New leaders at Netivot HaTorah excited to start the school year
TORONTO — Earlier this year, staff and students at Netivot HaTorah Day School said goodbye to two of their leaders who retired, but as of September, the school will be at the helm of Rabbi Jeffrey Rothman, the new head of school, and Sara Loewenthal, the new director of the gan (preschool).
Survivors’ granddaughter attended Groening trial in Germany
TORONTO — Jordana Lebowitz, 20, believes that it’s “important and crucial” for her to pass on the stories of the Holocaust.
“That’s why I wanted to go to the Oskar Groening trial in Luneburg, Germany, in April. It gives me the legitimacy to pass on the eyewitness reports of the trial,” the University of Guelph psychology student says.
On July 15, Groening was convicted as an accessory to the murder of 300,000 people and sentenced to four years in prison.
Cousins help seniors learn new technologies
TORONTO — When cousins, Ami Moyal, 20, and Moshe Elmaleh, 21, were approached by their grandmother to help her with her computer, the pair – who both have backgrounds in computers – realized that older people were having great difficult learning how to use computers and other new technology.
After helping their grandmother, they decided that they would create a study plan specifically for seniors. They did a great deal of research and found that there was nothing comparable being offered for seniors.
COVER STORY: Celebrating Pride with my son
The temperature was already soaring first thing in the morning. We’d be heading out midday and there was no prospect of shade. It would be a huge crowd scene and take hours to navigate; it bore the potential for unpleasant confrontation, and where on earth would I park? Nothing about this was appealing in any way, shape or form. So, naturally, when my son invited me to attend the Gay Pride Parade with him, my immediate response was: “Of course.”
CHAT grad heads Canadian Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai
Rebecca Copelovici has lived in China for long enough now that she’s convinced life in Canada would, at this point, feel more foreign to her.
The 29-year-old Torontonian and graduate of Associated Hebrew Schools and the Anne and Max Tanenbaum Community Hebrew Academy of Toronto’s Wallenberg Campus was recently appointed executive director of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce (CanCham Shanghai, for short) in Shanghai, where she’s worked since 2011.
Week of June 18, 2015
Good news from CHAT
The big news for the Jewish future in Toronto is that next year’s Grade 9 class at TanenbaumCHAT is on track to be larger than the current Grade 9. Our goal is to continue that trend, despite the precarious state of Jewish day school education.
Alternative day school downsizes due to funding woes
HAMILTON, Ont. — All four of David Shore’s daughters have attended Kehila Jewish Community Day School in Hamilton. His youngest, though, won’t be able to graduate from the school.
This spring, Kehila’s board of directors made the difficult decision to close the kindergarten-to-Grade 5 school due to lack of funding and low enrolment.
OBITUARY: Hebrew U prof recalled for work inside and outside classroom
A “spellbinding” lecturer who taught many Canadian students taking educational programs in Israel, Prof. Zeev Mankowitz passed away this past February in Jerusalem. His impact on Jewish education and Holocaust remembrance in Canada will continue through his book and articles, as well as through the work and influence of his many students.
The new phenomenon of emerging adulthood
After graduating from the Anne and Max Tanenbaum Community Hebrew Academy of Toronto (TanenbaumCHAT), I spent a year studying in Israel before enrolling at York University. While studying at York and later while teaching, I lived in my parents’ home. I moved out of their house on my wedding day.
My story is shared by a majority of my peers. At the time when I graduated high school, most of my peers remained in Toronto for university – going to either York University or the University of Toronto – and most lived at home.
Departing rabbi helped revive Hamilton shul
HAMILTON — The right rabbi at the right time.
That’s what Rabbi Dan Selsberg was for Beth Jacob Synagogue in Hamilton.
It was 2006. Membership was down, debt was climbing and parts of the building were crumbling. Morale was low.
