 298 scientists from 13 countries have received the Gairdner and 76 of them have

Editor Michael Regenstreif later added the Nobel to their distinguished resumés.

Collaborators Cedar and Razin received the Gairdner for their “pioneering discoveries on DNA methylation and its role in gene expression.”

For more than three decades, Cedar and Razin have worked together on DNA methylation at Hebrew University. Their discoveries have had important implications in explaining “how genes are regulated and have led to better understanding of human development and the molecular basis of many diseases,” particularly various forms of cancer.

Their work will almost surely advance the treatment possibilities for cancer and other diseases in the years to come.

Israel is probably in the news more than any other country, relative to its size, in the world; mostly because of the ongoing conflict with the Palestinians. What too often

gets overlooked is that Israel, also relative to its size, may well be one of the world’s most accomplished countries in such areas as arts and culture, and is most certainly one of the world’s most accomplished countries in scientific, medical and technological research and development.

Israel has a remarkable record of such achievement that affects all of us, from dayto-day ways, like how we use our computers and cell phones, to more profound lifesaving and life-altering ways made possible by the work of such scientists as Cedar and Razin.

Library and Archives Canada I’ve attended many events in the lovely auditorium at Library and Archives Canada, including some excellent concerts, film screenings, lectures and panel discussions.

It’s a great space, and a popular one, booked solidly about 350 days per year, mostly for events sponsored by a wide variety of non-profit community groups and organizations.

The news broke this month that it would soon become much harder for such groups to use the auditorium. Each event would have to receive ministerial approval from Public Works and Government Services

Minister Rona Ambrose and, even if ministerial approval was forthcoming, groups would have to pay much higher fees to use the space.

At first, the new policy was to take effect at the beginning of 2012. That has now been put off for a year to 2013.

The government should reverse this action. The space should remain accessible – it is an important facility – and its day-today use should not be subject to the complicated process of ministerial approval or even the possibility of political whims.

Farewell to Alan Echenberg As our longtime page 7 columnist Alan Echenberg notes in his swan song below, he is making a career change, which will preclude him from writing for newspapers.

Speaking as a fellow “Canadian politics geek” (I primarily focused on Canadian politics while doing my MA in public policy), I have always enjoyed reading Alan’s takes on some of the issues that have dominated our political scene in recent years – as well as on the other topics he’s written about over the years – and am sorry to see him leave us.

On behalf of all of us at the Ottawa Jewish Bulletin, I wish Alan well in his new job.

I hope I provided an occasional insight – or maybe a laugh or two “But why does an old man lock up anything so tight, so tight, unless he’s saving the best for last?” he said…

“What’s in my barn is not the best and it’s not the worst, although it wouldn’t have to be very good to be the best I ever did, and it would have to be pretty awful to be the worst,” I said. “You want to know what’s in there?”

“Sure, if you want to tell me,” he said. “It’s the emptiest and yet the fullest of all human messages,” I said.

“Which is?” he said. “‘Good-bye.’” I said.

– Kurt Vonnegut, Bluebeard, 1987 Back in the spring of 2005, the late Barry Fishman, then-editor of the Ottawa Jewish Bulletin, offered me a corner of this paper to write a regular column about …

Well, he didn’t really insist I write about anything in particular.

I took him up on the offer and, for sixand-a-half years, Barry and his successor, Michael Regenstreif, demonstrated great patience with my very liberal interpretation of deadlines. More importantly, they offered me great freedom to pursue whatever topics I felt inspired to cover in this space.

Mostly, I wrote about federal politics, which dovetailed nicely with my day job

Alan Echenberg covering politics as a current affairs television producer.

In fact, the first column I wrote here was about the turmoil that followed Belinda Stronach’s defection from Stephen Harper’s opposition Conservative Party to the governing Liberal Party of Paul Martin.

Stronach’s move, of course, would end up helping Martin hold on for only a few more months as prime minister in a minority Parliament dominated by mudslinging, scandal and acrimony.

In that first column, I wrote about the reaction of an Israeli-born friend of mine, who thought Canadian politics were becoming almost – but not quite – as interesting as the version practised in his home country.

I agree with that sentiment. But maybe I’m more of a Canadian politics geek than most.

Of course, the particular period of political history covered in my rookie column

feels like it had happened about 65, rather than 6.5, years ago. Such is the nature of politics.

Since I wrote that first column, I’ve had the opportunity to write columns about three federal elections, two Ontario provincial elections, two Quebec elections and four different Liberal Party leaders.

I’ve also written about developments in areas of public policy as diverse as education and the military, as well as a number of columns over the years tracking the changes in the voting patterns of the Jewish community and other multicultural communities in the country.

For instance, in December 2009, I wrote the following: “For Stephen Harper’s Conservatives, hungry for a majority after twice falling just short, traditionally Liberal seats with sizable populations of ethnic minorities seem to hold the most promise. They are the kinds of ridings in which the Conservative Party made notable headway last year, and hopes to do even better when another election is called.”

Don’t be afraid to say out loud what you’re thinking: That Echenberg was nothing short of a prophet.

Aside from Canadian politics, this publication allowed me to sound off about a wide variety of other topics, including in-

ternational affairs, history, popular culture, baseball, hockey, technology, media, child-rearing, and even some personal stories, including a column about a haunting visit to the Dachau concentration camp, located a stone’s throw from a pleasant suburb of Munich, and a series of columns about a different haunting visit to Vilkaviskis, Lithuania, the hometown of my late father-in-law, and the place where most of his family was killed during the Holocaust.

I am grateful I was provided the opportunity to write about all of these things in this corner. I hope, in turn, I provided readers with at least an occasional insight – or maybe a laugh or two.

I’ve certainly appreciated the feedback I’ve received from readers over the years.

Some readers of this column mistakenly thought that writing it was my day job.

Ironically enough, it proved to be the steadiest work I’ve had over the period.

I’ve continued to write this column through a number of career changes.

I am now about to go through another such change. I will be taking on a new job that will preclude me from continuing to write a column for the foreseeable future.

So I leave you with “the emptiest and yet the fullest of all human messages”: Goodbye.

Page 8 – Ottawa Jewish Bulletin – November 14, 2011

Guest Column

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By Seymour Mender President – Hillel Lodge The Bess and Moe Greenberg Family Hillel Lodge is growing. Next month, we’ll begin welcoming the first of 21 new residents. In early 2012, when all 21 are in the new west wing, the Lodge will be home to 121 seniors receiving long-term care. The expansion is a considerable accomplishment in today’s difficult economic times. It has not been easy, but, through the vision, commitment and hard work of many, we are almost there.

Last year, after six years of diligently making our case to government, we received approval for 21 new beds from Ontario’s Ministry of Heath and Long-Term Care. Without doubt, the successful conclusion was the direct result of vision and a strategic plan.

In the late 1990s, when the new Lodge was being built on the Jewish Community Campus, provision was made to build more space than was required. Therefore, expansion for the 21 new residents is a matter of finishing and equipping the west wing on the ground floor, rather than the prohibitive construction costs if we were starting from scratch.

In addition, this was a construction project that could be completed in months rather than years.

As Ottawa’s only Jewish long-term care home, we are anxious to make these beds operational as soon as possible.

We aren’t the only ones. The government also wants the expansion completed as soon as possible, to help meet the growing need for long-term care.

As for commitment, once again our Jewish community answered the call. We began a capital fund-raising campaign over the summer. Our objective was just over $5 million to cover our expansion and other related improvements, some of which were mandated by the Ministry. We have, to date, raised more than $3 million and our heartfelt thanks go to the many community leaders and generous donors who came forward when called upon. We are confident many other people will see the importance of this expansion and we will reach our objective. I am pleased to report we have seen both timelines and budgets respected at the work site.

While we celebrate our success, vision and commitment, with all the excitement that goes with it, it’s important to keep in mind that as a long-term care home supported financially by the Ministry of Health and LongTerm Care, we are subject to the extensive government regulations that cover all aspects of admission and operation.

Hillel Lodge is a designated long-term care home, which means we are designed for people who require 24hour nursing care, assistance with daily living and supervision to ensure their safety and well-being. Being a longterm care home provides us with many important benefits.

Paramount among them is the fact the government pays for well over 60 per cent of our operating costs. This would not occur if we were operating outside of the government’s long-term care framework.

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Potential candidates for long-term care in Ottawa are assessed by the Champlain Community Care Access Centre, an agency of the Ontario Government, to determine if they are eligible for and require long-term care. Once accepted, the person is placed on one or more waiting lists.

The system cannot guarantee that any individual will be admitted to the home of his or her choice. However, the regulations under the Long-Term Care Homes Act provide for placement into categories on the waiting list. A priority is accorded to applicants who are of a religion, ethnic or linguistic origin who are primarily served by a particular long-term care facility and the applicant is seeking to be admitted to that facility. Because Hillel Lodge is the only Jewish long-term care facility in the Champlain Region, priority is accorded to Jewish applicants. However, community and hospital crises are accorded top priority when needed.

That being said, on any given day, about 99 per cent of all the long-term beds in the Champlain Region are occupied. This means that applicants can be on a waiting list for some time. Stephen Schneiderman, executive director of Hillel Lodge, is extremely sensitive about this process, and the very difficult, even gut-wrenching situations it can create for those waiting to be admitted and for their families.

This may be especially disturbing or disappointing for those who have contributed to the Lodge over their lifetime, financially, as a volunteer, or otherwise.

“It’s not that we don’t care,” Schneiderman says, “because we do care a lot. I’d like to say ‘yes’ to everybody who wants to be admitted to the Lodge, and I’d like to tell families, sure, bring your relative in tomorrow. But, because of the system under which we operate, as well as the capacity constraint, I can’t.”

As a vital part of Ottawa’s Jewish Community Campus, Hillel Lodge is part of a continuum of life that goes from babies to bubbies. We are a nationally accredited long-term care facility that enjoys a sterling reputation in Ottawa, in Canada, and even internationally. It’s not surprising that so many people in our community and their families choose Hillel Lodge as their preferred long-term care facility. Our 21 new beds will allow us to offer quality care to significantly more residents than in the past.

The Lodge is there for you. We encourage you to check visit hillellodge.ca to find out more about the process of admissions. As well, we welcome any inquiries or concerns and will do our best to guide you successfully through the health care system.

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November 14, 2011 – Ottawa Jewish Bulletin – Page 9

Guest Column

Advertorial

JEWISH NATIONAL FUND More than trees 613.798.2411

The benefits of a Jewish education Oliver Javanpour president

Thank you for being Friends of Israel Watching our Negev Dinner unfold, I marvelled at the way in which hours, days and weeks of organizing come together in one evening to create a great experience for everyone. I would like to thank the many people who made the event happen. To Rabbi Reuven Bulka, thank you for your patience and generous advice and for being a very entertaining Master of Ceremonies. Thank you to our Honorary Co-Chairs, Senators Linda Frum and Judith Seidman, and Carleton University President Dr. Roseann O’Reilly Runte and to our Honorary Chair, Vera Klein.

Thank you to a Campaign Cabinet that worked tirelessly and provided the advice needed to carry us through: Norman Barwin, Alan Blostein, Lisa Cogan, Barbara Crook, Jane Gordon, Martin Gordon, Brian Pearl, and Harvey Slack. Gail Grief and Susan Schwartzman worked hard to keep the big picture and still take care of all the details that make Negev Dinners such memorable events.

Thank you Gail and Susan. To the Honourees of previous Negev Dinners, who offered their time and support, our thanks.

In a year when economic conditions worked against us and we focused on a project theme (water for Israel – Sderot Reservoir) in the context of JNF’s Friends of Israel theme, we owe a great deal to the sponsors and donors who came through for us and for Israel. To all those who attended, your contributions and your presence make the idea of Friends of Israel tangible. To see so many Friends of Israel and know that you are all working to make Israel more sustainable is truly gratifying.

Thank you.

Our next large community event will be the JNF Tu B’Shevat Tree-A-Thon taking place on Sunday, February 5, 2012. Our Co-Chairs, Jane and Martin Gordon, and their team of volunteers will help raise awareness about the great work we have done in supporting Forestry in Israel. This year, donors will also be given the option to make their donation via JNF’s website. We will be encouraging donors to open a Tree Bank Account. With one quick e-mail or phone call to the JNF office, we will send beautiful tree cards on your behalf throughout the year.

When you plant a tree in Israel, you are saying more than words could ever say – you are identifying with Israel and bringing life to the land.

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By Sheldon Friedman, Principal Ottawa Jewish Community School A Jewish community day school is our community’s best venue to support parents in instilling an appreciation for Jewish history, Jewish values and Jewish rituals in our children while also offering excellent and current secular education.

A school like the Ottawa Jewish Community School (OJCS) offers a trilingual – English, French and Hebrew – advantage and provides personal attention to each student.

Students who attend our Jewish day school are offered a rigorous curriculum that prepares students to succeed at colleges or universities around the world.

As a community school, OJCS differs from a religious school in that, while children learn Hebrew and Jewish studies, the focus is on tradition and values, not religious observance.

At OJCS, we want to prepare our children to be literate about Judaism, to be supportive of Israel and to become leaders in both the Jewish and general communities. This theme of continuity or “teach our children” has been stressed within our culture since the Israelites migrated to Egypt thousands of years ago. It was important then and it is important today.

A community Jewish day school like OJCS provides multiple opportunities to reinforce the Jewish curriculum.

Our school gives kids a chance to practise Jewish rituals, to celebrate Jewish holidays, to perform mitzvot and to interact with Jewish children. Students also get to interact with role models whose attitudes, character and actions mirror the values so important to our way of life. We all know that actions speak loader than words.

An important part of our objective is to provide an excellent secular education.

For years, Jewish leaders have recognized the complementary benefit of teaching both the study of Torah and modern secular curriculum. In fact, recent studies have found that students from a Jewish community day school like OJCS have better study skills, better time management skills, better writing skills, are more articulate, better at analysis, are more likely to challenge facts, appreciate different points of view and are more involved with their Jewish and secular community.

Colin Baker, professor of education at Bangor University, set out several advantages of bilingualism. They include: communication advantages, cultural advantages, cognitive advantages, curriculum advantages and cash advantages.

A final advantage can be seen when one examines the development of the brain of a student in a bilingual or trilingual school.

A child develops synapses that connect the neurons in the brain. At the age of 10 (Grade 5), the brain contains more synapses than any other time in the human’s life. A student at the OJCS has the opportunity to develop more synapses because of the trilingual, rich and stimulating environment the school provides.

After the age of 10, the

brain begins to prune synapses, re-organize and categorize them so that the child can develop critical thinking skills, re-enforce what they know and get a deeper and richer understanding of topics.

Our board of directors recently adopted a new mission statement: “The Ottawa Jewish Community School is dedicated to enriching the life of its students, along with strengthening their character and their love for Israel. Inspired by Jewish values and heritage, a love of learning, and teaching excellence, students reach for their potential, to become the leaders of tomorrow and responsible citizens of the world.The Ottawa Jewish Community School is an all-day, trilingual elementary and high school that aims to develop academic and personal excellence in it students, in an inclusive, caring and pluralistic environment that is based on Jewish religion, culture and values.”

The school’s mission is summarized in the OJCS’s community themes: Respect, Responsibility and Reaching for Excellence.

If you believe in Jewish values and academic excellence, OJCS may be the place for your children. To learn more about the Ottawa Jewish Community School, visit theottawajewishcommunityschoool.com or call 613-7220020 to arrange a visit.

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Page 10 – Ottawa Jewish Bulletin – November 14, 2011

Workshop helps educators teach about the Holocaust

By Diane Koven At the end of a long day in the classroom, most teachers would not be anxious to rush off to sit in another for nearly three hours.

But 40 teachers from 22 schools representing several school boards came to the Soloway Jewish Community Centre, October 24, for a special workshop for teachers presented by the Shoah Committee of Ottawa that began Holocaust Education Month.

The workshop focused on the Righteous Among Nations, the non-Jews who risked their lives to save Jews during the Second World War, and was designed to enable teachers to share this information with their students.

Ada Wynston, a “hidden child” who survived the war in the Netherlands – and who was keynote speaker, May 1, at Ottawa’s Yom HaShoah commemoration – told her story of survival to the audience of teachers, most of whom were not Jewish and many of whom had never met a Holocaust survivor.

Wynston told how the extreme kindness and bravery of Christian strangers had saved her life and the lives of so many others.

“They gave us an example of how we should live – to stand up and be counted,” she said. “The Righteous Among the Nations: there are many of them and I am forever grateful that they took care of me, my sister, my brother and my father.”

A second testimony was provided by Tibor Egervari, who also survived the Holocaust as a “hidden child.” He echoed the message that these stories must be told while there are still people to tell them, and urged the teachers to convey the stories to their students.

Shoah Committee Chair Mina Cohn provided historical background to the teachers, explaining who “the Righteous” were, what they did, at what cost to themselves and their families, how they have been honoured and the lessons one can learn from them.

Nathalie Sirois (left) and Mina Cohn developed a lesson plan for teaching about the Holocaust to high school students.

(Photo: Sarah Beutel)

Cohn explained the selection process and the strict criteria that Yad Vashem applies before declaring someone to be “Righteous Among the Nations.” Once selected, each honouree receives a special medal and a certificate, his or her name is added to the wall of honour at Yad Vashem in Jerusalem and he

or she is granted honorary Israeli citizenship. And a tree is planted in the recipient’s honour.

“As educators, we must educate our students to know and value ‘the other,’ said Cohn, “[that] whoever saves a single life, it is as if he has saved mankind.”

Kim MacMullin, who teaches Grades 7 and 8 at Castor Valley Elementary School in Greely, was extremely moved by Wynston’s story.

“It is definitely more powerful to hear the story from a survivor. There is no comparison to what you learn in a history class,” she said. “Now I wish I could do more in my school. I will see if I can find survivors who live in Ottawa to come to my school.”

Lisa Allen, who teaches

Holocaust survivor Ada Wynston tells her story at the Holocaust Education Month teacher’s workshop.

(Photo: Michael Regenstreif)

Grade 8 history and geography at Queen Elizabeth Public School, also plans to use what she learned at the workshop.

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The teachers also broke into groups of eight to participate in an interactive session facilitated by educator Nathalie Sirois, founder of Institut canadien pour l’éducation sur les génocides, a non-profit organization that provides educational materials for Holocaust and genocide studies to French-language schools. The session enabled the teachers to sample the lesson plan developed by Cohn and Sirois before implementing it themselves in their own classrooms.

Letters welcome Letters to the Editor are welcome if they are brief, signed, timely and of interest to our readership. The Bulletin reserves the right to refuse, edit or condense letters.

The Mailbag column will be published as space permits.

Send your letters to Michael Regenstreif, Ottawa Jewish Bulletin, 21 Nadolny Sachs Private, Ottawa, Ontario K2A 1R9; or e-mail him at mregenstreif@ottawajewishbulletin.com.

November 14, 2011 – Ottawa Jewish Bulletin – Page 11

Two Israeli authors disagree on country’s future

By Ilana Belfer Although their new books share the same subject matter – Israel in the 21st century – David Berlin and Hirsh Goodman have different visions for the future of the Jewish state.

The two Israeli authors appeared together, October 23, at an Ottawa Writers Festival event at Knox Presbyterian Church.

“My interest coming into this book was, in the first instance, to unravel a kind of confusion I was living with all my life,” said Berlin, who now lives in Toronto.

He called The Moral Lives of Israelis a memoir-style account of the past 10 years in Israel that “stays away from the conflict.”

When Berlin presented his first draft to Random House, he said the editor told him it was a disaster. Not because the story was bad, but because the narration wasn’t “fleshed out.”

Returning to the drawing board, Berlin said he made a profound realization about himself, that there’s a distinction between being “a Jewish secular” as opposed to “a secular Jew.” His book suggests the key to peace for Israel is to go from

Hirsh Goodman

being a Jewish state to being “a state in which many Jews live.”

Berlin addressed the discomfort he experienced in Israel on noticing a mezuzah on a member of Knesset’s door.

“What if a member of Parliament had a big cross on their door?” he asked.

But Goodman refuted the sentiment, asking, “What’s the problem with having Shema Israel on your door?”

Goodman accused Berlin of seeking a one-state solution.

“I’m not for anything right now,” Berlin responded, remind-

David Berlin

ing Goodman that his book isn’t supposed to be about the conflict.

In Anatomy of Israel’s Survival, Goodman argues Israel must enter negotiations with the Palestinians, and fast, if it wants to see peace.

After 10 to 12 more years, he said, we will have reached a point of no return.

“I was trying to write a book

that isn’t full of accusations. I was trying to write a book that gives some solutions and not just deals with the problems,” said Goodman.

His solution is twofold: enter into a 10-year ceasefire with Hamas in Gaza and enter into negotiations with the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank.

“I think I coined the phrase:

‘How can Israel make peace with the Palestinians until they make peace with themselves?’” Goodman said. “But, if we wait for the Palestinians to make peace with themselves, we will never see peace.”

Goodman said his book is optimistic, particularly regarding the next generation of politicians.

However, he compared the current Israeli government to a hamster perpetually running in place on its wheel.

Can Israel survive?

Goodman said he was initially infuriated by the question and couldn’t understand its nature seeing as no other nation needs to ask itself the same thing. However, after he thought about it, Goodman said, he realized the question had merit, which is why he wrote the book.

“We must have done something right to produce the generation we have. If I’m wrong, I’m wrong, but I don’t think I am, and I think my hope is not misplaced,” Goodman said.

Editor’s note: An exclusive interview with Hirsh Goodman will appear in an upcoming issue of the Ottawa Jewish Bulletin.

Page 12 – Ottawa Jewish Bulletin – November 14, 2011

Author Gershom Gorenberg to speak on new book at Temple Israel, Nov. 23

By Gabriella Goliger Canadian Friends of Peace Now Israel’s democracy, once among the Jewish state’s greatest triumphs, is becoming unravelled due to the occupation that began in 1967, says Gershom Gorenberg, a prominent historian and journalist.

Gorenberg presents his case in his new book, The

Unmaking of Israel. He will be in Ottawa on Wednesday, November 23 during his North American book tour and will speak at Temple Israel at 7:30 pm.

In The Unmaking of Israel, Gorenberg argues that, by settling territory conquered in 1967, Israel has crippled its democracy and the rule of law. Further, that the ties between state, settle-

ment and synagogue have promoted religious extremism and distorted Judaism.

To rebuild itself, he writes, Israel must end the occupation, separate state from religion, and create a new civil identity that can be shared by Jewish and Arab citizens.

Reaching a peace agreement with the Palestinians is both an essential end in itself and a means to ensuring that Israel expresses basic Jewish values.

Gorenberg is no outsider to Israel or Judaism. A selfstyled “left-wing, skeptical Orthodox Zionist Jew,” he moved to Israel from California in 1977, settling in Jerusalem, where he still lives with his wife and three children. He became a key figure in the Israeli English media, working first for the Jerusalem Post, then as a cofounder of The Jerusalem Report. Much of his journalistic career was spent covering the occupied territories and the interaction of politics and religion.

Turning to deeper analysis, he wrote The End of Days: Fundamentalism and the Struggle for the Temple

Mount, published in 2000, in which he explores the complex web of theology, politics, and eschatology, which surrounds what he calls “the most contested piece of real estate on earth.”

Gorenberg is best known for The Accidental Empire: Israel and the Birth of the Settlements, 1967-1977, a book published in 2006 and praised by Jonathan D. Tepperman in the New York Times as “remarkably insightful” and “a deeply informative counter-history.”

As with his other works, The Unmaking of Israel is based on previously unpublished documents and years of on-the-ground reporting.

Gorenberg is now a senior correspondent for The American Prospect, a monthly political magazine. He is an active member of Kehillat Yedidya, the pioneering progressive Orthodox congregation in South Jerusalem.

Gorenberg’s book launch and talk at Temple Israel is co-sponsored with Canadian Friends of Peace Now. Admission is free. Sales and book signings follow the talk.

Israeli author Gershom Gorenberg launches The Unmaking of Israel, November 23 at Temple Israel.

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November 14, 2011 – Ottawa Jewish Bulletin – Page 13

Power Breakfast touts the power of planned giving

By Louise Rachlis There are big phrases like “maximizing your philanthropic goals,” and there is the simple joy of a skinny nine-year-old, the son of Holocaust survivors, heading off to Camp B’nai Brith for the first time.

“I was told I’d won a scholarship, and I was so proud,” said that boy, Eddy Cook, who, many years later, is the Ottawa Jewish Community Foundation (OJCF) Fundraising Committee chair, and originator of the OJCF Power Breakfast.

Cook didn’t find out until years later that he’d actually been the recipient of someone’s legacy to his poor family. He knows first-hand how “our Foundation is making a difference, both in the Jewish community, and the community at large.”

The Power Breakfast event – complete with bagels, lox and cream cheese, fruit and muffins – took place October 18 at the Soloway Jewish Community Centre.

“Planning is a very impor-

tant process,” said investment adviser Richard Kluska, the speaker at the Power Breakfast. His topic was “Philanthropy: Enriching Our Community; Maximizing Your Estate Objectives and Optimizing Tax Planning.”

Kluska said there can be complex arrangements to make the legacy happen – you have financial advisers to help do that – but the basic premise is simple.

“With money, you either spend it, or give it away,” says the founder of IP Strategies, an Independent Private Family Office at Canaccord Wealth Management. He is also the author of The Seven Mistakes Most Commonly Made in Business.

“Planning is a very important process,” he said. “About 80 per cent of planned gifts are through estates, an important component of philanthropy.”

And there are many questions from clients: Do I give now or later in my estate or both? What is enough for my children and grandchildren?

(From left) OJCF Fundraising Committee Chair Eddy Cook, guest speaker Richard Kluska, OJCF Chair Richard Roth and OJCF Acting President Jared Isaacson at the (Photo: Peter Waiser) OJCF Power Breakfast, October 18.

How/what do I donate? To what charities do I bequest?

The more complex your estate, the more opportunities for charitable giving, he said, but the most important factor is “it must be in the will. No will, no gift.”

Among some of the other considerations: • Ensure the name of the charity is correct; • When gifting land or a

building, speak to the charity to see about restrictions or environmental issues; • A gift of life insurance is not public, and can be changed easily if the charity is named as beneficiary only and not owner; • Gifts of private shares are complex and must be documented properly.

Kluska said planned giving can “enhance community,

estate and optimize tax as seen,” but it is critical to sit down with your advisers and discuss openly.

“Spend the time with full disclosure to come up with ‘what is important to me,’” he said, “to design the optimal gifting strategy for now and in future.”

Kluska mentioned his own gratitude to the Heart Institute for helping his father and said

we have to support causes and institutions we believe in.

“If we want this to happen, we have to make it happen. Planned giving allows your beneficiaries to share in the ‘gift of giving’ and create your family legacy.”

OJCF Acting President Jared Isaacson described a long list of groups who’ve been helped by the Foundation and praised the recently launched Women’s Collective Philanthropy Program.

“The Ottawa Jewish Community Foundation is here and ready to work with you in supporting your personal and philanthropic goals,” Isaacson said.

OJCF Chair Richard Roth talked about the Foundation’s Legacy Challenge Fund.

When someone names the Ottawa Jewish Community Foundation as recipient of a bequest through his or her will, the Fund will pay up to $1,000 for the professional/legal services to help create the bequest or codicil.

Visit ojcf.ca for more information.

Page 14 – Ottawa Jewish Bulletin – November 14, 2011

New program directors at OTC are native Ottawans

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By Pherris Hamilton for Ottawa Torah Centre Shortly before the High Holidays, the Ottawa Torah Centre Chabad (OTC), now celebrating 13 years of service in the Ottawa Jewish community, announced the hiring of Rabbi Sender and Sarah Gordon, who have moved from New York, as OTC program directors, initiating new activities to serve the community.

“When I look back at the last 13 years, I am amazed at how much has been done,” said Rabbi Menachem M. Blum, OTC’s founder and director. “On the other hand, I look ahead and think about how much more we can achieve; how many more families we can touch; how many more Jews we can reach out to.

Having Rabbi Sender and Sarah Gordon here to assist us will allow us to grow on our past accomplishments.”

Both Rabbi Gordon and his wife Sarah were born and raised in Ottawa. After completing their studies abroad, the Gordons decided to return to their home town.

“Giving back to the community in which I was raised was something instilled in me from a young age, and it is an honour and a privilege that I am grateful for,” explained Rabbi Gordon.

Rabbi Gordon received his rabbinical ordination from Rabbi Yitzchak Yehuda Yeruslavsky of Israel and has a BA in Talmudic law from the Central Lubavitch Yeshiva in Brooklyn. While pursuing his rabbinical studies, Rabbi Gordon studied at Yeshivat Chabad in Chulon, Israel and at the

Rabbi Sender and Sarah Gordon (with son Yitzy), who both grew up in Ottawa, have returned to the city to work at Ottawa Torah Centre.

Rabbinical College of Michigan. During his training, he taught Jewish studies at a yeshiva in Moscow.

As part of the ever-expanding services offered at OTC, Rabbi Gordon has created a new youth Shabbat program and junior congregation. Together with his group of volunteers, Rabbi Gordon runs the program at

the same time as OTC’s adult Shabbat service.

“The program is interactive and the children are learning, praying and having a great time,” explained the rabbi. “You can only imagine the appreciation that parents have for the respite, but, more importantly, for having the ability to concentrate on their

prayers and enjoy the service while their children are also discovering the joys of being Jewish.”

The weekly Shabbat youth program starts at 10:45 every Saturday at OTC, 111 Lamplighters Drive in Barrhaven.

For more information, visit ottawatorahcentre.com or call 613-843-7770.

Chanukah concert to benefit the Friendship Circle

By Devora Caytak Jewish Youth Library Chanukah is a time families like to spend together, play dreidl and eat latkes with sour cream or applesauce. The family lights the menorah and celebrates the festival of lights.

This year, on December 21, the second night of Chanukah, 8th Day, a band from California featuring brothers Shmuel and Bentzi Marcus, will be giving a concert to benefit the Friendship Circle at the Irving Greenberg Theatre Centre, 1233 Wellington Street West. 8th Day has become known for its YouTube hit, “Ya’alili,” which can be

seen on the band’s website, my8thday.com.

This Chanukah Family Benefit Concert is a perfect opportunity to enjoy the holiday with your family. A menorah lighting will take place during intermission and light refreshments will be served.

The Friendship Circle, a unique program of the Jewish Youth Library, matches teen volunteers with families who have a child with special needs.

Tickets are $36 (plus $3 service charge) and are available at the GCTC box office at 613-236-5196. For more information, call Esther Caytak at 613-729-7712 or visit jylofottawa.org.

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November 14, 2011 – Ottawa Jewish Bulletin – Page 15

Page 16 – Ottawa Jewish Bulletin – November 14, 2011

Holocaust survivor David Shentow interviewed on film

By Floralove Katz for Holocaust Education Month Sections of David Shentow, Prisoner of the Nazi Holocaust, Number 72585, a new film-interview, will be screened Sunday, November 20, 3:00 pm, at the Soloway Jewish Community Centre. Admission to the screening, an event of Holocaust Education Month, is free.

David Shentow, a Holocaust survivor, is known to many for his tireless work as a Holocaust educator. Over four decades, he has made countless presentations to high school and university classes, to police services, conferences and seminars. In May, he was one of 19 Ontarians honoured at a Queen’s Park ceremony, by the Canadian Society for Yad Vashem and the province.

The interviews with Shentow

were conducted over a period of weeks by David P. Hoffman. I directed and edited the film and composed the music. The film-interview may serve in coming years as an extension of Shentow’s voice and of others who deplore Holocaust denial, and educate about the Holocaust and genocide.

Despite the personal toll of each presentation, Shentow continues to speak about the personal horrors he endured, notably during the last three years of the Second World War, when he was deported as a 17-year-old and incarcerated in slave labour camps in France, Auschwitz, Warsaw and Dachau.

That he survived death marches, beatings, starvation and despair is testimony to his determination and courage.

That his humour, gentle self-

deprecation and sense of humanity remained intact beyond his ordeals is a reflection of Shentow’s keen emotional intelligence and humility.

Over the decades of his presentations, Shentow, and his wife Rose, have travelled thousands of miles and touched the hearts and minds of many.

Shentow’s personal reflections have allowed an immediate understanding of the very etymology and manifestations of genocide, and the critical importance of personal intervention and responsibility.

The presentation will include selections of the film-interview presented by interviewer Hoffman and myself. David Shentow will join us for a brief question-andanswer period following the screening.

Special things happen at OJCS

By Sara-Lynne Levine Ottawa Jewish Community School Sometimes a small gesture can have a large impact. This is one of the many lessons taught at the Ottawa Jewish Community School (OJCS).

As an Israeli, teacher Ruth Lebovich – Morah Ruthie – has strong ties to her country and teaches children about Israel and how important it is to the Jewish people.

Last spring before Purim, Morah Ruthie and her students created Mishloach Manot baskets. As part of her lesson, she had students write letters to Israeli soldiers. These letters, written by Grade 3 students, sent well-wishes and greetings from Ottawa. Morah Ruthie mailed the letters to an army base in Israel for distribution. One of the letters was written by Isaac Glassman.

In Israel, soldier Mordechai Botnick returned to base after a difficult day and a tough month. Mail was being delivered and a friend tossed him a letter saying it was for him because the return address was “Ottawa, Canada.” He was surprised to receive a letter from a stranger and even more surprised when he discovered the letter was written by Isaac Glassman of Ottawa.

The letter from Isaac was actually a pop-up card offering words of support and thanking soldiers for putting themselves at risk for the Jewish people. Botnick was taken aback, not only because of the emotion he felt from receiving such a supportive letter from a stranger, a child, but also because this stranger, Isaac was writing to him from Botnick’s hometown of Ottawa.

Botnick had made aliyah a few years earlier. After receiving the letter, he contacted his father, Rabbi Yehoshua Botnick, dean of curriculum at Rambam Day School, who then called Isaac’s family and told them the story. Isaac’s family was amazed.

The Israeli soldier and Canadian student recently had an opportunity to meet. Both were moved and delighted and amazed at their shared connection.

Botnick couldn’t believe how meaningful and uplifting the experience was, both receiving the card and

Sections of a film-interview with survivor David Shentow will be screened, November 20 at the Soloway JCC, during Holocaust (Photo: Floralove Katz) Education Month.

Jewish War Veterans AGM

OJCS student Isaac Glassman meets Israeli soldier Mordechai Botnick.

meeting Isaac.

For students at OJCS, this is but one illustration of how what they do and what they learn not only makes a difference in their lives, but in the lives of others.

Laura Grosman (left) with Post Commander Phil Pinkus of the Ottawa Post, Jewish War Veterans of Canada, at the Post’s AGM, October 23, at the Soloway JCC. Grosman, who initiated the National Holocaust Monument to be built in the Ottawa area, was keynote speaker at the AGM. The federal government is currently seeking input from the public about the monument and has created an online survey which can be accessed at tinyurl.com/Holocaust-Monument(Photo: Elly Bollegraaf) survey.

November 14, 2011 – Ottawa Jewish Bulletin – Page 17

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Page 18 – Ottawa Jewish Bulletin – November 14, 2011 Advertorial

Temple Israel: Did you know ... ?

Ottawa’s only Reform Congregation, Temple Israel, is a vibrant Jewish community dedicated to Torah, Tzedakah and Avodah. With approximately 360 families, we are the third largest congregation in the city. Temple Israel is an inclusive congregation: we count many interfaith families among our members and we are fully egalitarian in our worship and in all aspects of our congregational life.

Shabbat Tots Circle of Fun

Temple Israel offers a full array of worship services. Our Shabbat and Kabbalat Shabbat Services – led by Rabbi Steven Garten – lie at the heart of Temple Israel worship, along with monthly minyamin and a full array of holiday and festival Services.

Our Siddur offers traditional Hebrew liturgy in a contemporary context. Shabbat services are Saturdays at 10:15.

Friday night services, from 6:15 to about 7 p.m., are full of music and are especially child-friendly. In addition to our regular Friday evening services, on the second Friday of every month, the service is followed by a casual “bring your own and some to share” dinner in which we welcome Shabbat in the warm company of friends and family. This is a great way to get to know people in an informal setting, and a fun way to introduce children to services. For more information, please contact Paula at outreach@templeisraelottawa.ca.

Interested in exploring Judaism and learning basic Hebrew? Insights Into Judaism is a 26-week Temple Israel course aimed at anyone who wants to explore Judaism.

The course comprises both a weekly lecture/seminar and Hebrew language instruction.

(The course is also a requirement for anyone seeking conversion.) Sessions include Hebrew instruction from a native Hebrew speaker and experienced teacher, lectures with Rabbi Garten, attending some services together, guest speakers and exploring Jewish culture: books, music … and cooking! The course has just begun, so it is not too late to join. Information about fees and registration can be obtained at outreach@templeisraelottawa.ca.

Temple Israel Religious School is the only Synagogue-affiliated supplemental school in Ottawa. It offers programming for some 90 students from Junior Kindergarten through Bar/Bat Mitzvah, to high school and confirmation. Teachers are well qualified and the curriculum is firmly based on history, culture and Hebrew.

Children of both members and non-members are welcome! Contact Penny or Dina at tirs@templeisraelottawa.ca. Teenagers can join the FROSTY group and help plan their own social events, community activities and trips. FROSTY can be reached at frosty@templeisraelottawa.ca.

Torah Academy students build kites during their Let’s Talk Science workshop.

Torah Academy students talk science in workshops

By Rabbi Yisroel Goldbaum Torah Academy of Ottawa Torah Academy students often extend their studies beyond the classroom and the textbook to experience learning and discovery in new and exciting ways.

One Monday in September, students in Grades 1 to 8 participated in Let’s Talk Science workshops.

As noted at letstalkscience.ca, “Let’s Talk Science is an award-winning, national, charitable organization. We deliver science learning programs and services that turn children and youth on to science.”

At Torah Academy, Let’s Talk Science taught our youngest students the basics of flight by building kites, while our intermediary students learned the fundamentals of

DNA in a forensics activity.

Our oldest students learned about robotics with kits based on the Lego Mindstorm Robotics Invention System. After building and programming their machines, groups of students duked it out with their robots in a heads-on competition to see which automaton was the most powerful!

While the students were engaged in these exciting learning opportunities, their teachers were able to take advantage of the break in the regular school schedule to engage in a special professional development workshop made possible by a Torah Umesorah grant. Both teachers and students were very positive about the way they spent the day and look forward to more opportunities of this sort in the future.

Music is central to the spiritual life of Temple Israel. We are known for our concerts and recitals, offered at regular intervals through the year. Our liturgical choir brings a unique level of spirituality to Yom Tov and special services and new members are welcome. Support and instruction are available for anyone who wishes to learn to chant Torah or Haftarah, the blessings, or to lead a Shiva or Havdalah service. Please contact Barbara Okun at music@templeisraelottawa.ca.

Temple Israel’s ongoing adult learning programs include Saturday morning Torah Study, Wednesday lunchtime Talmud Study with Rabbi Garten and Wednesday evening Tanakh Study with Shlomo Feldberg. There is no fee for any of these programs and required texts are available “at cost” through the Temple office. For further information contact annie@templeisraelottawa.ca.

Temple Israel also offers a unique array of special educational events, from our Sunday morning “Books ‘n Bagels” gatherings to guest speakers and films. Our next Books ‘n Bagels event, on Sunday November 13, will be led by Bulletin columnist Mira Sucharov, who will review David Grossman’s To the End of the Land, a deeply affecting novel of life in contemporary Israel. More information on “Books ‘n Bagels” is available by contacting Shayla – Sarah Smith at shaylamindell@rogers.com.

1301 Prince of Wales Drive, Ottawa ON K2C 1N2 www.templeisraelottawa.ca • 613-224-1802

Sukkah Trot Chabad Hebrew School students and guests enjoyed the Ottawa Torah Centre’s first Sukkah Trot, October 16, the fourth day of Sukkot. They travelled to several sukkahs in horse-drawn wagons where they enjoyed special Sukkot activities.

November 14, 2011 – Ottawa Jewish Bulletin – Page 19

Teacher Irv Osterer receives lifetime achievement award

Irv Osterer displays his Marjorie Loughrey Lifetime Achievement Award in Arts Education.

(Photo: Linda Slotin)

By Linda Slotin Irv Osterer, a long-time arts teacher and department head in the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board (OCDSB), received the Marjorie Loughrey Lifetime Achievement Award in Arts Education, October 25.

In nominating him for the OCDSB’s most important award in arts education, his peers, supervisors and students praised Osterer’s energy, talent and devotion to their education and successes.

“For 30 years, you have been an inspiring teacher, mentor to other students, arts advocate, and all-round cheer-leader for the arts.

“As department head, no one could be more supportive to teachers and school events. As a true believer in the arts and art education, you are absolutely deserving of this, our highest award,” wrote OCDSB Awards Committee Chair Jim McNabb in his letter advising Osterer of the award.

Children Healthcare Women

One of Osterer’s achievements has been to make Merivale High School a leader in arts education. The school has won Cappie Awards for high school theatre, it has a full-time photography teacher, and its visual art, pottery and graphic design programs are among the best in the city.

Indeed, many students transfer to Merivale High School for its graphic design program, a program which Osterer initiated and supervises. CHEO’s annual competition to design its bear logo for fundraising campaign has been won more times by Merivale High School students than by stu-

dents of any other school.

Osterer has accomplished all this and yet he still has time to pursue his interests in hockey and baseball.

He is a member of Friends of Israel Hockey in Ottawa and designed a commemorative stamp to give the sport some much-needed publicity in Israel. He collects Jewish baseball cards going back to the 19th century.

His greatest joy is watching his children excel in hockey and baseball. This past summer, he was the captain of his Jewish softball team, which included seven members of his and

brother Murray Osterer’s families.

He is a long-time member of Congregation Machzikei Hadas and is available when asked to chant the Torah or Haftarah portion.

Many 13-year-olds are thankful that Osterer has tutored them for their b’nai mitzvah.

It is also not uncommon for Osterer to make sure his staff and students are nominated for awards he feels they deserve.

In that regard, Jamie Fine was nominated by Osterer and received the Student Leadership in the Arts Award at the same awards ceremony.

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Louis Naaman, the new owner, is a familiar face at the renovated salon, formerly Guy’s Hair Creations. Louis continues to offer his expertise as a stylist, while also managing the salon that has been in business since 1973.

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Page 20 – Ottawa Jewish Bulletin – November 14, 2011

In support of the Bess and Moe Greenberg Family Hillel Lodge In the Joseph and Inez Zelikovitz Long Term Care Centre Card Donations Card donations go a long way to improving the quality of life for our residents. Thank you for considering their needs and contributing to their well-being.

On behalf of the residents and their families, we extend sincere appreciation to the following individuals and families who made card donations to the Hillel Lodge Long-Term Care Foundation between October 5 and 26, 2011 inclusive.

HONOUR FUNDS Unlike a bequest or gift of life insurance, which are realized some time in the future, a named Honour Fund (i.e., endowment fund) is established during your lifetime.

By making a contribution of $1,000 or more, you can create a permanent remembrance for a loved one, honour a family member, declare what the Lodge has meant to you and/or support a cause that you believe in.

A Hillel Lodge Honour Fund is a permanent pool of capital that earns interest or income each year. This income then supports the priorities designated by you, the donor.

Bill and Leona Adler Memorial Fund In Memory of: Lou Eisenberg by Marilyn Adler Ida Kufsky by Marilyn Adler Marvin Walter by Marilyn Adler, Neil and Daniel Blacher; and by Elayne Adler, Farley, Jordan and Benjamin Stenzler In Honour of: Stephen and Debra Schneiderman Mazal tov on the marriage of Stacey to Stephen Rich by Marilyn Adler, Neil and Daniel Blacher; and by Elayne Adler, Farley, Jordan and Benjamin Stenzler R’fuah Shlema: Debi Shore by Marilyn Adler, Neil and Daniel Blacher Samuel and Jean Akerman Memorial Fund R’fuah Shlema: Debi Shore by Sheila and Larry Hartman In Memory of: Lou Eisenberg by Sheila and Larry Hartman Auxiliary of Hillel Lodge Fund In Honour of: Antoinette Capelle Best wishes on your 90th birthday by Blema Woolf Abe and Bea Dubinsky Endowment Fund R’fuah Shlema to: Debi Shore by Bea Dubinsky Friedberg and Dale Families Fund In Honour of: Aviva and Leo Lightstone Mazal tov on Nava’s engagement to Jonathan Hoffman by Elaine Friedberg and Bob Dale Shirley and Hymie Schildkraut Mazal tov on the birth of your grandson by Elaine Friedberg and Bob Dale Irv Osterer Mazal tov on being awarded the Marjorie Loughrey Lifetime Achievement Award in Arts Education by Elaine Friedberg, Bob and Jonathan Dale Michael and Stacy Goldstein Mazal tov on the birth of your son by Elaine Friedberg, Bob and Jonathan Dale Ruth and Dale Fyman Mazal tov on the birth of your grandson by Elaine Friedberg and Bob Dale Malcolm and Vera Glube Endowment Fund In Memory of: Joel Weinstein by Malcolm and Vera Glube

In Honour of: Ron and Ruth Levitan Best wishes on your 45th anniversary by Malcolm and Vera Glube Nell Gluck Memorial Fund In Honour of: Ruth and DaleFyman Mazal tov on the birth of your grandson by Henry and Maureen Molot Norman Zagerman Mazal tov on your retirement from Nesbitt Burns by Henry and Maureen Molot Moe Greenberg and Elissa Greenberg Iny Fund In Memory of: Harry Fleisher by Elissa and Avraham Iny Lou Eisenberg by Elissa and Avraham Iny In Honour of: Roz and Morris Goodman Happy New Year by with love

by Elissa and Avraham Iny Roz and Nordau Kanigsberg Mazal tov on the birth of your granddaughter with love by Elissa and Avraham Iny Gunner Family Fund In Honour of: Leo and Aviva Lightstone Mazal tov on Nava’s engagement by Sol and Estelle Gunner David, Harvey, Victor Kardish Family Fund In Memory of: Lou Eisenberg by Gale, Victor and Sydney Kardish Dorothy and Maurie Karp Endowment Fund In Memory of: Lou Eisenberg by Dorothy Karp Great-granddaughter of Edna and Seymour Eisenberg

by Dorothy Karp Morris and Lillian Kimmel Family Fund In Honour of: Carla Wittes Mazal tov on your upcoming marriage to Jeremy with love by Brenda Levine and family and Janet Kaiman and family Marty Ross Congratulations on your upcoming marriage with love by Brenda Levine and family In Observance of the Yahrzeit of: Yehoshua Heilman by Brenda Levine and Janet Kaiman Max Lieff Endowment Fund In Memory of: Annetta Leighton by Dorothy Lieff Leon Goldsmith by Dorothy Lieff R’fuah Shlema: Eddie Saslove by Dorothy Lieff Sam and Ruth Rothman Memorial Fund In Memory of: Lou Eisenberg by Kevin and Rose Kardash Irma and Harold Sachs Family Fund R’fuah Shlema: Debi Shore by Irma Sachs In Memory of: Lou Eisenberg by Irma Sachs In Honour of: Vera and Leslie Klein Mazal tov on the birth of your grandson by Irma Sachs

Stephen and Debra Schneiderman Family Fund In Memory of: Lou Eisenberg by Stephen and Debra Schneiderman; and

by Bunny Cogan In Honour of: Stephen and Debra Schneiderman Mazal tov on the marriage of Stacey to Stephen Rich by Bev and Bryan Glube and family; by Roz and Steve Fremeth; by Bunny Cogan; by Ingrid Levitz; by Anna and Sam Wex; and by Laurie and Carol Pascoe Ralph and Anne Sternberg Memorial Fund In Memory of: Ida Kufsky by Laya and Ted Jacobsen In Observance of the Yahrzeit of: William (Bill) Sternberg by Stephanie Dancey Sarah and Arnie Swedler Family Fund In Memory of: Lou Eisenberg by Arnie Swedler and Rhoda Zaitlin Eric Weiner and Arlene Godfrey Family Fund In Memory of: Ida Kufsky by Miriam Weiner Lou Eisenberg by Arlene Godfrey, Eric, Melissa and Laura Weiner; and by Miriam Weiner Ida Kufsky by Arlene Godfrey, Eric, Melissa and Laura Weiner In Honour of: Miriam Weiner In honour of your 90th birthday by Arlene Godfrey, Eric, Melissa and Laura Weiner Larry Gradus In honour of your 75th birthday by Arlene Godfrey, Eric, Melissa and Laura Weiner Milton and Mary (Terry) Viner Family Fund In Observance of the Yahrzeit of: Arthur Viner by Millie Schaenfield Toby and Joel Yan Family Fund In Memory of: Saul and Deanna Silverman by Toby and Joel Yan Carole and Norman Zagerman Family Fund In Honour of: Linda and Ken Mirsky Mazal tov on the marriage of Ross to Nancy by Carole and Norman Zagerman and Andrea and Laurie Arron In Memory of: Lou Eisenberg by Carole and Norman Zagerman *************** Capital Campaign Fund In Honour of: Rachel and Ian Weiner Mazal tov on Blake’s arrival with love by Carol and Larry Gradus Mr. and Mrs. Bruce Weiner Mazal tov on your grandson Blake’s arrival with love by Carol and Larry Gradus Eleanor and Paul Weiner Mazal tov on your great-grandson Blake’s arrival with love by Carol and Larry Gradus Stephen and Debra Schneiderman Mazal tov on Stacey’s marriage to Stephen Rich by Seymour and Joy Mender and family Marilyn and David Akman Mazal tov on Ryan’s academic achievements by Seymour and Joy Mender and family Therapeutics Fund In Honour of: Stephen and Debra Schneiderman Mazal tov on the marriage of Stacey to Stephen Rich by Joanna and Ira Abrams and family Recreation/Music Fund In Memory of: Lou Eisenberg by Evelyn Greenberg and Irving Taylor ***************

Alyce Baker Happy special birthday with love by Fran and Mort Ross Linda and Ken Mirsky Congratulations on the marriage of Ross to Nancy with love by Fran and Mort Ross Chuck Merovitz Mazal tov on receiving the Outstanding Volunteer Fundraiser Award with love by Fran and Mort Ross Liz Petigorsky and Semyon Ioffe Happy New Year by Mariel Griffith and Emy Antoinette Capelle Happy 90th birthday by David Cohen; and by Marion Vexler; and by Nancy Pleet Sylvia Shier Happy birthday with love by Jean Naemark and family Pearl Torontow Happy birthday with love by Jean Naemark and family Linda and Allen Ward with love and great appreciation by Elaine Hauptman Barbara and Lee Bearmon with love and great appreciation by Elaine Hauptman Gae Pearl with love and great appreciation by Elaine Hauptman Ida and Fred Davis with love and great appreciation by Elaine Hauptman Diane Hamou and Bazalel Zarfaty with love and great appreciation by Elaine Hauptman Esther and Sue Krovitz with love and great appreciation

by Elaine Hauptman Betsy Mark with love and great appreciation by Elaine Hauptman Sam Abramson Happy special birthday by Arlene and Norm Glube Dr. Michael Landau In appreciation by Golda Feig Steinman Michael Moskovic Mazal tov on your special birthday by Jeff Greenberg Bram Potechin With thanks and appreciation by Jeff Greenberg IN MEMORY OF: Harry Fleisher by Fran and Mort Ross; by Rhonda, Danny, Sam, Zachary and Shelby Levine; by Libby and Leo Ratner; by Marilyn Waserman; by Bonnie and Chuck Merovitz; by Karen, Walter, Steven and Mitchell Fogel; by Bonnie and Bruce Engel and family; by Evelyn and Howard Silverman and family; and

by Evie and Scott Miller Molly Narwa by Irwin and Fenja Brodo Abe Fleming a dear father and grandfather by Fran and Mort Ross Clarice Ross a dear sister and sister-in-law by Fran and Mort Ross Bernard Miller by the Osterer family; by Evelyn and Howard Silverman and family Annetta Leighton by Lisa, Nikki and Tess Fischer; by Ann Smutylo; by Bonnie and Chuck Merovitz Lou Eisenberg by Bev and Bryan Glube and family; by Rhonda, Danny, Sam, Zachary and Shelby Levine; by Sol and Sybil Goldmaker; by Ingrid Levitz; by Milton and Joyce Kimmel; by Shirley Viner; by Sylvia Bronsther; by Arlene and Norman Glube; by Bonnie, Bruce, Matt, Hana and Sabrina Engel; by Sam, Anita, Zach and Michelle Lieberman; and by Roz and Norm Stotland Alvin Mallay by Claire and Irving Bercovitch Yvonne Amar by Sarita Walerstein, Susan Heisel, Sye, Jonathan, Shoshana and David Betty Ballon by the Residents, Board and Staff of Hillel Lodge R’FUAH SHLEMA: Debi Shore Liz Petigorsky and Semyon Ioffe; by Ingrid Levitz; by Anita and Mendel Shore; by Sol and Sybil Goldmaker; and by Anne Koffman Mark Zunder by Claire and Irving Bercovitch IN OBSERVANCE OF THE YAHRZEIT OF: Esther Malka Bruner z”l dear mother and grandmother by Al and Elly Bruner and family

IN HONOUR OF: Roger Greenberg Best wishes on your special birthday by Ingrid Levitz

THE LODGE EXPRESSES ITS SINCERE APPRECIATION FOR YOUR KIND SUPPORT AND APOLOGIZES FOR ANY ERRORS OR OMISSIONS. DUE TO SPACE LIMITATIONS, THE WORDING APPEARING IN THE BULLETIN IS NOT NECESSARILY THE WORDING WHICH APPEARED ON THE CARD. GIVING IS RECEIVING – ATTRACTIVE CARDS AVAILABLE FOR ALL OCCASIONS Here’s a good opportunity to recognize an event or convey the appropriate sentiment to someone important to you and at the same time support the Lodge. Card orders may be given to Bev at 613-728-3900, extension 111, 8:30 am to 4:30 pm Monday to Thursday, 8:30 am to 3:30 pm Friday. You may also e-mail your orders to donations@hillel-ltc.com. E-mail orders must include name, address, postal code, and any message to person receiving the card; and, amount of donation, name, address and postal code of the person making the donation. Cards may be paid for by Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Cheque or Cash. Contributions are tax deductible.

November 14, 2011 – Ottawa Jewish Bulletin – Page 21

Student Mira Levine holds the lulav and etrog during Sukkot at the University of Ottawa.

Chabad Student Network provides a home away from home during the holidays

By Yaelle Gang for Chabad Student Network It’s hard for many students living away from home to escape mid-terms and classes to make it home for the holidays. So Ottawa’s Rohr Chabad Student Network (CSN) made it a priority to offer students a place to celebrate.

This past Jewish holiday season, CSN made more than 1,200 meals for students and provided a home to those who could not be with their families.

“A holiday or Shabbat dinner at Chabad nourishes a student’s sense of Jewish identity and provides a spiritual experience, especially through the various prayers, traditional foods and words of inspiration throughout the meal,” said Rabbi Chaim Boyarsky, director CSN. Rabbi Boyarsky explained that, in addition to providing meals, Chabad also led prayer services for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur on campus.

“My experience with Chabad for Rosh Hashanah was a beautiful and enhancing experience,” said Sarah Katz, a second-year Carleton student from Toronto. “It was lovely that people opened their doors to students without expecting anything in return.

It was so generous and selfless.”

To celebrate Sukkot, CSN held daily events in the Sukkah including Pizza in the Hut and a wine and cheese social event for graduate students and young professionals.

On the first night, CSN partnered with the Jewish fraternity Alpha Epsilon Pi and had

about 100 students in the Sukkah.

Rebecca Rosenstock, city-wide president of CSN, said she enjoys celebrating with Chabad because everyone feels at home.

“I thought it was nice that, for people who didn’t have a chance to go home, this was a home away from home and they were able to celebrate the holidays with the same meaning as they would have with their own family,” she said.

This sentiment was shared by Stephanie Avitan of Montreal, a law student at the University of Ottawa.

“Because we are far away from our families, it’s so good to know there is a place to go for the holidays and for Shabbat. What I like about Chabad is that everywhere you go in the world, they are there to welcome you warmly no matter who you are or what your level of observance is. It’s so important to have that.”

CSN also had a plan for students who were so busy they could not make it to any of the events at Chabad House.

“We had a sukkah on both campuses, where hundreds came to make the bracha on the lulav and etrog,” Rabbi Boyarsky said.

To end the holidays, CSN held a street party to celebrate Simchat Torah, which attracted more than 120 students who danced until 11 pm.

Whether students made it out to one event, or all of them, CSN made it possible for students to have a meaningful holiday season.

Page 22 – Ottawa Jewish Bulletin – November 14, 2011

November 14, 2011 – Ottawa Jewish Bulletin – Page 23

Page 24 – Ottawa Jewish Bulletin – November 14, 2011

Did you know Gabriella Goliger won an Ottawa Book Award?

• Girl Unwrapped¸ a novel by Gabriella Goliger, won the 2011 Ottawa Book Award for English Fiction. The jury said the book is “a poignant, compassionate and frequently humorous novel that captures the contradictions and the perseverance of the human heart.”

• Passionate cyclist Manny Agulnick has been leading cycling tours for 16 years. His OK Cycle Tours, which

began with an annual trip to Kennebunkport, Maine, later adding trips to the Netherlands and Denmark, has now expanded to include more than 150 cycle tours in Switzerland, Austria, Germany, Italy, France and Israel.

Some of the outings in Europe are Bike and Boat tours, which give participants the option of cycling or remaining on the barge. “Really neat way to see the world,” says Agulnik. More information is available at okcycletours.com.

• Lise Thaw was presented with the Carole and Norman Zagerman-Machzikei Hadas Compassionate Care Award, an annual award given to a nurse at the Cancer Centre in recognition of exemplary and compassionate patient care.

Established by the Zagermans and Congregation

I’m Jerry of Jerry’s Hobby Reg’d My business is taking your memories out of a box.

I transfer them onto an easy-to-use DVD disk. Just pop it into your DVD player, sit back and enjoy your past on your TV (popcorn not included).

For more information, call me at 613-301-4919 or e-mail me at jerryshobby@bell.net

Did you know?

Benita Baker Machzikei Hadas, through the Ottawa Regional Cancer Foundation, the award honours nurses who demonstrate exceptional professionalism and compassion in assisting cancer patients.

The award reads, in part, “Lise, through your leadership, dedication and compassion, you have become a cancer champion in our community.”

• Right-winger Jason Bailey has retired from hockey after his third professional season. The 24-year-old was drafted by the Anaheim Ducks and was later traded to the Ottawa Senators. He spent the past two seasons with the BSens in Binghamton. Bailey’s lawsuit against the Ducks alleging anti-Semitism has not yet been resolved.

He is home in Ottawa and attending Carleton University.

• Some people have all the luck. Nathan Smith won a Rolex watch in a raffle at the Maharaja’s Ball last month.

This past summer, he won a Fiat at a charity golf tournament. He should definitely buy a lottery ticket.

• If you are wearing fur earmuffs, they were likely given to you at a fundraising event supported by Stewart Chadnick and Pat Flesher Furs. Handing out earmuffs to all event guests has become Chadnick’s trademark, as he did most recently at the Hopewell Eating Disorder Support Centre fundraiser.

If you know something that we all should know, tell me, so I can tell the community.

Send e-mail to me at didyouknowottawa@gmail.com.

November 14, 2011 – Ottawa Jewish Bulletin – Page 25

Is it possible to find a speaker who is both balanced and passionate?

Another community-wide event and I’m left impressed with the many volunteer and staff efforts to co-ordinate hundreds of women, set the tables beautifully, organize door prizes, get local business sponsors, corral table captains, and run a great party. But, the next morning, I was left with a hangover. And it wasn’t from the kosher Shiraz. It was a moral hangover, you might say, a somewhat queasy feeling that we are, again, missing the point.

Again, we invited a speaker who was intelligent, engaging and dynamic. Miri Eisin is an example for women the world over who wish to chip away at the traditionally maledominated military echelons. When Eisin retired from the IDF in 2004, she had earned the rank of colonel, a rare feat indeed for an Israeli woman.

But, again, we invited a speaker to deliver a message that I, for one, am both weary and wary of. Eisin spoke eloquently about the Gilad Shalit trade, framing it in terms of tough choices that governments have to make. But then her talk turned troubling. Having mentioned the term “Jewish values,” she went on to attack Arab culture in fairly unsavoury terms, including suggesting specifically that Arabs desire to view the corpses of their enemies. Referring to the Arab Spring, she noted that Arabic does not have its own term for democracy.

Now let’s unpack this.

Can we have a discussion about Jewish values that does more than scratch the surface? Does everyone in the room even know them and feel them, or even agree on what they are? And, most importantly, can we talk about Jewish values without needing to denigrate other cultures?

I’m going to leave aside the Gilad Shalit discussion here.

Readers can consult my perspective on it in my Fifth Question blog at Haaretz.com. And, to Eisin’s credit, she did attempt to shed light on how rationality and emotions can work together in interesting ways in diplomacy.

But, let’s talk about the business of viewing dead bodies.

The evening Eisin said these words, I reflected on what I had been doing that very afternoon. Taking a short break from working on my book manuscript, I clicked on footage of a bloodied Muammar Gaddafi being captured and attacked. Gross, huh? Indeed, I had to turn it off after a minute. Am I the only Jew who clicked on this CBS video?

And, aside from me, are Arabs the only viewers of CBS News? An absurd discussion, I know, but absurdity begets absurdity.

Let’s talk about Arabic and the word for democracy. As Eisin said, Arabs say “democratiya.” Well, the Hebrew word for democracy is exactly the same. And guess what?

So is the word for democracy in French, Spanish and English, give or take a consonant or a vowel. You get the idea.

At the end of the evening, one friend asked me whether I think it is possible to find a speaker who is both balanced and passionate. Awoken in the middle of the night by the musical beds that goes on in our house with two restless kids, I had a few minutes to come up with names of five Jewish women out there who can lend a perspective that I think is sorely needed at our community events.

A Ruth and a Naomi: Ruth Messinger, head of American Jewish World Service, has altered the way we think about tikkun olam and how we put it into practice on the global stage. While Messinger spoke at Ottawa’s Lion of Judah event in 2007, it might be time to bring her back to

Values, Ethics, Community Mira Sucharov speak to a broader audience.

Naomi Chazan, a past member and deputy speaker of the Knesset, is president of the New Israel Fund where she strives to make Israel a more socially just society.

Two Rabbis: Rabbis Sharon Brous and Jill Jacobs, who are both on the Newsweek/Daily Beast list of “America’s 50 Most Influential Rabbis,” show how we can create dynamic and innovative sacred communities, and strive for social justice in all realms, even in the Israeli-Palestinian domain.

Rabbi Brous heads the Los Angeles spiritual community IKAR and does not shy away from transformative thinking on Israel in her downloadable sermons.

Rabbi Jacobs is executive director of Rabbis for Human Rights.

Free to Be: Letty Cottin Pogrebin, a founding editor of Ms. Magazine and a past-president of Americans for Peace Now, is at the top of her game in promoting women’s issues and nuanced thinking on Israel. And she consulted on my favourite children’s album, Free to Be You and Me, a transformative piece of work.

All these women have passion. All are complex thinkers.

And any of them would help breathe fresh air into how we think about Israel, Jewish values and social justice while serving as an antidote to the self/othering messaging this community seems to crave so desperately.

Mira Sucharov, an associate professor of political science at Carleton University, blogs at Haaretz.com.

DNA as a tool for genealogical research

The Ottawa Jewish Bulletin may also contact you from time to time to ask about your account or to conduct market research and surveys in an effort to continually improve our product service offerings.

John Diener Nashville whose Y-DNA, the type that gets passed down the male line, matched mine exactly in a 37-marker test. According to the website, the probability of our being very closely related was extremely high. When I contacted him, I was thrilled to find out his family came from a town in Ukraine very close to where mine lived. We have since met on several occasions and, while we haven’t yet figured out how, we accept that we are cousins, and hope eventually to find the link that will join our two family trees. Since then, I continue to receive e-mails whenever newly tested people are found to have genetic characteristics similar to mine.

Over the years, the cost of DNA testing has dropped significantly. More and more people are having it done. Obviously, as time passes, there will be more matches. With this in mind, the Jewish Genealogical Society of Ottawa is presenting DNA for Genealogy, an evening with Jay Sage, Tuesday, December 6, 7:30 pm, at the Soloway Jewish Community Centre.

To enable us to more efficiently provide the products and services you have requested from us, the Ottawa Jewish Bulletin may share your personal information with the Jewish Federation of Ottawa, the Ottawa

Jewish Community Foundation and the Soloway Jewish Community Centre.

If you would like more information, or to speak to the Privacy Officer, please call 613-798-4696, ext. 256.

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The Ottawa Jewish Bulletin Publishing Co. Ltd. collects and uses your personal information primarily for the purpose of providing you with the products and services you have requested from us.

Connecting the branches

Jay served as co-president of the Jewish Genealogical Society of Greater Boston from 2000 to 2003 and is currently coeditor of its journal, Mass-Pocha. He is also a member of the International Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies Board of Directors.

Jay presented this lecture at the annual International Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies conference in Washington, DC, this past August. In his Ottawa talk, he will explain the basics of human genetics, the different types of testing available, the costs involved, and how to use the results of the analysis to further one’s genealogical research.

The Jewish Genealogical Society of Ottawa has an e-mail list for reminders about special events like this and notices of our regular monthly meetings. Let us know at jgsottawa@gmail.com if you’d like to receive the e-mails.

Getting married, celebrating a special birthday or anniversary, just had a Bar or Bat Mitzvah?

Share your good news (photo too)!

To advertise call Cindy Manor-Kennedy 613-798-4696, ext. 256 Email: cmanor@ottawajewishbulletin.com

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Over the past decade, the subject of DNA has come up almost daily on the news as our police departments use DNA analysis to solve crimes. It also figures prominently in the plots of such television shows as the various versions of CSI and Law and Order.

While most of us understand that all living things have their own DNA that serves as a unique identifier to define that particular being or organism, when terms like ‘chromosomes,’ ‘mutations’ and ‘mitochondria’ are brought into the conversation, we tend to get overwhelmed by the scientific jargon.

Four or five years ago, I received an e-mail from a genealogical colleague about a project that intrigued me. The organizers wished to do DNA testing on Jews whose ancestry was from the former Austrian province of Galicia, an area that today straddles the Polish-Ukrainian border. As my father’s family hailed from there, I decided to participate. Without really understanding the science, I sent away for my kit, which arrived from Family Tree DNA, a company in Houston, Texas, about two weeks later. I eagerly followed the instructions, swabbed the inside of my cheek, put the samples in the special vial with the preserving fluid, and sent the package back in the return envelope.

A few weeks later, I received an e-mail telling me my DNA had been received and analyzed, and giving me instructions on how to log in to the company website. On the site were details about people who had similar DNA to mine, and great detail on how to interpret the results. There was one man from

• Mazal Tov • Mazal Tov • Mazal Tov • Mazal Tov • Mazal Tov •

Page 26 – Ottawa Jewish Bulletin – November 14, 2011

Novel focuses on the real-life chairman of the Lodz Ghetto The Emperor of Lies

By Steve Sem-Sandberg Translated from the Swedish by Sarah Death House of Anansi Press 664 Pages Steve Sem-Sandberg’s historical novel, The Emperor of Lies, is a hologram – the reader walks through the Lodz Ghetto street by street, feeling the desolate cold, the beast of starvation, the splash of watery soup in tin cups, the lasso of barbed wire that separates the Nazi army on the outside from the Jewish police state inside.

The Lodz Ghetto is not a concentration camp, although most of its 200,000 inhabitants would eventually be sent to Auschwitz. The ghetto is a kind of hermetically sealed environment – like a lunar colony – with its own prison, hospitals, historical archives, currency, food coupons and centralized food distribution system. All of this created under the real life leadership of Mordechai Chaim Rumkowski, known as the Eldest of the Jews, the main character of this novel.

Relying on historical documents, mainly the Chronicles of the Lodz Ghetto, the records kept by Rumkowski’s Department of Archives, and the testimony of survivors, Sem-Sandberg, one of Sweden’s most critically acclaimed authors, creates a panorama of ghetto life between September 1942 and January 1945. Like Tolstoy in War and Peace, Sem-Samberg explores the reactions of individuals trapped in the web of an historical moment following the fates of labourers, religious mystics, educated deportees arriving bewildered from Prague and Berlin facing the exigencies of survival, the children in the orphanage created by Rumkowski, the Jewish police force, the archivists who work to record and preserve the life of the community, and the listeners to hidden radios who risk

Book Review Maxine Miska execution to report on the progress of the war.

The central exposition of the book is the complex character and motivation of Rumkowski, the title’s “emperor of lies.”

Rumkowski believed, or perhaps deluded himself into believing, that, by fulfilling an essential purpose for the Nazis, he could keep the Jews in the ghetto alive. He created a series of workshops that made Nazi uniforms and boots, clothing, prefab housing, and even lingerie for Berlin boutiques. His slave labourers worked at an exhausting pace with inadequate food in order to remain too useful to kill. But Rumkowski was bound by the logic of his construct: if the workshops made the Jews useful to the Nazis, then the non-workers – the elderly, infirm and children – would be sent away by his consent.

The choice was never really his. He received only the slightest of concessions from the Nazis. Children under age nine were ripped from their parents arms, while hospitals and orphanages were emptied and half-naked patients loaded onto trucks to the crematoria.

Rumkowski is an emperor whose empire is going up in smoke, until, in the final year of the war, the factory equipment is trucked out, the workers and families “relocated,” the ghetto population emptied out, supposedly to work at other sites, but, in fact, to go to Auschwitz. The chairman and his

family, promised private transport, find themselves in the same situation, caught in the faulty logic he created.

Sem-Sandberg does not address the broader questions: Would Rumkowski’s plan have worked had the war ended earlier or if the Gestapo had not taken over administration of the ghetto, putting the Final Solution above production of materiel? Did he really create a controlled situation where everyone was hungry but no one who worked died of starvation?

Instead, Sem-Sandberg produces, layer by layer, a three-dimensional portrait of a man who created and maintained, through his relations with the Germans and through the terror of the Jewish police, a totalitarian city-state. Along with the real Rumkowski, he creates a cluster of fictional characters to stand for the totality of suffering in the Lodz Ghetto.

Sem-Sandberg has excellent control of language: the pain, the sickness and the passions of this condensed human existence, the heat of Lodz summer, and the mud and snow of winter are palpable. His tone is detached, almost like Primo Levi’s with the same voltage produced by the differential between his calm voice and what he describes.

Sem-Sandberg is the author of 12 novels and four works of nonfiction. He has won a number of literary prizes, including the August Prize, the Aftonbladet Literary Award, and the De Nios Grand Award, and was a finalist for the prestigious Nordic Council Literary Award on two occasions.

The Greenberg Families Library will present Steve SemSandberg speaking about The Emperor of Lies on Thursday, November 24, 7:30 pm, at the Soloway Jewish Community Centre (JCC). There is no charge for the author talk.

Maxine Miska is assistant executive director of the Soloway JCC.

Subscription about to lapse?

RENEW TODAY! Call 613-798-4696, ext. 256 or 242.

November 14, 2011 – Ottawa Jewish Bulletin – Page 27

FOUNDATION DONATIONS Our future is in your hands

Ottawa Jewish Community Foundation To make a donation and/or send a tribute card, call Sarah Brantz (613-798-4696 ext. 274) e-mail: donation@ojcf.ca • website: www.OJCF.ca

Join us in building our community by supporting these local agencies AJA 50+ ENDOWMENT FUND Anniversary wishes to: Ruth and Ron Levitan by Cecily Bregman.

SHIRLEY AND SHIER BERMAN FUND FOR OTTAWA JEWISH ARCHIVES Special birthday wishes to: Shier Berman by Morton and Sheila Baslaw.

Congratulations to: Dawn Logan on Star and Shawn’s August wedding by Shier and Shirley Berman.

HILLEL ACADEMY ENDOWMENT FUND In memory of: Lou Eisenberg by Sid and Cally Kardash.

New Year wishes to: Louis and Muriel Kardish by Sid, Cally and Jonathan Kardash.

HILLEL LODGE LEGACY FUND In memory of: Ida Kufsky by Arnold Greenberg.

OTTAWA POST JEWISH WAR VETERANS FUND Anniversary wishes to: Philip and Wilma Pinkus on their 60th wedding anniversary by Jeffrey and Felice Pleet.

SOLOWAY JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTRE EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION FUND In memory of: Ashley Grant by the Ganon Preschool Morahs.

Lou Eisenberg by the Ganon Preschool Morahs.

SOLOWAY JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTRE ENDOWMENT FUND Mazal Tov to: Bob Wener on being named Fellow of the Association of Chartered Accountants by Gary Altman, Pam Wener, Corey and Daniel; by Evelyn Wener; by Zoe Oreck and by Carol and Peter Oreck.

AJA 50+ DAVID SMITH OTTAWA JEWISH COMMUNITY SCHOOL SCHOLARSHIP FUND AKIVA EVENING HIGH SCHOOL ENDOWMENT FUND ADINA BEN PORAT MACHON SARAH TORAH EDUCATION FUND DORIS BRONSTEIN TALMUD TORAH AFTERNOON SCHOOL FUND

BARRY FISHMAN OTTAWA JEWISH BULLETIN SCHOLARSHIP FUND MARTIN GLATT PARLIAMENT LODGE B’NAI BRITH PAST PRESIDENTS’ FUND MENDEL AND VALERIE GOOD HOLOCAUST CONTINUING EDUCATION FUND GREENBERG FAMILIES LIBRARY FUND HILLEL ACADEMY CHILDREN OF THE BOOK AWARD FUND JEWISH COMMUNITY CEMETERY HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL FUND JEWISH FAMILY SERVICES AGENCY FUND JEWISH MEN’S SOFTBALL LEAGUE FUND JEWISH STUDENTS ASSOCIATION HILLEL FUND JEWISH YOUTH LIBRARY OF OTTAWA ENDOWMENT FUND DAVID “THE BEAR” KARDASH CAMP B’NAI BRITH MEMORIAL FUND OTTAWA JEWISH CEMETERIES ZICHARON FUND OTTAWA JEWISH COMMUNITY ENDOWMENT FUND OTTAWA JEWISH HISTORICAL SOCIETY FUND OTTAWA LODGE B’NAI BRITH #885 PAST PRESIDENTS FUND OTTAWA LODGE B’NAI BRITH #885 PRESIDENTS SCHOLARSHIP FUND OTTAWA MODERN JEWISH SCHOOL FUND OTTAWA TORAH INSTITUTE TORAH EDUCATION FUND PINCHAS ZUKERMAN MUSIC EDUCATION FUND RAMBAM MAIMONIDES JEWISH CONTINUITY FUND SOLOWAY JEWISH COMMUNITY SUMMER CAMP SCHOLARSHIP FUND SOLOWAY JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTRE YOUTH SERVICES FUND TORAH ACADEMY OF OTTAWA TORAH EDUCATION FUND SARA AND ZEEV VERED ISRAEL CULTURAL PROGRAM FUND YITZHAK RABIN HIGH SCHOOL FUND IN MEMORY OF EVA WINTHROP

The Board of Directors of the Ottawa Jewish Community Foundation acknowledges with thanks contributions to the following funds as of October 25, 2011.

MORRIE AND HELEN EISEN ENDOWMENT FUND Special birthday wishes to: Jack Gould by Helen Eisen.

ABELSON FAMILY ENDOWMENT FUND Birthday wishes to: Robert Abelson by Edmond Sussman.

LOU EISENBERG CAMP B’NAI BRITH SCHOLARSHIP FUND In memory of: Lou Eisenberg by Clair Krantzberg; by Ronald Kanter and Enid Slack; by David and Judith Kalin; by Shelley Rothman and family; by Michael Kanter and Karen Robbins and family and Edith Kanter; by Marla and David Baker and family; by Annette Rapoport; by Annette Foster;

by Ian and Randi Sherman and family; by Alvin and Diana Malomet; by Daniel and Marilyn; by Sidney and Cally Kardash; by Lilyan Philipp and

by Millie Weinstein and Bruce Weinstein.

ARNOLD AND BELLA ABRAHAMSON MEMORIAL FUND Anniversary wishes to: Gerald and Helen Polowin by Bryan Paisley and Debora Dover-Paisley and family and Michael and Pam Dover and family.

Ben and Dorothy Greenberg by Mark and Ann Dover.

ANNETTE ALBERT ENDOWMENT FUND In appreciation to: Riva Levitan and Richard Roth by Ilana Albert-Novick and Mitchell Novick and family.

MARY AND ISRAEL (AL) ALLICE MEMORIAL FUND In memory of: Harry Fleisher by Irving and Beverly Swedko.

ANNE AND LOUIS ARRON MEMORIAL FUND Special birthday wishes to: Miriam Pleet by Stanley and Daphne Arron.

IRVING AND ESTHER BELLMAN MEMORIAL FUND In memory of: Alvin Mallay by Mitchell Bellman and Nicola Hamer.

JAMIE BEREZIN ENDOWMENT FUND In memory of: Lou Eisenberg by Frank and Susan Danoff.

DAVID AND QUEENIE COHEN MEMORIAL FUND In memory of: Claire Kevanstein by David and Judith Kalin.

PHILLIP COHEN MEMORIAL FUND In memory of: Morrie Krantzberg by Deborah Cohen, David Cohen and Jan Cohen-Lion.

SANDI AND EDDY COOK ENDOWMENT FUND In memory of: Ida Kufsky by Eddy and Sandi Cook and family.

Lou Eisenberg by Eddy and Sandi Cook and family.

Cecelia Levitan by Eddy and Sandi Cook.

Mazal Tov to: Ron and Avalee Prohogan on the birth of their first grandson, Micah Aaron by Eddy and Sandy Cook and family.

Hy and Phyllis Ackerman on the marriage of their son Loren to Samantha by Eddy and Sandi Cook.

Anniversary wishes to: Archie and Linda Cogan by Eddy and Sandi Cook.

John and Sunny Tavel on their 45th anniversary by Eddy and Sandi Cook.

JOSEPH AND JEAN DOVER ENDOWMENT FUND New Year wishes to: Lewis and Donna Greenberg and family by Gerald and Madeleine Dover.

JOSEPH AND ESTHER EISENSTADT MEMORIAL FUND In loving memory of: Joseph and Esther Eisenstadt, beloved parents by Joan Sacksner.

In memory of: Susie Grossman by Joan Sacksner.

R’Fuah Sh’lemah to: Steven Yak by Joan Sacksner.

CYNTHIA AND ABE ENGEL ENDOWMENT FUND In memory of: Harry Fleisher by Cynthia Engel and family.

Bernard Miller by Cynthia Engel and family.

Alvin Mallay by Cynthia Engel and family.

MOSHE AND LILY FEIG ENDOWMENT FUND In memory of: Steve Sherman by Lily Feig.

Lou Eisenberg by Lily Feig.

ALAN FREED FAMILY FUND In memory of: Harry Fleisher by Alan Freed and Sharon Rosentzveig.

ABE AND SYLVIA FREEMAN FAMILY FUND Congratulations to: Ron and Avalee Prehogan on the birth of their grandson, Micah Aaron.

STEVEN AND ROZ FREMETH FAMILY FUND Mazal Tov to: Howard Fremeth and Melanie Teplinsky on their recent marriage by Sheldon and Corinne Taylor.

ALFRED AND KAYSA FRIEDMAN ENDOWMENT FUND R’Fuah Sh’lemah to: Bill Altow by Alfred and Kaysa Friedman.

EVA, DIANE AND JACK GOLDFIELD MEMORIAL FUND In memory of: Ida Kufsky by Fay Koffman.

LARRY AND SHEILA HARTMAN ENDOWMENT FUND In memory of: Barnard Miller by Larry and Sheila Hartman.

HY AND PAULINE HOCHBERG ENDOWMENT FUND In memory of: Lou Eisenberg by Pauline Hochberg and family.

Continued on page 28

Page 28 – Ottawa Jewish Bulletin – November 14, 2011

FOUNDATION DONATIONS DOROTHY AND HY HYMES ENDOWMENT FUND New Year wishes to: Corinne Levine by Hy and Dorothy Hymes.

R’Fuah Sh’lemah to: Debi Shore by Hy and Dorothy Hymes.

Sam Kotzer by Hy and Dorothy Hymes.

In memory of: Lou Eisenberg by Hy and Dorothy Hymes.

JEREMY KANTER MEMORIAL FUND In memory of: Lou Eisenberg by Donna and Eric Levin and

by Suzanne Jacobson.

MAX AND DORA KARP KAPINSKY MEMORIAL FUND Special birthday wishes to: Estelle Keyfitz by Ruth Karp and family and Arthur Max. SAMUEL AND TILLIE KARDISH MEMORIAL FUND In memory of: Cecelia Kardish by Leonard and Mary Potechin.

LIBBY AND STAN KATZ FAMILY COMMUNITY ENDOWMENT FUND Speedy recovery to: Libby Katz by Gordon and Laura Spergel.

ARTHUR AND SARAH KIMMEL MEMORIAL FUND R’Fuah Sh’lemah to: Debi Shore by Norman and Isabel Lesh.

Louis Goldmaker by Norman and Isabel Lesh.

Birthday wishes to: Antoinette Capelle by Roslyn and Arnold Kimmel and family.

In memory of: Lou Eisenberg by Roslyn and Arnold Kimmel.

SHARON KOFFMAN ATHLETIC SCHOLARSHIP FUND Mazal Tov to: Reva and Sandor Derrick and families on the birth of their granddaughter, Hanna Ruby Derrick Potter by Sandra Zagon.

Birthday wishes to: Milton Shaffer by Sandra Zagon.

KRANTZBERG KRANE FAMILY FUND In memory of: Morris Krantzberg by Sam and Myra Krane and family.

SUSAN AND DAVID KRIGER ENDOWMENT FUND In memory of: Edythe Abron by David and Susan Kriger.

ISSIE AND EDITH LANDAU ENDOWMENT FUND Mazal Tov to: Leonard and Aviva Lightstone on Nava’s engagement to Jonathan Hoffman by Edie Landau.

BERNIE AND IDA LESH ENDOWMENT FUND In memory of: Ida Kufsky by Ida Lesh.

SAUL AND EDNA GOLDFARB B’NAI MITZVAH FUND

What do your “kids� really care about?

Do they care about hanging out with their friends? Playing sports?

Playing their musical instruments?

How about helping the homeless in their community? Fighting antiSemitism? Supporting people with disabilities?

Through the Ottawa Jewish Community Foundation, our community’s youth can achieve both! They can be the active individuals that they are all while making a difference through tzedakah, one gift at a time.

Teens can make their Bar and Bat Mitzvah’s an extra special event by opening a B’nai Mitzvah Fund in their name. This gives them the vehicle to support causes dear to their hearts.

Forever!

You can make a difference in your child’s life by encouraging your son or daughter to establish a B’nai Mitzvah Fund. Their participation in the B’nai Mitzvah Club, which is for teens age 12 up to pre-post secondary, will affect the rest of their lives in a positive and philanthropic manner.

NORMAN AND ISABEL LESH ENDOWMENT FUND In memory of: Alvin Mallay by Norman and Isabel Lesh.

Lou Eisenberg by Norman and Isabel Lesh.

SEYMOUR AND JOY MENDER FAMILY FUND In memory of: Lou Eisenberg by Joy, Seymour, Jess, David and Jared Mender.

SANDRA AND JACIE LEVINSON ENDOWMENT FUND Speedy recovery to: Richard Fage by Jacie and Sandra Levinson.

CHUCK AND BONNIE MEROVITZ FAMILY FUND Mazal Tov to: Bob Wener on being elected as a Fellow of the Chartered Accountants Institute of Ontario

by Chuck and Bonnie Merovitz.

In memory of: Lou Eisenberg by Chuck and Bonnie Merovitz.

RON AND RUTH LEVITAN ENDOWMENT FUND Anniversary wishes to: Ron and Ruth Levitan by Norman and Sandra Slover.

SALLY AND ELLIOTT LEVITAN ENDOWMENT FUND Speedy recovery to: Debi Shore by Elliott and Sally Levitan.

In memory of: Lou Eisenberg by Elliott and Sally Levitan.

JOSEPH AND EVELYN LIEFF ENDOWMENT FUND In memory of: Morris Krantzberg by Joseph and Evelyn Lieff.

Speedy recovery to: Richard Fage by Joseph and Evelyn Lieff.

LOBEL FAMILY ENDOWMENT FUND R’Fuah Sh’lemah to: Corrine Levine by Goldie Lobel.

Birthday wishes to: Roslyn Sternberg by Goldie Lobel.

Miriam Weiner by Goldie Lobel.

RHODA AND JEFFREY MILLER FAMILY FUND In memory of: Bernard Miller by Rhoda and Jeffrey Miller and family.

Lou Eisenberg by Rhoda, Jeffrey, Howard and Sara Miller.

DOROTHY AND HERBERT NADOLNY ENDOWMENT FUND New Year wishes to: Dorothy Nadolny by Irving Taylor and Evelyn Greenberg.

HARRY AND BERTHA PLEET MEMORIAL FUND In memory of: Norman Gould by Pinchas and Barbara Pleet.

JACK AND MIRIAM PLEET ENDOWMENT FUND Special birthday wishes to: Norman Lieff by Miriam Pleet.

In memory of: Lou Eisenberg by Miriam Pleet.

SAMUEL AND LEEMA MAGIDSON ENDOWMENT FUND In memory of: Harry Fleisher by Leema Magidson and family.

Birthday wishes to: Antoinette Capelle by Leema Magidson and family.

JACOB MALOMET MEMORIAL FUND Speedy recovery to: Stanley Winthrop by Alvin and Diana Malomet.

ANNE (BLAIR) AND HYMAN MAYBERGER ENDOWMENT FUND In memory of: Lou Eisenberg by Morris and Shelley Schachnow.

PREHOGAN FAMILY FUND IN MEMORY OF AARON HARRY COHEN Mazal Tov to: Ron and Avalee Prehogan on the birth of their grandson, Micah Aaron by Stephen and Heidi Polowin.

PHYLLIS AND ALAN RACKOW ENDOWMENT FUND In memory of: Lou Eisenberg by Alan and Phyllis Rackow.

MOE AND SARAH RESNICK ENDOWMENT FUND In memory of: Lou Eisenberg by Gordon, Penny, Zac and Steven Resnick.

Continued on page 29

Now is the time to encourage your child to become a charitable, responsible member of the Jewish Community.

To obtain information on how to open a B’nai Mitzvah Fund for as little as $250, call the Foundation office today at 613-798-4696 extension 252 or email info@ojcf.ca.

Additional information can be found on our website at www.OJCF.ca.

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613-233-1143

www.mcgarryfamily.ca

November 14, 2011 – Ottawa Jewish Bulletin – Page 29

FOUNDATION DONATIONS FLORENCE AND GDALYAH ROSENFELD ENDOWMENT FUND In memory of: Gdalyah Rosenfeld by Bill and Sharon Cattie.

ELAYNE AND WESLEY SCHACTER ENDOWMENT FUND In memory of: Harry Fleisher by Wesley and Elayne Schacter and family.

Lou Eisenberg by Myra and Bert Shinwell and Joanne and Irwin Igra and family.

STELLA AND LOUIS SLACK MEMORIAL FUND Birthday wishes to: Doris Bronstein by Lester and Myra Aronson and family.

In memory of: Alvin Mallay by Lester and Myra Aronson.

IRVING AND HARRIET SLONE ENDOWMENT FUND Anniversary wishes to: Irving and Harriet Slone by Stuart and Carole Levine.

JACK AND LINDA SMITH ENDOWMENT FUND In memory of: Lou Eisenberg by Karla, Joe and Kayla Morrison; by Leiba Krantzberg and by Linda Smith and family.

Molly Narwa by Karla, Joe and Kayla Morrison.

Morris Krantzberg by Leiba, Daniel and Lianna Krantzberg.

Mazal Tov to: Avalee and Ron Prehogan on the birth of

their grandson, Micah Aaron by Leiba Krantzberg.

GUSTAVE AND ESTHER SOLMAN ENDOWMENT FUND In memory of: Gustave Solman by Andrea, Jamie and Danny Solman and by Carolyn, Gary and Micah Polowin.

FREDA AND PHIL SWEDKO MEMORIAL FUND In memory of: Lou Eisenberg by Irving and Beverly Swedko.

CLAIRE AND SAM TANNER MEMORIAL FUND In memory of: Lou Eisenberg by Stephen and Lana Tanner and by Eli and Sandra Hoffman.

CHARLES AND RAE TAVEL MEMORIAL FUND Anniversary wishes to: Sunny and John Tavel on their 45th anniversary by Leonard and Barbara Farber.

Ron and Ruth Levitan on their 45th anniversary by Leonard and Barbara Farber.

In memory of: Norman Gould by Lilyan Philipp.

STEPHEN AND GAIL VICTOR ENDOWMENT FUND In memory of: Lou Eisenberg by Stephen and Gail Victor.

Alvin Mallay by Stephen and Gail Victor.

HAZE WAINBERG FAMILY FUND In memory of: Bernard Miller by Mervin and Haze Wainberg.

Donating made easy at www.OJCF.ca

Molly Narwa by Judy, Jonathan, Mara and Rebecca Bosloy.

Bernard Miller by Judy, Jonathan, Mara and Rebecca Bosloy.

MIRIAM AND LOUIS WEINER ENDOWMENT FUND In memory of: Harry Fleisher by Miriam Weiner.

Dorothy Sanster-Katz by Miriam Weiner.

Gus Solman by Miriam Weiner.

HALTON/WEISS FAMILY FUND Mazal Tov to: Ron and Avalee Prehogan on the birth of their new grandson, Micah Aaron by Ron and Debbie Weiss.

Harris and Ilana Prehogan on the birth of their son, Micah Aaron by Ron and Debbie Weiss.

Shelley Rothman on the marriage of her son, Stuart Rothman by Ron and Debbie Weiss.

IRVING AND DIANE WEXLER FAMILY FUND In memory of: Bernard Miller by Carol Segal, Adam, Jen, Morgan and Paige Segal and Felicia Segal.

Harry Fleisher by Carol Segal, Adam, Jen, Morgan and Paige Segal and Felicia Segal.

CAROLE AND NORMAN ZAGERMAN COMMUNITY ENDOWMENT FUND Best wishes to: Norman Zagerman by Lynne Oreck-Wener and Bob Wener.

ZIPES KARANOFSKY FAMILY ENDOWMENT FUND Anniversary wishes to: Rick and Helen Zipes on their 35th anniversary by Connie, Kyle, Erin, Michael, Audrey and Griffin.

Mazal tov to: Sary and Earl Karanofsky on the birth of their second grandchild, Emily Sarah by Rick and Helen Zipes Susan and Frank Friedman on the birth of their second granddaughter, Emily Sarah by Rick and Helen Zipes.

THE SAUL AND EDNA GOLDFARB B’NAI MITZVAH PROGRAM MARA BOSLOY B’NAI MITZVAH FUND In memory of: Lou Eisenberg by Judy, Jonathan, Mara and Rebecca Bosloy.

HANNAH GABRIELLE GENNIS B’NAI MITZVAH FUND In memory of: Lou Eisenberg by Philip and Sandy Gennis.

JOSHUA KOFSKY B’NAI MITZVAH FUND In appreciation to: Rabbi Reuven and Leah Bulka by Kofsky and family.

Cantor Pinchus and Sarah Levinson by Kofsky and family.

In memory of: Helen Rubin by Jeff, Liz, Ben and Kofsky.

Speedy recovery to: Mark Zunder by Jeff, Liz, Josh and Kofsky.

Josh Josh

Josh

Ben

LIEFF FAMILY B’NAI MITZVAH FUND Special birthday wishes to: Miriam Pleet by Norman Lieff and Francie Greenspoon and family.

DAHLIA AND ZACHARY SHABSOVE B’NAI MITZVAH FUND In memory of: Bernard Miller by Charles, Adrienne, Dahlia and Zachary Shabsove.

Harry Fleisher by Charles, Adrienne, Dahlia and Zachary Shabsove.

Lou Eisenberg by Charles, Adrienne, Dahlia and Zachary Shabsove.

R’Fuah Sh’lemah to: Roslyn Gershon by Charles, Adrienne, Dahlia and Zachary Shabsove.

Contributions may be made online at www.OJCF.ca or by contacting Sarah Brantz at 613-798-4696 extension 274, Monday to Friday or by email at donation@ojcf.ca. Attractive cards are sent to convey the appropriate sentiments.

All donations are acknowledged with a charitable receipt. We accept Visa, MasterCard and Amex.

Donations can be made for all occasions and life-cycle events.

Use our online donation form to send one or multiple tribute cards to your friends and loved ones in one secure transaction.

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Page 30 – Ottawa Jewish Bulletin – November 14, 2011

With apologies to T.S. Eliot, November is the cruelest month “April is the cruelest month,” wrote T.S. Eliot, in his famous poem, “The Waste Land.”

I’m afraid I have to disagree. For me, without a doubt, November is the cruelest month ever.

A few weeks ago, I was out to dinner at Juniper, and one of the entrée selections on the menu was Parmesan-ricotta gnocchi with tomato-basil-butter sauce and not-yet-fallvegetables.

“What the heck are not-yet-fall-vegetables?” we asked our waiter.

He explained the chef is in denial about the seasons changing and about accepting the fact that we are, indeed, deep in the throes of fall.

I can so relate to this chef. I feel exactly the same way!

September and October I can handle. But, by November, when all the leaves are off the trees, everything is brown, the wind is howling, and I have to wrap a scarf around my neck and remember my gloves, it starts to get to me. I know that, very soon, the city will be covered in snow and the roads will turn to an icy slushy brown and icky mess. I just feel like getting back into bed and pulling the covers up over my head until spring.

So, in order to cope with my feelings of gloom about fall, I need to cook something very hearty and filled with rich deep flavour to embrace the season. Trying to cook with Styrofoam tomatoes and cottony strawberries at this

Made with Love Cindy Feingold time of the year will just not nourish my soul.

When I need comfort, I turn to pasta – pasta with a meat sauce. I decided to see if I could lighten things up a bit, because winter gloom can quickly turn to summer gloom, if I am not careful and eat too many comfort foods to get me through my dark days!

In honour of the cruelest month, I created Pasta with Broccoli Rabe and Ground Turkey. I decided to use ground turkey instead of beef and added some red pepper flakes, garlic and fennel seed to amp up the flavour. I also added some anchovy paste. Give it a try, even if you don’t like anchovies. It adds a subtle depth of flavour without being overpowering.

Broccoli rabe is also known as rapini and is available at Herb and Spice and Farm Boy. It has a pleasantly bitter edge, which is softened somewhat by cooking. You could easily substitute arugula or baby spinach, and add them just at the end of the cooking process.

‘A paradise of perfect obedience’ I understand humans were once born with skin that reflected what they were feeling. Newborns and infants had skin that glowed different colours or gave off musical vibrations of various pitches and strength, depending on their mood. It was possible to determine exactly what a child wanted as soon as it started to cry. In childhood, these changes in skin resulted in moving pictures that would occasionally flash across the face or torso. Great works of art were developed from copying or portraying these images and sounds, which started to diminish when children in cities learned to read, but remained vigorous in rural and tribal areas where reading was unknown.

Once city children learned to read, their most intimate thoughts would be translated into written text and mixed with the other forms of representation of emotion. This was understood to be a way the Creator had indicated to humans his desire for them to live together in complete truth, where the good of the community came before the desire for individual privacy. It became impossible for people to lie except if they were schizophrenic or psychopathic and could consciously manipulate their own moods. Such people were feared greatly. They were considered enemies of humanity. Many were locked away or treated with drugs.

At some point, a few teenagers began wearing clothes that covered them from head to foot, although it was frowned upon and they were considered rebels. How could one tell what they were thinking? A significant minority started to imitate this style and many legal battles were fought over whether such practices should be permitted. Unfortunately, lawyers representing this group did not themselves adopt the dress and it was easy to tell they did not agree with their own clients.

In a further development, those who rejected authority would acquire drastic blank tattoos so that no images could appear. Under constant suspicion of not telling the truth, they and their fully clothed counterparts were stopped by police and arrested more often. Eventually, however, it was noted that individuals with blank tattoos often seemed more

Humour me, please Rubin Friedman contented and spontaneous. They became enormously successful entertainers and charismatic leaders. One such youth developed a global following and preached a kind of unbridled individualism and an absolute right to privacy.

His movement swept the planet and brushed aside other belief systems once the youth was killed by authorities.

In fear, the government commissioned scientists who worked feverishly until they learned how to alter the human genome so that images did not appear. A serum was prepared for everyone.

After a number of years, there grew a kind of malaise that what had been gained had come at too great a cost. There was less social peace and it became harder to ensure that the norms could be passed on to the next generation. One had no idea what one’s children were thinking or feeling. Husbands and wives struggled to communicate with words, but found it daunting to overcome the basic mistrust coming from the inability to be sure of how words were meant, what their intent was, what feelings and thoughts lay behind them.

A story arose that, once, humans had lived in a paradise of perfect obedience and mutual comprehension. They fell from grace when they were tempted to eat the fruit from the tree of secrecy, a fruit with sweet flesh that held within it the hidden poison of privacy.

We, today, are descended from those whose genetic abilities had been altered. Or, so I have been told, and would I lie to you?

Pasta with Broccoli Rabe and Gorund Turkey This was inspired by the Pasta and Broccoli Rabe with Sausage recipe in the November-December 2011 issue of Cook’s Illustrated.

1 teaspoon anchovy paste 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 1 tablespoon lemon juice 4 garlic cloves, minced 1 1/2 teaspoons fennel seed 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt 1 pound orecchiette pasta (or penne or fusilli) Kosher Salt 1 pound ground turkey (dark meat) 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes 1 pound broccoli rabe (also called rapini), trimmed and cut into 1/4-inch pieces 1 cup chicken stock Combine anchovy paste, 1 tablespoon oil, lemon juice, and 1 teaspoon garlic in bowl; set aside.

Grind fennel seeds, 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a spice grinder (I have a small coffee grinder that I use only for grinding spices). Set aside.

Bring 4 quarts water to boil in large pot. Add pasta and 1 tablespoon salt and cook, stirring often, until al dente. Reserve 1 cup cooking water, then drain pasta and return it to pot.

While pasta cooks, heat 1 tablespoon oil in 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, until shimmering. Add turkey and ground fennel-red pepper flakessalt mixture and cook, stirring often, until browned and cooked through, 2 to 4 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer turkey to paper towel-lined plate.

Return skillet to medium heat; add remaining 2 tablespoons oil, remaining garlic, and 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes. Cook, stirring often, until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Increase heat to high and add half of broccoli rabe. Cook, stirring often, until just wilted, about 1 minute. Add remaining broccoli rabe and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring often, until crisp-tender, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer broccoli rabe to colander set in bowl. Do not wash skillet.

Bring chicken stock and 3/4 cup pasta water to boil in now-empty skillet over high heat. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until reduced to about 1 cup, 4 to 6 minutes. Remove skillet from heat and whisk in reserved anchovy mixture.

Add reserved broccoli rabe and ground turkey to sauce in pan. Toss to combine. Add remaining cooking water as needed to adjust consistency. Serve.

GOING SOUTH? DON’T MISS ONE ISSUE! Call 613-798-4696, ext. 256 or 242 to provide your winter address.

November 14, 2011 – Ottawa Jewish Bulletin – Page 31

Page 32 – Ottawa Jewish Bulletin – November 14, 2011

WHAT’S GOING ON November 14 to 27, 2011 WEEKLY EVENTS MONDAYS Motorin Munchkins for children 5 and under, sponsored by the Family Life Centre.

Children must be accompanied by an adult, 9:00 am to noon.

Info: 613-798-9818, ext. 294.

TUESDAYS Israeli Folk Dancing, no part-

ner necessary, Ottawa Jewish Community School, 31 Nadolny Sachs Private, 7:00 pm. Info: judy@ottawaisraelidance.ca.

WEDNESDAYS Playgroup for babies and toddlers, sponsored by the Family Life Centre. Children must be accompanied by an adult, 9:00 to 11:30 am. Info: 613-798-9818, ext 294.

FRIDAYS Shabbat Shalom for children 5 and under, sponsored by the Family Life Centre. Children must be accompanied by an adult, 9:30 to 11:00 am. Info: 613-798-9818, ext. 294.

CANDLELIGHTING BEFORE Nov 18

✡

4:11 pm

Nov 25

✡

4:05 pm

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 14 “The On-Going Crisis in the Middle East,” lecture with Dr. Henri Habib, presented by the Vered Israel Cultural & Educational Program, 7:30 pm.

Info: 613-798-9818, ext. 243.

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 15 “Eichman’s End – Love, Treachery, Death,” film set in Argentina in 1956, the story of the daughter of a Holocaust survivor who falls in love with the son of Adolph Eichmann.

Andrew Cohen, professor of Journalism and International Affairs at Carleton University, will moderate. Part of Holocaust Education Month by the Shoah Committee, German Embassy in Canada, and the Max and Tessie Zelikovitz Cenre for Jewish Studies, Carleton University. Mayfair Theatre, 1074 Bank Street, 6:30 pm and 8:45 pm. Info: 613798-4696, ext. 253.

Malca Pass Book Discussion Group: “A Guide to the Birds of East Africa” by Nicholas Drayson reviewed by Linda Rossman, Agudath Israel Congregation, 1400 Coldrey Avenue, 7:30 pm. Info: 613728-3501.

For more community listings, visit ottawa.jewishottawa.com Select Calendar/Upcoming Events and Click to See More

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 16 Let’s Do Lunch, a hot nutricious lunch followed by “Combat Machinery Through the Ages,” a presentation by Jason Ginn, Artillery Collection manager, Canadian War Museum, Agudath Israel Congregation, 1400 Coldrey Avenue, 12:00 pm. Info: 613-728-3501.

Rogers channel 22, 12:00 pm.

(Repeats November 28 and 30 at 4:30 pm.)

Chocolate Chances 4 Chinese and Silent Auction, spon-

sored by Torah Academy of Ottawa, with salad bar, Viennese table, door prizes, Torah Academy of Ottawa, 1119 Lazard, 7:00 pm. Info: 613-274-0110.

COMING SOON WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 30 Jewish Education Through Torah’s Jewish Unity Live Kickoff, “A Nation that Dwells Alone: Why does the whole world pick on tiny Israel?” a multi-media presentation by Rabbi Ken Spiro, Ben Franklin Place, 101 Centrepointe Drive, 7:30 pm.

Info: 613-798-9818, ext. 247.

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 20 “David Shentow: Prisoner of the Nazi Holocaust, Number 72585” film features interviews conducted over several weeks by David Hoffman; directed and music composed by Floralove Katz. Scene selections followed by Q&A with David Shentow and the filmmakers. Part of Holocaust Education Month. 3:00 pm. Info: 613-798-4696, ext. 253.

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 4 Books and Bagels, sponsored by Temple Israel: Rabbi Steven Garten reviews “Burnt Books: Rabbi Nachman of Bratslav and Franz Kafka,” by Roger Kamenetz.

Not necessary to have read the book. Breakfast served at 9:30 am, followed by review, 1301 Prince of Wales Drive.

Info: 613-594-4556.

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 27 Shalom Ottawa community television program airs on

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 11 Chanukah Gift & Book Fair, 10:00 am.

Info: 613-798-9818, ext. 243.

Unless otherwise noted, activities take place at The Joseph and Rose Ages Family Building, 21 Nadolny Sachs Private.

This information is taken from the community calendar maintained by the Jewish Ottawa InfoCentre. Organizations which would like their events to be listed, no matter where they are to be held, should send the information to InfoCentre coordinator Benita Siemiatycki via e-mail at bsiemiatycki@jewishottawa.com or fax at 613-798-4695. She can also be reached by telephone at 613-798-4644. Accurate details must be provided and all events must be open to the Jewish public.

Condolences Condolences are extended to the families of: Edyth Abron (née Levitan), Toronto (mother of Sharon Abron Drache, formerly of Ottawa) Betty Ballon Barney Danson, Toronto (brother of Bill Danson) Brenda Derrick, Montreal (mother of Sandor Derrick) Sharon Ruth Harris Cecelia Levitan Alvin Mallay Warren Mason

May their memory be a blessing always.

The CONDOLENCE COLUMN is offered as a public service to the community.

There is no charge.

For a listing in this column, please call 613-798-4696, ext. 232.

Voice mail is available.

BULLETIN DEADLINES NOVEMBER 23 FOR DECEMBER 12* JANUARY 4 FOR JANUARY 23 JANUARY 18 FOR FEBRUARY 6 * Community-wide Issue (all dates subject to change)

JEWISH MEMORIAL GARDENS Your one-stop resource centre for funeral planning 613-688-3530

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