Local News
How walking into the wrong synagogue service led to my rekindling memories of the Stall family on McAdam Avenue
By GERRY POSNER I often attend synagogue on Shabbat, though I do miss from time to time. Recently, I was back from a trip and was just not ready to return to my regular synagogue services. I planned to miss it. Then, an email surfaced on the Friday before that particular Shabbat. The sender, who was a good friend of mine, invited me to come to my shul where he was not a member, but there was to be a person speaking that day at the synagogue on a topic dear to him, relating to a tour he had taken not that long ago to Morocco. The speaker was his leader from that tour. So, I changed my mind and, sure enough, there I was at synagogue again – after a three week absence.
The service had two unexpected occurrences, at least for me. First, as I scanned the handout that was given to attendees prior to the service, i realized that nowhere was there any reference to a speaker. When I met my friend he was as perplexed as I was, so we set out into other areas of the Beth Tzedec Synagogue (and there are many there). As it turned out, there was another service going on at the same time upstairs in the gymnasium. Sure enough, there was the man who was going to be speaking.
However, that moment presented a definite dilemma for me. When I was in the chapel at the regular service, there on the handout was a notice that there was to be an “Oifruf “that morning for a Benjamin Stall – to a Rachel Calmas. The Calmas name meant little to me, but I was quite familiar with the Stall name. For anyone who has lived in Winnipeg at any time, the name Stall is almost immediately recognizable. There was once Stall and Son, well known to many in the business world and there members of the Stall family that lived on McAdam Avenue whom I knew from my Winnipeg days as a student about to enter university. Thus, I decided to return to the regular service.
Many readers may recall a tragedy that came upon three Jewish Winnipeg families in June of 1963 when a car accident in Alberta killed Samuel Corman and Morton Stall, also severely injuring Arnold Popeski, as well as ending the lives of three other young men, also from Winnipeg. Many in the Winnipeg Jewish community and indeed beyond were affected. I was for sure. As it turned out, arising from that tragedy was a relationship with the Stall family that had a major impact on my life thereafter.
Of the three boys – Corman, Stall, and Popeski, my most significant connection was with Samuel Corman, as my family and his family were tight and I was a good friend of his. I also was closely connected with Arnold from AZA, where we were both active. I was friendly with Morton, but I knew him the least, as he was in the north end and I was a south ender and, though we crossed paths,I didn’t really know the Stall family, that is – until the summer of 1963.
As it turned out, that summer I had a job as a Fuller Brush salesman. My territory included a good chunk of the north end, particularly in the area where the Stalls lived: 160 McAdam Avenue. Back in those days, women were usually at home during the day and not at work – at least that was my experience then as a door to door salesman. I could work at my own time and pace. Thus, I often had the time and desire to visit the Stalls that summer, even after the shiva. It was at the shiva where I first met a younger brother to Morton, Richard, who was well under ten years of age. I knew his sister Phyllis (hard for a teenage boy not to recognize a girl so pretty) and I knew of an older sister, Shelley (later Shelley Rusen).
But the people I really came to know were Nathan and Gert Stall, the parents of those four Stall children. I would pop into their home unannounced and, if it bothered them, they never mentioned it. I sensed that they welcomed those visits. I often interacted with Phyllis and Richard.
But then, in the fall of 1963, off I was off to the University of Toronto law school. Nate Stall had told me that he had occasion to come to Toronto on business from time to time and he would be happy to take me out for dinner if I wanted.
Well, that meant little to me at first, but as I settled in at my sister’s apartment for my first year away, I was more than happy to take up the offer to go with Mr. Stall for supper. When he called me in October 1963, I was delighted to go out with him. Now, not only did he take me for dinner, he took me to what was then the premier restaurant in the c -ity of Toronto and for years going forward: the Carmen Club. You could smell the steaks and garlic for blocks around. What a joy that was for me to eat so well and with a man whom I had come to know. I suppose, on reflection, I might have served as a kind of relief from the grind of a business trip and perhaps he connected me to Morton.
That dinner was followed by many other Carman Club dinners over the four and a half years I remained in Toronto. I loved our times together and he always gave my parents a first hand report on me. I saw him and indeed his wife Gert later when I returned to live in Winnipeg and we always had a bond. I never saw Richard after 1963, or if I did, it just does not make my memory pool. I did see Phyllis of course, after her marriage to Marvin Shenkarow. Also, from time to time I connected with Shelley and her husband, Aubie Rusen.
So there I was at synagogue and who was sponsoring the kiddush for the Oifruf for his son but Richard Stall and his wife Lisa Berger, another former Winnipege – related to the Berger family of doctors. It was quite the moment for me. I waited until after the service ended before going up to Richard and Lisa. It was hard to focus on the service as all those memories of the Stall family came flooding back to me.
Given that Richard is the last surviving member of the family, it was all the more significant. We had a good chat, including remembering that same day, March 23, was his late sister Phyllis’s birthday some 77 years ago.
I was so immersed in conversation that by the time I made it to the kiddush table, the lunch I had expected would be waiting there for me was gone. There are worse things, I suppose. I also met another son of Richard and Lisa’s, Dr. Nathan (for his grandfather) Morton (for his uncle) Stall. That name, Nathan Stall might well be familiar to readers as he was the go-to guy in the media for expert commentary on the impact of Covid on the elderly. He was on TV frequently. And now, Nathan Stall is already, at a young age, a prominent geriatrician. As well, not that long ago, he was a candidate for the Liberal Party in Ontario in the 2022 election. Although he did not win, he did very well, losing by only 1,000 votes.
As it turned out, the Shabbat that day was Shabbat Zahkor or “remembrance.”
Well, I certainly was into that Shabbat as I did a whole lot of remembering. And yet, the opportunity to remember and indeed engage in the past so meaningfully for me all came about when because I was supposed to go to another event that day – which I missed entirely. Strange how it all played out.
Local News
Young Winnipegger Dr. Yale Michaels receives $550,000 Canadian Cancer Society research grant
By MYRON LOVE It has been shown on many occasions that a teacher can have an outsized role in shaping a young person’s life. Dr. Yale Michaels’ life story is one example.
During a recent interview with the young cancer researcher – the son of John Michaels and Karen Stern – Yale recounted how a Grade 7 teacher at Grant Park High School was largely responsible for his decision to pursue a medical career in medicine.
The young Michaels attended Brock Corydon Elementary School and was a long time Massad camper. In junior high school at Grant Park, however, he recounts, “I was having a tough time staying on task. Thankfully, my Grade 7 science teacher suggested that I might find it interesting volunteering to help in a cancer research lab. He had a contact and got me in. I loved it. It was a good fit for me. I never looked back.”
Michaels (whose zaida, Leon Michaels, was a leading cardiologist here) spent much of his free time during his high school years volunteering in the lab. After graduation, he enrolled in Harvard –with help from the university’s financial aid program – where he earned his Bachelor’s degree. He followed that up with a Ph.D. from Oxford in 2019, followed by three years as a post-doctoral Fellow – before returning to Winnipeg in 2023 to work at Cancer Care Manitoba, as well as teach at the University of Manitoba.
“I enjoyed my time both at Harvard and Oxford,” he says. “What made England even more enjoyable is that Yale has family there. His grandparents – Leon and Joan Michaels – were born and raised in London and Yale’s time there overlapped for a few months with his brother Jamie (about whom there was a story in a July issue of the Post), who earned his Master’s Degree in Creative Writing at the University of London.
This past June, the young researcher learned that he was to be the recipient of a $550,000 Canadian Cancer Society Emerging Scholar Research Grant, covering five years of research.
Michaels’ field of research focuses on new ways of combating blood cancers – specifically in the new area of immunotherapy. He is being aided in his research by lab tech Dana Segal and graduate student Serena Dembowksi.
Michaels adds that he is collaborating with a number of other researchers from Winnipeg – and throughout Canada, including Drs. Harinad Maganti, David Szwajcer, Jody Haigh, Versha Banerji, and David Knapp.
Using the patient’s own immune cells – specifically CAR T cells -to treat blood cancers was first approved in 2017, Michaelsreports. “The treatment has shown itself to be really successful. Many patients go into remission and some may have the potential to be cured.”
One of the drawbacks, he explains, is that the treatment is prohibitively expensive. Each dose costs about $500,000 U.S.
“What we are trying to do in my lab and elsewhere is find a way to greatly reduce the cost,” he explains. “It becomes a matter of scale. Other drugs used in treating cancer can be produced in amounts of 1,000 doses per production run. But right now CAR T therapy is made on a one-off basis with an individual manufacturing run for each patient. We are attempting to instead make CAR T cells from stem cells – which can be grown in large quantities. We are trying to use genetic engineering to manipulate them so that they can be administered safely to patients.
“We (Michaels and fellow researchers) are making good progress in this area,” he adds.
He cautions that the research is still in the formative stages and that clinical trials are still several years away. “Our research so far though has shown that our treatment would seem to be effective at killing cancer cells,” he reports. “This grant from the Canadian Cancer Society will help us to further that research.”
Outside of work, Michaels notes, much of his time is spent with his family – Dr. Allison Marmel and their two-year-old daughter, Rose.
(Ed. note: We should note that Yale Michaels was also the punter for the Harvard University football team – by far his greatest achievement.)
Local News
Rabbi Kliel Rose, Etz Chayim’s spiritual leader, taking a new position in Ottawa
By MYRON LOVE It is with mixed feelings that Rabbi Kliel Rose, the spiritual leader of Congregation Etz Chayim for the past eight years, is once again leaving the community in which he grew up. Immediately after Yom Kippur, he, his wife, Dorit Kosmin, and three of their five children are moving to Ottawa, where Rabbi Rose is to become the spiritual leader of Congregation Kehillat Beth Israel (popularly known as KBI).
“My time in Winnipeg has been wonderful,” Rabbi Rose says. “It has been a privilege to have served as Etz Chayim’s rabbi and be part of the Jewish community here. Our Jewish community has a sense of solidarity that is unlike any other Jewish community in North America.”
He wasn’t actually looking to leave, Rabbi Rose explains. “Last spring, I was just having a cursory look at postings for Conservative rabbis and KBI stood out. What attracted me was not simply the opportunity to serve a larger congregation, but the chance to lead a community with such a rich history and such a strong commitment to egalitarian Conservative Judaism, Jewish learning, inclusion and community engagement. KBI is a relatively young congregation that brings together more than a century of Jewish history in Ottawa, and I was very drawn to the opportunity to help shape its next chapter.”
KBI, Rabbi Rose reports, was created in July 2016 through the amalgamation of two long-standing and storied Ottawa congregations: Agudath Israel and Congregation Beth Shalom. The merger brought together the rich traditions of both communities to create a modern, egalitarian Conservative congregation. Today, KBI is the largest Jewish congregation in Ottawa, serving more than 500 families, with a strong emphasis on Jewish learning, inclusion, community engagement and youth and family programming.
“There is a tremendous amount of energy and possibility at KBI,” Rabbi Rose says. “It is a community with deep roots, but also a very strong desire to think about what Jewish life should look like in the future. That is exciting to me as a rabbi.”
As with many rabbis, Kliel Rose’s career path has been a long and winding road. The son of the revered Carol and Rabbi Neal Rose, he first left Winnipeg after graduating from Grant Park High School.
In an interview with the Jewish Post & News in 2018, shortly after he returned here to serve Congregation Etz Chayim, Rabbi Rose credited his parents with being tremendous role models. “They are a dynamic team,” he commented, “but they never pushed any of us (Kliel Rose is the middle child in a family of four brothers and one sister) in any particular direction. They were really nurturing. They were okay with anything we decided as long as we were passionate about it.”
For the longest time as a young man, he noted, he fought against going into “the family business”. But, he said, working in Jewish summer camps, people in leadership positions in the camps saw something in him and convinced him to pursue rabbinic ordination.
Thus, after graduating with a Judaic Studies degree from Gratz College in Philadelphia, Kliel Rose enrolled in the Jewish Theological Seminary.
He noted that the most important piece of advice his father gave him before he enrolled in a rabbinic studies program was the suggestion that he should work for a time in a large congregation to see what it is like – “both the joy and the underbelly,” as he put it.
“I took his advice,” Rabbi Rose said. “For two years, I worked under the umbrella of a special fellowship at Bnai Jeshurun Congregation in Manhattan. The congregation had 4,000 members at that time. It had been a dying congregation which had been revitalized by Rabbi Marshall Meyer, who had previously helped revive Jewish life in Argentina. Rabbi Meyer, with his vision of social justice, was an inspiration for me.”
Rabbi Rose also spent a year at an Orthodox yeshiva in Israel and a couple of years as a youth director at a large Conservative congregation on Long Island.
Before coming to Winnipeg, Rabbi Rose served congregations in Miami Beach (for three years), Nashville (for five years), and Edmonton (for five years).
The past eight years at Etz Chayim have certainly brought their share of challenges, but Rabbi Rose says they have also been deeply meaningful. Just two years after arriving, the COVID pandemic transformed congregational life. Then there was the congregation’s decision to sell its 70-year-old building on Matheson Avenue and move to a smaller facility in south Winnipeg – a process that was completed just over two years ago.
“It has been really challenging these past few years,” he recounts. “It was difficult leaving behind our old building with so much history. But I think Etz Chayim made the right decision, and I am proud of how our community came together to navigate these challenges and build a new future for the congregation.”
Rabbi Rose says he is particularly grateful for the relationships he has built during his eight years at Etz Chayim and throughout Winnipeg’s Jewish community. “There have been so many meaningful relationships and experiences during my time here. I feel very fortunate to have had the opportunity to serve this community and to have been part of Etz Chayim’s story during such an important period of transition.”
“I’m leaving with an enormous amount of gratitude,” he adds. “Etz Chayim has given me the opportunity to grow as a rabbi and as a leader, and I hope that I have been able to contribute something meaningful to the congregation and to the wider Winnipeg Jewish community in return.”
Another factor that made Rabbi Rose’s decision to leave difficult is that his parents moved back here two years ago and his older brother, Carnie, returned about 18 months ago to become Shaarey Zedek’s senior rabbi.
“It has been wonderful having my parents and brother here,” Kliel says. “This has been the first time that my children have had grandparents and an uncle and aunt in the same city.”
The Rose family will also miss the many friendships and connections they have made in Winnipeg.
Our community will also miss Kliel’s wife, Dorit. “My wife is a talented and caring individual who has worked in different areas of the community,” he notes. “Most recently, she was working in spiritual care at the Simkin Centre. She has made a tremendous contribution to the community and will certainly be missed.”
For Rabbi Rose, the decision to leave Winnipeg is less about leaving something behind than about embracing a new opportunity. After eight years of helping Etz Chayim navigate a period of profound change, he says he feels ready to take on a new leadership challenge while carrying with him the lessons and relationships he has gained here.
The Rose family will be leaving two days after Yom Kippur. Kliel reports that they have sold their house and have just a few things to wind up.
Local News
Temple Shalom, Etz Chayim Yom Tov Services to be Held in Different Locations this Fall
By MYR0N LOVE In 2025, one of the most interesting aspects of Yom Tov in Winnipeg was the official debut of new rabbis Carnie Rose and Myriam Saitman, at the Shaarey Zedek Synagogue and Temple Shalom respectively – also the imminent departure of Rabbi Yossi Benarroch, since 2016 the Adas Yeshrun Herzlia congregation’s spiritual leader.
This year, The Jewish Post’s pre-Yom Tov story has a different focus. Due to water damage caused by heavy rain in June (see story in previous issue of The Jewish Post) Temple Shalom’s congregation has had to move out of their building until renovations are complete and will be holding Yom Tov services at the Berney Theatre. Also, Congregation Etz Chayim will be returning to its building on Wilkes for Yom Tov after holding services in a larger facility last year and having Yom Kippur services at a Holiday Inn the year before.
“This year,” says Morissa Granove, Congregation Etz Chayim’s COO, “we are very happy to be bringing the High Holy Days home to 1155 Wilkes Avenue. We will be hosting two services each day and have had an overwhelming response to our ticket sales. Our daytime morning services have already sold out, and we expect to have a full house at each of our services this year. We are excited for everything to come.”.
It was about two-and-a-half years ago that Etz Chayim members relocated to Wilkes from their 70-year-old building on Matheson in the North End. Granove reported last year that the move south has “proven to be a great success in many ways. Operational expenses are greatly reduced in the newer and more efficient space, and our congregation is seeing an increase in attendance at services, programs, and events due to their new, convenient location”.
Etz Chayim’s services’ will be led once again by Rabbi Kliel Rose (see related story about his departure for Ottawa immediately after Yom Kippur) and Cantor Tracy Kasner, while newly anointed Cantor Kevin McIntyre will be reading the Torah. There will also be a youth and family service with activities for kids of all ages.
For further information about Etz Chayim’s High holiday services, phone 204 589-6305 or email info@etzchayim.ca.
Congregation Shaarey Zedek, our community’s oldest and largest synagogue, would like to invite members of the community to join and experience “a season of Unity, Enlightenment, Invigoration, and Renewal with services in the Sanctuary,” says Dr. Rena Secter Elbaze, the congregation’s executive director.
“We anticipate that our services – featuring Senior Rabbi Carnie Shalom Rose, Rabbi Anibal Mass, and Cantor Leslie Emery – accompanied by the Shaarey Zedek Quartet and Ruach Choir with piano accompaniment – will be spiritually uplifting,” Elbaze says.
“Due to high demand, we are also delighted to offer two Family Services for Young Families, one in the morning and one in the afternoon, in the Tova Vickar Family Childcare Centre. These engaging services will be led by Rabbi Anibal Mass, with support from our Youth Band, Shinshinim – Israeli Youth Ambassadors, and dedicated volunteers.”
Looking back over the past year, Elbaze reports that Shabbat morning and weekday services have been attracting “a widening circle for prayer, learning, and breaking bread under the leadership of our dedicated clergy team”.
“Our Tova Vickar and Family Childcare Centre is fully operational,” she continues, “and is already recognized provincially for achievement and excellence and connecting childcare families to synagogue life.”
She adds that the congregation’s membership base is growing, with 98 families/ households having joined since July of last year – including new members and those who have re-joined – for a total of 228 people of all ages.
As well, she notes, the congregation’s sisterhood and the Hebros Men’s Group are thriving, drawing a broad demographic of participants seeking Jewish learning, camaraderie, and connection. As well, Elbaze adds, the Young Adult Group is engaging in synagogue life and gathering regularly for Shabbat dinners and Jewish holiday celebrations.
“Our Israeli Youth Ambassador program, the Shinshinim, is infusing youth programming with dynamism, creativity, and a meaningful connection to Israel” she points out.
Readers who want to contact the Shaarey Zedek about Yom Tov tickets can call the office at 204 452-3711 or email Rena at rena@szwinnipeg.ca.
As mentioned above, Temple Shalom will be holding High Holy Day services in the Berney Theatre at the Asper Campus. Rabbi Myriam Saitman, who received her ordination last year, noted in last year’s Jeiwsh Post pre-Yom Tov story, “We are looking forward to 10 days of introspection focused on teshuva and we invite our congregation to experience the message, the spirituality, the music, and the poetry of the High Holidays”.
Temple Shalom High Holiday services will, once again, be led by Rabbi Saitman, along with Cantorial Soloist David Vamos – accompanied by the Temple choir led by Janet Pelletier Goetze.
For further information about Temple Shalom’s Yom Tov services, phone 204-453-1625 or email tshalom1@gmail.com.
South end Winnipeg further offers a fourth liberal Jewish option in the form of Rabbi Matthew Leibl’s “Services on the River: A Modern High Holy Days”. This is the fourth year that Rabbi Leibl will be leading his own services at The Gates on Roblin.
Services will be on the second day of Rosh Hashanah, September 13, starting at 10:00 A.M., while the Kol Nidre service will be on September 20 at 6:00 P.M., with the Yom Kippur service the following morning at 10:00 A.M. Rabbi Leibl will again be joined by the husband-and-wife cantorial team of Justin Odwak and Sarah Sommer, leaders of the SOTR Quartet. New this year will be The Shofar Club Kids Program, led by Halley Ritter for children ages 4-12.
For tickets, email support@tobatickets.ca, or call (during office hours) 204-934-7564.
South Winnipeg’s orthodox options are the Adas Yeshurun Herzlia and the Lubavitch Centre. High Holy Day services at Adas Yeshurun will be led by Rabbi Yossi Benarroch – with Aden Benarroch serving as Chazzan Sheini. Adas Yeshurun has approximately 100 membership units and can comfortably accommodate 250 worshippers. Please call the synagogue office – at 204 489-6262. to confirm attendance before September 9.
The Lubavitch Centre has a capacity of between 200 and 300. There is no charge for davening at Chabad, nor do you have to register in advance.
Still with south Winnipeg – The Simkin Centre offers one more High Holy Day option. Services are all held in their multi-purpose room. Family members can join but priority seating is reserved for residents. Steven Hyman will lead the services along with the Simkin Centre Choir, directed by Bonnie Antel.
If you have any questions, contact Rabbi Matthew Leibl or Heather Blackman, Manager of Resident Experience, either by phone 204 589-9008 or email heather.blackman@simkincentre.ca, so that she knows how many to plan for.
In the North End, High Holiday service options are more limited. The Chevra Mishnayes in Garden City offers an egalitarian service. Synagogue president Rob Waldman reports that about 100 attended services last year and that he is expecting about the same this year. Services will be led by Al Benarroch. For further information phone the office at 204-338-8503.
Both the venerable House of Ashkenazi, the last of our community’s older-style Orthodox congregations, and the Chavurat Tefila Talmud Torah offer Orthodox services- with each attracting about 30 to 40 daveners for the High Holy Days. The latter will have Avi Posen back again to lead services while long time Cantor Adi Stoller will be back for another Yom Tov at the Ashkenazi.
While Camp Massad has also long offered a modified Yom Tov service, the camp at Sandy Hook will bel closed for Yom Tov this year while renovations are underway.
Yom Tov this year begins on Friday, September 11, in the evening.
Wishing all readers a sweet new year.
