Stars of the new WJT show
left: Becky Frohlinger
right: Justin Stadnyk

By BERNIE BELLAN Amidst all the plans that had either to be shelved or retooled as a result of Covid, perhaps no organization within our community has had to constantly rejig its plans more than the Winnipeg Jewish Theatre.

 

BB Campers set out
on their canoe trip
in late July this summer

By BERNIE BELLAN Back in the spring it was hard to know what might unfold for our two Jewish sleepover camps.

It was in our May 12 issue when I reported that while BB Camp’s co-directors, Jacob Brodovsky and Lexie Yurman,  weren’t optimistic that the Ontario government would lift all restrictions that had been imposed on camps as a result of Covid, there were still reasons to be hopeful that they would be able to run some form of second session, AC (Advanced Camp) and LTP (Leadership Training Programs) programs at the camp this summer.

Improvements to Camp Massad
made over the past 2 summers
include: new siding on all cabins
and a new basketball court

By BERNIE BELLAN Just as BB Camp had a plan in the works that allowed families to make use of the camp, Massad also had something similar in the works – with families being able to rent cabins.
While Camp Massad had to cancel all its June bookings, it was still able to take bookings in July for rentals.
Nevertheless, the families that were able to come out to Massad had a fantastic experience, Massad Executive Director Danial Sprintz noted. “We even encouraged families to bring their dogs with them,” he said.

 

Kayla Gordon

By MYRON LOVE Kayla Gordon may have taken her last curtain call as the artistic director of Winnipeg Studio Theatre – which she founded 15 years ago – but that doesn’t mean that she is leaving the Winnipeg theatrical scene any time soon.

Becky Chisick
Gwen Secter Executive Director

By BERNIE BELLAN Ever since the Covid pandemic took hold in Manitoba I’ve been chronicling the amazing efforts emanating from the Gwen Secter Centre to provide services not only to seniors but to many other individuals in need.

Jewish Foundation logo2By BERNIE BELLAN Elsewhere on this website (http://www.jewishpostandnews.ca/local/855-jewish-foundation-distributed-over-5-000-000-in-2020) we reported on the very successful year that the Jewish Foundation had in its 2020 fiscal year, both in terms of new contributions ($3,384,493) and in the growth of the total assets of the Foundation (to $148,075,775, compared with $137,039,046 in 2019).

Rochelle Kives

By MYRON LOVE After ten years – literally – at sea, it should come as no surprise that Winnipeg-based cruise ship entertainer Rochelle Kives is missing the life aquatic.
“I love to travel and working on cruise ships has been part of my life for so many years,” she notes.

Cover of "The Codebreaker"
with Dr. Jennifer Doudna
right: author Walter Isaacson

By MARTIN ZEILIG During the recent rebroadcast of an interview on CBC Radio’s science show, Quirks & Quarks, Dr. Jennifer Doudna told how it “was a real shock” when she received an early morning telephone call notifying her of having been co-awarded the 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
She’s a humble person. But, she shouldn’t have been so surprised.

left: author Herschy Katz
cover of "The Ninth Terrorist"

By BERNIE BELLAN In 2019 I wrote a review of a book titled “The Clarinetist”. It had been sent to me by an expatriate Canadian who had moved to Israel in 1984 by the name of Herschel Katz.
As I noted in that review, the book was quite good for a first-time author. In it we were introduced to a young Montreal high school student by the name of Danny Kahn who ends up enmeshed in an intriguing situation having to do with the Montreal father of his girlfriend.

the co-owners of
CHARACTER CO. in Tuxedo

By BERNIE BELLAN In the 1920s some rich supporters of the Republican Party in the U.S. gained notoriety by running an ad claiming that under the Republican administration of Herbert Hoover there was “a chicken in every pot”. Now that there’s an election on in Canada – I wonder if there's any politician around who would have the courage to promise “a little pot in every chicken” - which was an expression once ascribed to Pierre Trudeau.

Twitter photoBy MARTIN ZEILIG When asked why he decided to write this entertaining and insightful book comedian/director/writer/producer/actor David Steinberg provides a concise and reasonable response.
“Money,” Steinberg said in an email response to a series of questions sent to him by this reporter.

He seems to be following, at least in part, the wise words of Samuel Johnson (Dr. Johnson) the 18th century English writer, moralist, critic, editor and lexicographer who famously said, “No man but a blockhead ever wrote except for money.”

Candice Tennebein with
husband Marshall and sons
Jacob (left) and Ethan

By MYRON LOVE With incidents of Anti-Semitism growing worldwide, Candice Tenenbein is exhorting fellow Jewish Winnipeggers – and non-Jewish supporters – to step up their efforts to combat this unhinged scourge of Jew and Israel hatred.
“Antisemitism is the most virulent and oldest form of hate, and today often appears as anti-Zionism,” she says.

Jackie Simkin

By GERRY POSNER Many readers will recognize the name Simkin - well known in Winnipeg and beyond. It was not always thus, but from a small beginning, both the family and the business grew and grew. The Simkin story - and the original family business, BACM, reflect four brothers sharing the load initially, then ultimately selling the business. Much of that story has been written about in previous publications. But the generation that followed the four Simkin brothers continued the Simkin legacy in many ways.

Rob Berkowits

By BERNIE BELLAN It’s been 17 months since most Rady JCC members have actually set foot in what had become the centre of Jewish life in Winnipeg. From time to time we’ve written about how Rady JCC Executive Director Rob Berkowits has been forced to pivot, then pivot again and again, as first, stringent lockdown measures were imposed in March 2020, then eased in June 2020, then reimposed again in the fall, and only recently eased again in July.

Tamar Barr

By BERNIE BELLAN In a message emailed to Rady JCC members on July 16, recipients of the email were informed that long time Rady JCC Program Director and, more recently, Assistant Executive Director Tamar Barr had left the Rady JCC.
Tamar’s departure actually occurred in October 2020 when she was laid off from her position as a result of financial pressures imposed upon the centre by Covid and the drastic scaling back of programs.

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