Local News
Four seniors’ apartment buildings connected to the Jewish community were built in a 20-year period in Winnipeg
Three have had open and fair admission policies throughout their histories, but now there are questions about how Shalom Gardens accepts new applicants
By BERNIE BELLAN There have been several periods in the history of Winnipeg’s Jewish community that saw bursts of construction activity of different sorts.
Perhaps the most notable period was the post-war era following World War II when, in no particular order, the community saw the building within a ten-year period of: the Shaarey Zedek, Rosh Pina, Adas Yeshurun (and Herzlia Academy), and Talmud Torah synagogues, along with the YMHA on Hargrave, Talmud Torah and I.L. Peretz schools, Joseph Wolinsky Collegiate, and Ramah Hebrew School.
The population of the Jewish community was growing rapidly in the 1950s and 1960s and the infrastructure that was built then was intended to serve a community that had shifted primarily from the old north end to newer communities in West Kildonan, Garden City, and River Heights.
As our community aged, however, there was another spurt of activity beginning with the construction of HSBA Gardens on Sinclair in 1970. This time, the focus was on seniors’ housing. There was a total of four buildings constructed from 1970 to 1991: HSBA Gardens, built in 1971 (50 suites); Beit Am (adjoining the Bnay Abraham Synagogue), built in the 1980s (65 suites); Shalom Gardens (next to Temple Shalom), built in 1987 (47 suites); and the Rosh Pina Housing Co-op, built in 1991 (62 suites).
Although one of the prime motivating factors in building the three north end buildings was to provide low-cost housing for Jewish seniors, over time the number of Jewish occupants of any of the three north end buildings dwindled.
As Myron Love noted in an article he wrote for this paper in 2013 upon the occasion of Temple Shalom’s 25th anniversary, “The purpose of three synagogue-related seniors apartments – the Beit Am was built adjacent to and connected with the former Bnay Abraham Synagogue and the Rosh Pina Co-op just across the road from the current Congregation Etz Chayim (which used to be the Rosh Pina) – was to provide affordable apartments for Jewish seniors who were looking to downsize and, it was hoped, to help boost attendance for Shabbat and daily minyan services at the synagogues.
“As things turned out however, with more members of the community choosing to move south – lured in part by newer assisted independent living complexes such as the Shaftesbury, the Portsmouth and the Boulton, the number of Jewish residents of the three apartment blocks is far outnumbered by non-Jewish seniors. The number of Jewish residents currently living at the 40-suite (all bachelor suites) HSBA Gardens, for example, may have dwindled to as few as one.”
And, while the construction of HSBA Gardens preceded the actual construction of the Beth Israel Synagogue on Sinclair Street, both the Beit Am and Rosh Pina Housing Co-op were built on vacant lots next to their respective synagogues.
The opening of the Rosh PIna Housing Co-op in 1991 followed the opening of Shalom Gardens in the south end in 1987. The rules governing housing co-ops in Manitoba are fairly clear:
“Co-op members purchase equity shares in the co-op and collectively become owners of the building and property.”
Members of co-ops have certain other responsibilities, as outlined in information available on a Manitoba Government website:
“1. You purchase a membership to live in a home owned by the co-op.
“2. As a member, you share in the financial and decision-making responsibility for the operation of the co-op, including who lives there.
“3. You pay a share of the costs to maintain the co-op.
“4. You build equity if you live in an equity co-op. You do not build equity if you live in a non-profit co-op.”
I spoke with Len Podheiser, who was one of the key figures involved in building the Rosh Pina Housing Co-op, and asked him how that project was financed. Len said that the financing “came 100% from CMHC (Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation.”
“It was built at no cost to the synagogue,” Len added. There were some advantages to having an apartment block next to the synagogue, he explained, such as being able to share snow clearing and landscaping costs.
Something else that Len noted was that Saul Simkin, who was one of the leading members of the Rosh Pina at the time, owned a brick factory in Denver, and he donated the interlocking bricks that make up the co-op’s façade.
Although, according to the co-op’s current manager, there are still some Jewish residents there, it’s a far cry from 1991, when the Rosh Pina Housing Co-op first opened and, according to Len Podheiser, “it was all Jewish.”
Each of the three north end buildings is now managed by professional building management companies. Anyone who would like to live in one of those buildings can simply contact the manager of each of the buildings and, if there is an opening and they meet the criteria for living in a particular residence, they will either be accepted or they will be put on a wait list until there is an opening.
As it turns out, however, the situation with Shalom Gardens insofar as being accepted as a member of that co-op is apparently quite different.
The story behind Shalom Gardens is a particularly fascinating one.
As Myron Love noted in that 2013 article which was written upon the occasion of Temple Shalom’s 25th anniversary, the construction of Shalom Gardens was what, in fact, led to Temple Shalom being able to move into what had previously been a Baptist Church on the corner of Grant and Wilton in Winnipeg’s south end.
“In June, 1987, the 80 members/member families of Temple Shalom, Winnipeg’s only Reform Congregation, literally took a leap of faith when they approved a proposal to buy a new building and property at the corner of Grant and Wilton,” Myron wrote.
“ ‘We started with $30,000,’ recalls Lorne Sharfe, one of the driving forces behind the purchase of the new building. ‘We had to come up with $460,000 by September. Just the down payment was $10,000.’
“A committee led by Sharfe, Allan Sourkes and the late Phil Schachter beat the bushes for the remaining funds. The TD Bank was prepared to loan the congregation $350,000. The fundraising committee also acquired grants from the provincial government and the Jewish Foundation of Manitoba. Along with some funds contributed by members and proceeds from the sale of their existing building, they were able to come up with enough money to buy the property.
“The final piece though was the construction of Shalom Gardens Housing Co-op Ltd., a low income seniors co-op adjoining the new Temple.
“Sharfe spoke about the challenges of raising funds for the congregation’s new building and how the idea for the housing co-op came about. ‘We had a parking lot on the corner beside our building, he recalled. ‘We were considering different options for developing the lot and generating income for the Temple.’
“The idea for the housing co-op originated with architect and Temple member Harry Haid. The benefits of building the apartment complex were a lump sum initial rental payment of $175, 000 (which went to paying down the TD mortgage) and the opportunity to further enhance the Temple – with an expanded entrance, new carpeting, wall paneling and lighting, the installation of an elevator and air conditioning, construction of an office, cloakroom, handicap access washroom, additional storage and an elevated parking structure at the rear of the building.”
In a recent conversation that I had with Lorne Sharfe, he told me that, in fact, he had put up a personal guarantee for the $460,000 that was required to buy the church on Grant and Wilton. Unlike the three north end projects, therefore, the building of Shalom Gardens was an absolute prerequisite for the Temple Shalom congregation to undertake; otherwise there wouldn’t have been a new home for the congregation.
And, although Shalom Gardens has always been open to residents of any faith or nationality, at the very beginning it had a heavy Jewish component, just as all the three north end residences had initially.
What got me interested in the four residences that were all built either by Jewish congregations or, as was the case with HBSA Gardens – the Hebrew Sick Benefit Association, was something that I discovered about how Shalom Gardens treats applicants for membership in that co-op.
While Shalom Gardens does have a part-time manager, unlike the Rosh Pina Housing Co-op, which is managed day-to-day by a professional apartment management firm, the members of Shalom Gardens actually play an active role in the day-to-day management of their building and it is one individual member of that co-op who seems to have the power to decide who will move into the co-op, whether or not a particular applicant may have applied ahead of another applicant.
Here is how I became involved in trying to sort out a troubling situation in which an individual was first told there was a vacancy at Shalom Gardens by the manager of Shalom Gardens, but when she immediately sent in her application, it was subsequently returned to her with the news that the unit had already been rented and that she would have to go on a wait list.
As I’ve noted before, I’ve been delivering kosher Meals on Wheels every Friday for the Gwen Secter Centre. On January 21st one of my clients mentioned that she would like to move elsewhere and she wondered whether I could recommend a nice place.
I immediately suggested Shalom Gardens, as I’m very familiar with that residence and think very highly of it. My customer told me she would follow up my suggestion and contact Shalom Gardens.
Two weeks after having mentioned Shalom Gardens to this client, on February 4th she told me that she was quite upset with what had subsequently happened to her.
She told me that when she called Shalom Gardens she was told there was a vacant unit there and that, if she sent in her application with a deposit, she would be able to have that unit.
But, shortly after having sent in her application, the client told me she received a letter from the manager of the membership committee of Shalom Gardens, in which she was now informed that the unit in question had been given to someone else. She wondered what had happened in the interim period?
I told her that I would attempt to ascertain exactly what happened, i.e. Why was she told there was a vacant unit which she could have, and then told that it was not available?
I did speak to another resident of Shalom Gardens and asked that person whether they had an idea what might have happened? This person suggested that the chair of the membership committee is able to decide who moves into Shalom Gardens on her own and evidently she had not wanted to see the vacant unit rented out to my Meals on Wheels client.
I have attempted to contact the manager of the membership committee to find out why she rejected my customer’s application, but I was told that she’s in Vancouver now and I was unable to reach her. I have also attempted to contact the manager of Shalom Gardens who, I presume, is the person to whom my customer spoke when she inquired about any vacancies at Shalom Gardens to ask her what happened, but she did not return my calls.
While I can well understand that Shalom Gardens was not built with the specific purpose of providing housing for Jewish seniors – unlike the three north end buildings, I am somewhat dismayed at the sequence of events that led my Meals on Wheels client first to get her hopes up, then to have them dashed. While the members of Shalom Gardens themselves have ultimate responsibility for managing their co-op, it seems evident that one individual who vets applications for membership wields inordinate power in deciding who will be accepted as a member. It was suggested to me that this individual has favoured friends of hers when it comes to moving into what is a very highly sought after seniors residence in the south end, and that individuals such as my Meals on Wheels client have been bumped as a result.
Unfortunately, it seems, there is no recourse for this individual, except to have me put in print what happened to her, which might lead to a much closer scrutiny on the part of Shalom Gardens co-op members how the chair of the membership committee handles applications for membership in that co-op.
Really, what ought to happen is that applications for membership at Shalom Gardens should be handled by someone who has no particular interest in favouring anyone over anyone else.
Local News
Former Winnipegger Adam Druxman living the Hollywood dream
By MYRON LOVE A dwindling number of Post readers may still remember the song “You Ought to be in Pictures.” Adam Druxman may not be in “pictures,” but his life’ s work is the next best thing. For almost 40 years, the former Winnipegger has had the privilege of being behind the camera helping to make magic happen.
“I always loved the movies,” says the son of the late George Druxman and the recently deceased Joan Druxman. But, growing up in Winnipeg (Old Tuxedo largely),” he recalls, “the prospect of actually having a career in movies in the ‘80s was quite a reach.”
As a young adult, the closest Druxman came to the movie business was working for Adi’s Video Shoppe (which most of us of an older generation will no doubt remember). Ultimately, it was a chance exposure to the Winnipeg Film Group that turned out to be his entry into film production.
The young, aspiring filmmaker signed up in 1988 to take a course in filmmaking – through the WFG – with acclaimed Winnpeg-based filmmaker John Paisz.
“From John, I learned to write, shoot and edit a film,” Druxman recalls. “At that moment, I knew this is what I wanted to do.”
With a grant from the National Film Board of Canada and the WFG, the young filmmaker created a five-minute film called “The Guinea Pig Age,” a satirical look at how humans have become test subjects for products and the environment.
The next evolution in Druxman’s pursuit came in 1989 with a move to Toronto where he hoped to enrol in Ryerson’s film program. “I decided in August that I wanted to go to film school, but it was way too late for enrolment,” he recounts. “I wasn’t able to get into the program until the following year, but I decided to move to Toronto anyway. That was my first time living away from home. I enrolled in some night courses and and also began looking for a job.”
He was, he says, encouraged to seek work in the industry as a production assistant – essentially a “gofer”, he points out. “I didn’t know that was a thing I could do. So I send out 1,000 resumés –with nothing on them because I didn’t have any experience.”
His break came when he got a call at 2:00 A.M. from a production company looking for a production assistant. “My roommate, Shanno Zaslov, answered the phone,” he recounts. “She was so excited that I had received a call that she told them not to contact anyone else while she tried to find me at a surprise birthday party. After that first job, I never looked back.”
Over the past nearly 40 years, Druxman has never been out of work for long.
His first credited role – as third assistant director – was in a 1992 production called “Stay Tuned, shot” in Vancouver. It starred Pam Dawber (of “Mork and Mindy” fame) and the late John Ritter. Druxman’s responsibilities included organizing the extras, maintaining quiet on the set, blocking out pedestrians and outside traffic during a take, helping to ferry actors between their trailers and the set, and alerting the performers.
After that movie, Druxman moved to Los Angeles. He was soon promoted to second assistant director and – four years later – was promoted to first assistant director – a role he has performed with distinction ever since.
“ As first assistant director,” he continues, “in prep, you manage scheduling, logistics, day-to-day operations and locations. During the shoot, you run the set, give cast and crew their call times, deal with issues such as weather delays, safety on the set, and manage the time of the shooting day.”
Among the better known movies that Druxman has been involved with have been: Adam Sandler’s “The Waterboy,” “50 First Dates,” “Boogie Nights,” “Transformers,” “Magnolia,” and two of the “Super Trooper” films.
Some of the TV series that he has worked on have included: “Weeds,” “Prison Break,” “Fargo,, Dark Matters,” “Las Vegas,” and “Cosmos: Possible Worlds” – a remake of the popular series first created by Carl Sagan 45 years ago.
“The crazy thing about living in LA,” Druxman observes, “is that I could drop in at any random Starbucks for a cup of coffee and run into a writer or director who might ask if I am available for a movie or TV show.”
It was a tough decision for Druxman to leave LA behind and move his family to Seattle about 14 years ago. “”We moved to Seattle to be closer to my wife’s family while our son was in his formative years,” he says.
Druxman admits that it was scary leaving LA. “At first, I was didn’t tell anyone I had left LA,” he recalls. “I was afraid that some producers wouldn’t consider using me because I wasn’t in LA anymore.”
Nonetheless, he felt confident that he was well-established in the industry and that – with movie and TV production largely moving out of what used to be described as “the movie capital,” -he would still be in demand. His assumption turned out to be correct.
Seven years ago he and his family moved again – this time to Chicago – after working on the movie “Candyman.”
“Housing was far more affordable in Chicago as compared to Seattle,” he says. “I had shot in Chicago four times before. I love Chicago. It’s a beautiful city. And I love the people here. It’s like a giant Winnipeg.”
“I’ve been lucky to have had a good career and met a lot of great people over the years,” Druxman says.
Currently, Druxman notes, he is in between projects. It is always a concern, he concedes – either feast or famine – especially since the industry is going through a lot of changes between the Covid lockdowns, multiple union strikes, the streaming services reducing their content, and more production going overseas. But, he remains confident that something will turn up sooner or later.
“This business is cyclical,” he observes. “There is always a ying to the yang.”
Local News
Young entrepreneur Jonah Shapiro balances business pursuits with university studies
By MYRON LOVE While most of us may not know what we wanted to do for a living when we “grew up,” Jonah Shapiro is an exception. The son of Sean and Kera Shapiro has been in business for himself since he was 14. Currently, he is balancing the responsibilities of running two businesses while taking commerce courses at Huron University in London, Ontario.
The entrepreneur’s business career began six years ago while in Grade 9 at St. John’s-Ravenscourt – evolving out of a business class he was taking at the school. “My project,” he recounts, “was marketing a golf shirt brand. After six months, the business was so successful that I expanded my product line to include team and club apparel.”
His first customers, Shapiro recalls, were students in his class. He then took over providing BBYO apparel. (He served as BBYO treasurer for two years.) He was soon providing apparel for local high school teams, businesses and specific events.
“It was rather challenging at first getting my foot in the door, he concedes. “Here I was, 14 years old, showing up and having had to have my father drive me to the appointments.”
Nonetheless, he made enough of an impression that he was soon receiving a lot of referrals.
Last September (in 2025), Shapiro began classes at Huron University with Advanced Entry to the Ivey School of Business at Western University in London, Ontario.
At the same time, he officially incorporated “Student Merch”- and expanded his reach nationally. The online Student Merch provides custom apparel and other merchandise for Canadian university groups.
Shapiro reports that he currently has contracts with student groups at Western, Queens, UBC, McMaster, McGill and York. “There are more than 300 universities across Canada,” he says. “We will soon have ambassadors at all of them.”
This past summer, the enterprising young man started a second business venture in his home town. “Benny’s Home Services” cleans windows. Shapiro reports that Benny’s provided its services over the summer to 325 customers in and around Winnipeg. This past summer, he says, the Benny’s team also provided its service to BB Camp – where Shapiro was a camper for many years as well as a counselor – free of charge.
He notes that the Winnipeg company has a crew of 14. With Student Merch, Shapiro handles all the managerial work by himself.
This fall, the young entrepreneur received some prestigious recognition. He was one of 12 students to participate in the Morrissette Institute for Entrepreneurship’ s Founders Program, which recognizes Western’s top student entrepreneurs and community builders and pairs them with alumni mentors, along with an opportunity for leadership roles within the Morrissette Institute. The inclusion in the program comes with a $20,000 scholarship.
The newest feather in Shapiro’s cap is his being invited to be a part of Tangerine Bank’s brand new Tangerine Business – a mobile-first digital banking platform for Canadian entrepreneurs and small businesses. Tangerine is Canada’s original digital bank.
“Tangerine asked entrepreneurs across Canada to help develop its new banking program,” he says. “I was invited to provide a young entrepreneur’s perspective.”
No doubt about it, to use an old phrase: “The world is currently Jonah Shapiro’s oyster,” and his potential would seem to be unlimited. I am sure readers will be interested to follow his career achievements over the coming years.
Local News
A local vocal extravaganza
By Dr. RAY SINGER I just experienced a revelatory weekend of superb vocal music, about which I wanted to share.
First, on attending Shaarey Zedek for Shabbat morning services I was pleasantly amazed at what was transpiring: Marlaina Sommer was beautifully singing her way through her own Bat Mitzvah service. Having married into a famous local musical family, I was not surprised also to hear her daughter and son-in-law, Sarah Sommer and Justin Odwak, sing – with their ethereal voices flowing over the congregants. Spouse and father Hillel provided percussion.
That was just for starters. My wife and I then attended the first concert in the Asper Jazz Series to hear the New York Voices in their Grand Finale concert tour, Winnipeg being the only Canadian stop on their tour.
Singing as a quartet for 38 years, their jazz singing was superb – with intricate harmonies, scat solos and amazing jazz vocals in the style of Lambert, Hendricks and Ross. They displayed exquisite control, and also interacted well with the audience.
Our final vocal musical experience was most revelatory and meaningful. This event was held on Sunday in the Laudamus theatre on the C.M. U. campus
It was organized by the Women’s Music Club of Winnipeg. Little did I know that club has been bringing in musicians of world stature for 130 years. If not for the kindness of our neighbours, Professors Harry and Mary Lynn Duckworth, we would not have known of this concert, entitled: “In a Dark Blue Night.” The title was written in both English and Yiddish in the program notes.
The music was performed by two wondrous musicians: Isabelle David, pianist and Sara Schabas, solo soprano. They performed a song cycle by the Pulitzer Prize-nominated, N.Y.C.-based Jewish composer Alex Weiser.
The first half of the concert consisted of Leiders by Viennese composers of the early to mid-20th century, all of whom were Jewish or in relationships with other Jewish composers. The composers included: Arnold Schoenberg, Alma Mahler, Erich Korngold, and others. Sara’s rendering of their songs and poems set to music was transcendent and emotive.
The narrator of theevent, Nolan Kehler, himself a musician and music radio host, was excellent in detailing the Zeitgeist around those Viennese composers and how they had to flee Vienna in the late ’30s. At least two were murdered in the Holocaust.
The second half of the concert was even more amazing. Alex Weiser composed music to accompany selected poems written by Jewish immigrants to New York early in the 20th century. Sara, having sung most of the songs in the first half in German, and one in English, then sang those poems beautifully – this time in Yiddish. Then, as a finale she sang a Gershwin medley. To add icing to this note-worthy cake, the pianist played the most challenging dramatic part of “Rhapsody in Blue,” knocking it out of the park
Thus, in one weekend I heard a Sarah and a Sara, and am grateful for our musical riches, especially brought to Winnipeg by both the Mennonite and Jewish communities. I am no music reviewer, but can appreciate the talent and artistry displayed by both Isabelle’s David and by Sara Schabas And, great news: Sara, who is from Montreal has landed a job teaching in the Desautels Faculty of Music. Hopefully many more of us will get a chance to hear her.
