Remembrance Day event in Montreal saw multiple generations honouring Sgt. Moe Hurwitz for his ultimate sacrifice in WWII
Samuel ‘Moe’ Hurwitz was a fighter. Born in Montreal in 1919, he was a fierce and fearless 21-year-old hockey player who was courted by the Boston Bruins, but he declined a career move into professional leagues. “How can I think about hockey when my brothers are dying in Europe?” Moe told his friends. The eighth […]
Treasure Trove salutes the Jewish-Canadian woman who made the first Remembrance Day poppies
The poppies that we wear at this time of year are our visual pledge to remember the brave Canadian soldiers who served and sacrificed to preserve and defend our democracy. Canadian Lieutenant-Colonel John McRae wrote the poem “In Flanders Fields” in 1915 after presiding over the funeral of a friend and fellow soldier. Inspired by […]
Treasure Trove: Remembering the sacrifices made by Canadian Jewish soldiers during the Second World War
Canadian Jews in World War II was published by the Canadian Jewish Congress in two parts in 1947 and 1948 to recognize the nearly 17,000 Jewish soldiers who fought in the war for Canada. The first volume tells the story of the 196 Jewish soldiers who received military decorations for their service. The second volume lists the […]
How a downed Jewish airman’s mezuzah and book ended up in my hands: Ellin Bessner
Montreal salesman Joseph Rabiner waited until he was 19 to enlist because he was caring for a sick, widowed mother.
A family retraces the last steps of Sgt. Harry Bochner of Toronto, who was one of the last casualties in the Second World War
The family of the fallen soldier thinks he was “the most prolific letter writer in Canadian military history.”
On Remembrance Day, Hannah Srour-Zackon recalls her namesake who served in the Second World War
To you from failing hands we throw The torch; be yours to hold it high If ye break faith with us who die We shall not sleep… November often coincides with the Hebrew month of Heshvan, during which my family marks the anniversaries of several deaths. This year, the period began on the evening of […]
Even as he turns 100, RCAF veteran Mickey Heller goes back to memories of the Second World War
For most of his life, my grandfather, Mickey Heller, tried to put the memories of the Second World War behind him. After two years in Europe as a navigator in the Royal Canadian Air Force, he returned home to Toronto in 1944, married his sweetheart, started a family and a business and seemingly never looked […]
The short life and bravery of Telegraphist Sydney Shinewald recalled on Remembrance Day
We don’t know much about the short life and tragic death of Sydney Shinewald, but more than 75 years after his wartime murder, it is time to tell his story. Sydney was born in Winnipeg in 1925, the only child of my great-uncle Charles and his first wife, Jennie. He attended the Jewish Workmen’s Circle School, […]
Why a Jewish song is on the playlist for Canada’s National Remembrance Day ceremony (and other Jewish content to watch for)
Dominion Carilloner with ‘Jewish background’ adding ‘Shalom Haverim’ to Nov. 11 performance.
