Local News
JCFS and Gwen Secter Centre continue to provide key supports during pandemic

By BERNIE BELLAN
Ever since the COVID pandemic first began to have a major impact in our community I’ve been reporting on how various agencies have been meeting the needs of those sectors of our community that have been most affected by COVID – whether that’s in the form of regular meal deliveries, grocery shopping, psychological counseling, or simply keeping in touch with isolated individuals.
In our June 10 issue, for instance, I reported how both the Gwen Secter Centre and Jewish Child and Family Service had stepped up their efforts in response to the needs of members of our community, especially seniors. (The JCFS typically serves between 500-600 seniors a year, JCFS Executive Director Al Bennaroch noted at that time.)
In that June 10 issue, I referred to a conversation I had with Cheryl Hirsh Katz, Manager, Adult Services at JCFS, in which I asked Cheryl whether she had seen a marked increase in the agency’s seniors caseload.
Cheryl indicated that had indeed been the case – which, at that time, she explained, was primarily as a result of the Jewish Federation’s having enlisted volunteers to call seniors (and other individuals in the community who found themselves in particularly unfortunate circumstances as a result of the pandemic). Many seniors had been referred to JCFS as a result of those phone calls, Cheryl noted.
“We’ve identified those of our clients who are most in need,” Cheryl said.
“We have capacity to take on more clients,” Cheryl added then, and 20 more clients were, in fact, added to JCFS’s caseload to that point in June.
While JCFS does maintain an “emergency food pantry” to help individuals or families in urgent need of groceries, “there hasn’t, as yet, been an increase in demand”, Cheryl observed back then.
What there has been though, is “an increase in demand for emotional support,” Cheryl said.
“Individuals who have had illnesses” have found themselves isolated and, one other agonizing aspect of the isolation they’d been enduring – and has continued to be an awful predicament for anyone who may have lost a loved one during the pandemic, has been the inability to grieve normally.
“We have our friendly volunteer phone callers; also our own workers are regularly calling clients”, Cheryl said at the time, but for those seniors who could use some emotional support or would like to be added to Gwen Secter’s food delivery program, the JCFS welcomes your call -a nd many more calls requesting support have come in since then.
That was only three months into the pandemic in what, in hindsight, seems like a relatively safe period – in comparison with the past two months, which have seen COVID rage almost without control no matter what restrictions the province might have imposed (or at least attempt to impose).

And, while JCFS was attending to – and has been continuing to attend to the psychological needs of individuals who were particularly hard hit by the isolation caused by the pandemic, Gwen Secter’s two marvelous cooks, Galina Melenevska and Cathy Koltowski, have been steadily increasing the number of meals that they have been turning out – not only for isolated seniors in our community, but for others who were anxious to receive regular cooked meals for a variety of reasons.
Here’s what I wrote in June about how Gwen Secter had stepped into the breach left when Meals on Wheels stopped taking new clients at the end of March due to the huge increase in requests for that service as a result of the first province-wide lockdown, which was imposed March 14: “Gwen Secter has gone from producing 60 meals the week of March 30-April 3 to 286 meals for 73 different individuals in late May. This past week, according to Becky Chisick, Executive Director of the Gwen Secter Centre, 340 meals went out to seniors.”
In our July 10 issue I reported that Gwen Secter was now up to delivering 400 meals a week. As well, in conjunction with JCFS, Gwen Secter had just launched a new initiative: “The Medical Transportation for Seniors Hotline”. In that issue I wrote: “According to Becky Chisick, ‘This program is available for seniors & those with limited mobility. Call the hotline at 204-899-1696 and we will arrange safe one on one, door to door transportation to medical appointments for a subsidized rate.’
In our September issue I reported on the hiring of Danielle Tabacznik to fill the position of “Senior Concierge” at JCFS. Danielle described her duties this way: “I’ll be reaching out to seniors in the Jewish community who may or may not be isolated and who may not be connected to services. I’ll be checking in with them to make sure they’re doing okay…to see whether they do need referrals to services. I’ll also be asking them whether they’re feeling isolated, what programs or services might help them.”
The months of November and December, however, have seen a horrendous increase in the daily number of COVID cases being reported – not just here in Manitoba, but it seems throughout the globe as well (with few exceptions). And, although I’ve been in fairly regular contact with Becky Chisick, it’s been some time since I had asked her how many meals the Gwen Secter kitchen was now turning out.
When I spoke with Becky on Tuesday, December 15, she told me that Galia and Cathy (who now have a part-time assistant to help them) had turned out an astounding 606 meals the previous week. So – in nine short months, the Gwen Secter kitchen has gone from producing 60 meals a week for delivery to over 600 meals a week!
I suppose it’s easy to get distracted by the numbers: Gwen Secter now producing over 600 meals a week for delivery; 195 additional cases for JCFS. But let’s remember: Those numbers represent members of our community who are most in need of assistance. We’re extremely fortunate that our Jewish community has developed a sophisticated infrastructure capable of meeting the needs of those less fortunate – and that the organizations primarily tasked with funding the organizations that are attending to the needs of those most in need of help have also risen to the challenge, especially the Jewish Foundation and the Jewish Federation – together with so many members of our community who have stepped up with increased financial support.
Given that we’re nearing the end of 2020, however, I thought it appropriate to speak with someone who has found himself coordinating a very important component of our community’s response to the COVID pandemic: Al Bennaroch, Executive Director of Jewish Child and Family Service.
Al took some time from his very busy schedule to discuss the pressures he’s witnessed in his job since the end of March – and how JCFS has been handling the increased workload that’s come with having to attend to the terrible psychological toll that COVID has exacted on so many of us.
I said to Al that the last time I had spoken with him was in the spring. I wondered whether there “has been much of an increase in JCFS’s client load?”
He responded: “It depends on the program.” As we were talking, he said he was going to run a program on his computer to give some comparative figures.
“Let’s go back to April 1st,” he said. “I’ll run it from April 1st to today (Dec. 18) and we’ll take a look at what our caseload numbers look like in terms of new intakes.”
After running the program Al offered the following information: “We’ve had 195 new cases in all areas. Typically we might see on average five new cases a month. (The 195 new cases represent an average of over 20 new cases a month.) “Most of those have been in areas that require emotional support.
“Our counselling program, for example, has seen 45 new cases. We’ve seen 33 older adult new cases…nine Holocaust survivors”- who weren’t previously clients, have been added to JCFS’s client list…Addictions – we’ve had four new cases.
“Our aging mental health program – which is seniors living with a mental health issue – we’ve had six new cases in that area.”
“We’ve had seven people who have approached us for financial assistance,” Al noted, but then he added this observation: “My counterparts across the country (in other Jewish family service agencies) have not seen a huge increase in requests for financial support – other than the homeless situation in Toronto. They have a big Jewish homeless situation.
“I think that our federal government has done just enough – with programs like CERB, that have been enough to tide people over.
“A lot of American agencies are saying that they have seen an increase (in requests for financial assistance).” Al suggested that’s a reflection of the different American political system.
“Our employment support program has seen 25 new cases – that’s for newcomers mostly, although it also includes some people who have been laid off during the pandemic,” he noted.
There are also newcomers to the city – who have been continuing to arrive (even during the pandemic – something we noted in our Dec. 9 issue when we quoted Elaine Goldstine, CEO of the Jewish Federation, as saying that 27 new families had arrived in Winnipeg since the start of the pandemic).
I turned the subject to the high number of deaths that we’ve been witnessing in the Jewish community, especially in the past two months – as well as the community at large. While certainly a significant number of deaths are attributable to COVID (11 at the Simkin Centre, for instance, although one of those deaths occurred in a hospital, not in the centre itself), looking at Chesed Shel Emes’s database, there have already been 146 deaths as of the beginning of January – and not all Jews who pass away are taken to Chesed Shel Emes.
I wondered whether social isolation has been a contributing factor in some of those deaths, especially in personal care homes such as the Simkin Centre.
While Al suggested that the analysis hasn’t been done yet as to whether depression resulting from isolation has been a significant factor in the number of deaths, he did say that “We’ve been working with Simkin. We’re going to offer supports to families that have lost someone at Simkin due to COVID. We want to see whether they want to avail themselves of it.”
Al added that one of the responsibilities of JCFS is to offer help to the entire community, including other Jewish agencies. “That could mean supporting the staff of organizations that are stressed at this time.”
On that point I wondered whether JCFS still has a full complement of staff.
“We’ve had to reduce the hours of some people…there was a fledgling executive assistant – she was a student. We laid her off; she was fine with that.
“Essentially we’ve been ramping up some of our staff” (including the senior concierge position referenced earlier.)
“A lot of our older adult cases have come to us through the senior concierge position,” Al explained.
He noted, as well, that plans are afoot to send students into the community in January, wearing full Personal Protective Equipment, to help train seniors in the use of iPads. “We just put out an order for an additional 10-15 iPads that we’re going to get out into the community,” Al said.
“I have a plan where we can expand our volunteer coordination components so that we can take on more volunteers and perform more outreach to people,” Al observed.
I asked how many phone caller volunteers there are right now?
“Right now I think we have 15-17 active phone caller volunteers,” Al answered. “If that’s something we can expand beyond the walls of JCFS clientele – I’m going to explore that. In this day and age phone calls are the best we can do – until we can reinstate face to face visits.
“Of course, we’re prioritizing like we did in the spring,” Al continued. “We’re prioritizing the most vulnerable, the most at risk. Those are: the elderly, clients living with mental health issues, and clients living with addiction issues.”
Speaking of addiction issues, Al noted that “we’re no different than the rest of the world. We’re seeing a rise in opiate use – because that’s the drug that’s available. We’re seeing a rise in alcohol use.
“Anecdotally, we’re seeing a rise in domestic violence…A lot of other Jewish communities, for instance Hamilton, have seen a sharp rise in domestic violence – directly proportional to the degree of lockdown… We’re seeing more tensions rising with parenting issues,” he also observed.
Something else that I suggested to Al I had found when I wrote my article in June about how JCFS was helping various members of the community was that some of the individuals with whom I spoke back then might be described as being “on the periphery of the community”. Some of them had recently moved back to Winnipeg after being away for years, others had never really been involved much with the Jewish community, per se. I said that, while each of the individuals with whom I spoke back then was quite appreciative of the assistance rendered by JCFS, I wondered whether it was Al’s impression that more individuals who might also be considered on the periphery of the community had been availing themselves of the various forms of assistance rendered by JCFS?
Al responded that “the Jewish Federation has a pretty robust data base. Unlike a city like Toronto – it’s hard to hide in Winnipeg if you’re Jewish – someone knows someone who knows someone.
“Look, as of today we have 2262 cases at JCFS. We’re looking at 5900 people altogether. We’re talking 40% of our community that somehow gets impacted by our work. If we’re helping mum and dad, and they have three kids at home, the kids are being impacted by the help.”
I asked about newcomers to our community, saying that many of them wouldn’t have the family support networks that long-established members of our community would have – that could provide both financial and emotional support. I wondered whether JCFS had seen any sort of an increase in requests for assistance from newcomers as a result?
“I don’t know,” Al answered. “I’d have to dig deeper in the statistics.”
“Are they aware of the services you provide?” I asked.
“Oh yes. We have ramped up outreach to clients in every area, including our newcomer area.
He added this observation: “The pandemic has created new problems, but the old problems don’t go away either.
“But, the beauty of our community is that we’ve received many calls from people saying: ‘I’m really worried about so and so. Can you do anything to help?’ And we reach out to those people.
“Sure, there are some people who fall through the cracks, but our goal is to catch as many of them as we can before they fall too far.”
“Is it predominantly seniors we’re talking about here?” I asked.
“So far, yes,” Al said. “When I look at our numbers our highest areas of growth have been in counseling – but that’s open to all members of the community. But our senior program has had 33 new cases since April.”
Yet, other areas within JCFS’s mandate have commanded more attention as well. For instance, Al noted that “we had our clients in the mental health program not attending doctor’s appointments. We were trying to get to the bottom of why. The theme that kept running through was ‘We’re too anxious to take the bus – even with precautions’. So, they were actually avoiding doctors’ appointments and, in turn, getting bloodwork done, getting new prescriptions – which, in turn, was further destabilizing.
“So, we were able to get some money through a directed gift through the (Jewish) Foundation to cover off on cab rides for people to get to their appointments.”
“If there’s a will, there’s a way, and we want to get people through these challenging times and get them the service that they require.”
Finally, I asked whether there’s anything new to report on finding a second location for JCFS – a project which has been ongoing for more than a year. While Al did say that they’re “continuing to press forward on feasibility and costs,” there won’t likely be anything more to report on the subject until the spring.”
If you would like to contact either JCFS or the Gwen Secter Centre to find out more about help they are able to provide, the JCFS phone number is 204-477-7430, while the Gwen Secter Centre’s phone number is 204-339-1701.
Local News
Long-time Winnipeg doctor and Israeli colleague make medical app available to general public

By MYRON LOVE Seven years ago, Dr. Gerald Minuk, Canada’s first hepatologist (liver specialist), partnered with Israeli computer science student Daniel Iluz-Freundlich in founding Refuah Solutions Ltd (RSL). Their goal was to create an app – which they called PI-enroll (“PI” stands for “Principal Investigator”), which was designed to be used by clinical trial investigators that would save them time and effort so they could be more personally involved in seeing their trial patients.
Last month, they released their second app, this time for patients. The app, called Patient-empower, informs patients about clinical trials underway for their condition and helps them make an informed decision as to which trial best meets their specific needs and preferences.
“I was approaching retirement,” recalls Minuk, now Rady School of Medicine Professor Emeritus, who has been in practice in Winnipeg since 1987, and “I couldn’t see myself filling my days doing crossword puzzles or Sudoku. I wanted to be able to continue contributing to medical research and patient care.”
It just so happened that, at the time, Minuk was introduced to an Israeli student, Daniel Iluz-Freundlich, who had just finished studying Computer Sciences at the University of Winnipeg. (Minuk notes that Iluz-Freundlich – on graduating – received the Gold Medal in Computer Science.)
“Daniel is an exceptionally talented young man,” Minuk says. “So I tapped his computer programming skills to create our PI-enroll and subsequently, our Patient-empower apps.”
The friendship continued after Iluz-Freundlich returned to Israel in 2020 to begin medical school on a Phil and Elle Kives Scholarship, where he earned numerous honors. Iluz-Freundlich is currently an intensivist anesthesiologist at the Beilinson Hospital in Israel. Despite his new professional responsibilities, including caring for IDF forces wounded in Gaza– he has remained active with Refuah – as vice-president of the company.
Minuk adds that a dozen other senior professors of medicine also contributed to Refuah’s software design. “Together,” he reports, “the company represents 400+ years of clinical trial experience. That experience is being applied to identifying and addressing the major challenges investigators and patients face when conducting or participating in clinical trials.”`
He adds that Refuah Solutions has established a truly global network with company personnel in San Diego, São Paulo, Mexico City, London, Barcelona, Nairobi and Delhi thus far.
According to Minuk, the company has enjoyed worldwide success – with over 2,000 doctors in 40 countries and 50 drug companies signed on for the PI-enroll app. He attributes this success to the app’s impressive results. In a recent global clinical trial, Minuk reports, within 3-6 months of implementing PI-enroll, investigator personal involvement increased by 60% and with that, patient enrolment increased by 80%, patient drop-outs decreased by 50% and there were 20% fewer protocol deviations (mistakes made). In addition, 90% of PIs rated the App 8 out of 10 in terms of usefulness.
He adds that one site that had not enrolled any patients for 12 months, subsequently became the trial’s leading enrolment site.
Regarding the newly released Patient-empower app, Minuk notes that despite the many benefits patients derive from clinical trials including free and early access to new and often safer and more effective treatments, fewer than 10% of patients who would qualify for a clinical trial are ever invited to consider that option. “The problem,” he explains, “is that most Health Care Providers are either unaware of what clinical trials are underway in their area or if they are aware, don’t have the time to discuss the trials with their patients.”
Therefore, Minuk, Iluz-Freundlich and their team designed and recently released their second app – Patient-empower – which informs patients of what clinical trials are underway for their condition and empowers them to select the trial that prioritizes their needs over those of industry.
The platform, he explains, uses AI to generate concise, easy-to-understand summaries of clinical trials tailored to the patient’s location—city, state, country, or globally, depending on their preference. Each summary includes clear explanations of the patient eligibility criteria and key practical details, such as the likelihood of patients receiving a placebo, the number of required site visits, and other important practical considerations. It also suggests questions that patients should consider asking the investigator before they consent to enrolling. The trial information is presented in a shareable format to facilitate discussions with family, friends, and local healthcare providers—supporting both patient confidence and continuity of care.
Once a trial is selected, Minuk continues, Patient-empower provides the contact information for the trial investigator closest to the patient’s location, the trial’s sponsor and, where available, the world’s experts in the field.
The feature Minuk is most enthusiastic about is the “Recent Findings” page which keeps patients up to date on newly published clinical trial results and discoveries relevant to their condition.
“Patient-empower is available to patients from internet venues (App Store or Google Play) or through NFP organizations, associations, societies and patient support group web-sites,” he adds. “Although only recently released, we have already attracted interest from the American Diabetes Association, the Alzheimer’s Society of America, the Canadian Liver Foundation, Colorectal Cancer Canada, the American Myasthenia Gravis Society and many others.”
“Overall, Patient-empower informs patients, and more informed patients benefit everyone involved. After all, it’s the patient’s health; their voice should be heard,” Minuk concludes.
Local News
The South Seas come to the Asper Campus

By MYRON LOVE On Thursday, July 24, about 150 members of our Jewish community got a chance to sample the dance and music of the South Pacific. The event was billed as “Beyachad Together – Celebrating Indigeneity, land, culture and identity.”

The program featured both the Sarah Sommer Chai Folk Ensemble dancers and Steinbach-based Island Breeze Manitoba – which describes itself as “a high energy live band & Pacific Island dance team featuring authentic outfits and dances from the islands of Hawaii, Tahiti, Fiji, Samoa and New Zealand.”
According to Dr. Ruth Ashrafi, Regional Director of B’nai Brith Canada in Manitoba, the evening’s performance was connected to an Indigenous Peoples Conference that was held in Steinbach under the auspices of Island Breeze with participants from Canada, the United States (specifically Hawaii), Antigua and Bermuda in the Caribbean, South Africa, the Philippines, Japan, Australia, New Zealand and the South Pacific island countries of Fiji, Tonga, Samoa, the Solomon Islands and Tonga.

“The conference organizers contacted B’nai Brith Canada,” Ashrafi reported. “They wanted to bring greetings to the Jewish community, as the indigenous people of the Land of Israel, and celebrate indigeneity together through dance and music.
“Their support in these difficult times is heartwarming.”
In her opening remarks as emcee for the evening, Ashrafi noted that “it is a great honour for the Jewish community to welcome so many indigenous guests from all over the world.”
She then related the story and miracle of Chanukah and connected it to the experience shared by many indigenous nations around the world.
“They have been told that their religion is wrong, their traditions are not sophisticated,” she pointed out, “just as the Jews of that time were told by the Greek rulers that our religion was wrong and our traditions were outdated.
“Here in Canada, the First Nations were forced into Residential Schools to learn Canadian ways. The manner in which they were taught in these schools was abusive and horrific. Many children died, and many more were scarred for life.
“As with the Maccabbees,” she continued, “courageous individuals have stood up and fought for rights of their indigenous brothers and sisters. They had to overcome a lot of resistance and other obstacles. Indigenous peoples are still over-represented in the Canadian prison system and social services.
“The story of Chanukah tells us that it is okay to be different from the majority culture,” she said, and “that special and unique traditions are important and worth preserving.
“The story of Chanukah also teaches us that fighting for our rights is not easy,” Ashrafi added. “We may be a tiny minority and the other side may be much more numerous, better organized and equipped. But if we take the first step, like deciding to use that little jar of oil (that burned in the Temple for weight days even though there was only a day’s supply), we will be helped along the way.”
“We put the Menorah in our front window,” she noted, “so that the light is shining into the dark winter nights. We want to share the story of the Chanukah miracle and we want to bring light into a world that has still so much darkness in it.”
Ashrafi’s words were followed by greetings from David Harper, a former Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak Grand Chief who spoke glowingly of his visit to Israel in 2014.
“Our faith teaches us that the People of Israel are the people of the Bible and we must bless them and pray for them,” he said. “My people have a lot to learn from the people of Israel about healing the land.”
Next, Ashrafi introduced Pastor Roger Armbruster whom, she described, as the man behind the vision for the evening. Armbruster, a strong Christian Zionist supporter of Israel, is the founder of Canada Awakening Ministries.
She said of Armbruster that “it is a privilege to be his friend. I have learned so much from you.”
According to Armbruster’s bio on the Canada Awakening Ministries website, “his life has been dedicated to a ministry of reconciliation, and of building bridges between cultures, nations, denominations and generations. He sees cross-cultural reconciliation as a key to making disciples of all nations, and in seeing God’s House become a House of Prayer for all nations.
“As director of Canada Awakening Ministries, he is a leader in facilitating Native-Non-native reconciliation, and in restoring the indigenous peoples of the land to reflect that part of God’s image that He has deposited in them in their sounds, songs, praise and dances.”
Armbruster attended the Inaugural World Christian Gathering of Indigenous People in New Zealand in November 1996 as well as gatherings in Rapid City, South Dakota, in 1998, northern Sweden in 2005, and Israel in 2008. In his remarks, he noted that he has visited Israel numerous times over the years – often leading tour groups representing Canadian Inuit, Greenlandic Inuit and Manitoba First Nations at the northern ends of the earth, along with Maori, Fijians and Samoans from the southern ends of the earth – back to the City of Jerusalem from where the original gospel message first came.
“In Israel,” Armbruster said, “these Indigenous People have shared their language, their culture and their faith with both Jewish and Palestinian audiences alike. In one Israeli community, they even shared a message that brought hope to a joint audience of some 500 people that included both Jews and Arabs coming together.”
The dance part of the program was emceed by Isi Masi of Island Breezes. The musical program included several Hawaiian dances, including a rousing foot-stomping number,followed by performances featuring Hawaiian song and gentle movement. The final part of the island dances concluded with a brief Maori war chant.
(The Maori are the indigenous people of New Zealand.)
The final part of the program included several high octave dances by our own – always outstanding – Sarah Sommer Chai Folk Ensemble, with all the performers singing “We Shall Overcome” and the audience invited to join in a round of Israel dancing.
Local News
Israeli-born realtor believes in paying it forward

By MYRON LOVE When Hofit Yanev and her husband, Stefan, first arrived in Winnipeg in May 2013, they knew no one here.
“We were looking for a safer environment in which to raise our children,” she recalls. “We thought that would be Canada, and Winnipeg seemed to be the most welcoming Jewish community.”
Despite not knowing anybody, on their first morning in our community they found that someone had left a challah on their doorstep. That was a small kindness that she has never forgotten. She is a strong believer in paying it forward. Ever since then, she notes, she has made sure to greet newcomers in our community with a challah.
Helping others – whether to buy and sell their homes or manage their money – is a principal focus of the thriving career she has built up here as a real estate agent and insurance adviser.
Sales has always been Hofit Yanev’s strong suit. Originally from Holon (near Tel Aviv), she began her sales career right after her army duty. Her first venture was selling Dead Sea and hair care products. (Some readers may remember the kiosks that used to be set up at some Winnipeg shopping centres some years back.) She worked a year in Chicago and four years in Miami before returning to Israel, where she met and married Stefan.
Soon after settling in Winnipeg, Hofit found work in sales, initially for an HVAC company (while Stefan became a long-distance truck driver and now operates Excellence Fences and Decks). “As I was doing very well in sales for this company,” she recounts, “after taking time following the birth of our third child, I decided to try selling houses.”
She secured her real estate license and went to work. After 18 months of trying, she was still struggling to make a go of it.
“I lacked experience,” she recalls. “I reached a point where I was ready to give up and go back to selling HVAC products.”
However, on what she thought would be her last day, she received two calls that revitalized her hopes. In quick succession, she recounts, she got a call from a former customer who wanted her to sell his house and a new customer who wanted her help in selling his house and buying another.
“I took it as a sign from God,” she says.
Today, eight years later, Yanev, working under the eXp Realty banner, oversees an operation with over 20 agents—nine of whom are on her team and the others working under her in the eXp umbrella.
“I achieved my dream,” she notes, “and I want to help others – either those looking to buy a home or fellow realtors starting out – to realize their dreams as well.”
She notes that she strives to understand what her clients’ needs are and provide the right homes for them. She reports that 70% of her real estate clients are members of our Jewish community. She deals with commercial as well as residential properties and adds that she also helps clients with long- and short-term rentals as well as car rentals.
About a year ago, she notes, she added another entry to her resumé – that of insurance adviser. “As a realtor, I could see how some people are struggling financially,” she says. “I wanted to help.”
As an insurance adviser, she works with single mothers, seniors, and others plagued by financial difficulty. “I advise clients on how to get out of financial trouble, how to save 10% of their net income, and build their savings.”
She makes it clear that she keeps a distinct separation between her real estate clients and her insurance clients.
Now, you would think that an individual working two careers – with five kids to raise (all of whom are enrolled in Jewish educational programs) – would have her hands full. Nonetheless, Yanev has a third avocation – that of a social events planner for fellow Israelis in Winnipeg and other Hebrew speakers.
“For the past six years,” she reports, “I have been producing five programs a year in our community for Hebrew speakers. No one else was doing it, and I felt that it was important for Israelis here to be able to connect with each other.”
She adds that the family-oriented programs have been “super successful.” “We have had as many as 300 people at some of our programs.”
Yanev believes that her success story can inspire other newcomers to Winnipeg. “If you are prepared to work hard, you can achieve your dream,” she says.
She also expresses gratitude to our Jewish community. “We have found the community here to be welcoming and supportive,” she says. “It is thanks to you that we have been successful. This really is friendly Manitoba.”