Local News
Jewish Federation celebrates GrowWinnipeg volunteers
By MYRON LOVE A chance meeting on an airplane almost 30 years ago between former Lieutenannt-Governor Janice Filmon – at that time the wife of then-Manitoba premier Gary Filmon, and a Jewish businessman from Argentina, planted a seed that has grown into a magnificent tree that has revitalized our Jewish community.
As a result of that meeting, our once declining community has been enriched by an estimated 6,500 newcomers (most of whom have stayed) from many different countries.
To recap, the businessman was looking to immigrate to Toronto. Filmon persuaded him to consider Winnipeg instead. He was impressed by what he saw and suggested that the community send representatives to Buenos Aires to meet with other Argentine Jewish families who were considering leaving.
Thus was born GrowWinnipeg, an initiative led in its early years by Larry Hurtig – then the president of the Federation, and Evelyn Hecht, who became the principal contact for the newcomers. Our community opened our arms in welcome to the new arrivals, hosting them in our homes, and helping them become acclimatized to their new society.
After Evelyn Hecht retired in 2006, she was succeeded as director of GrowWinnipeg by her assistant, Dalia Szpiro, who was herself a relatively new immigrant to Winnipeg. Szpiro, her husband, Eduardo Borovich and young daughter, Yael, came here in 2002 from Uruguay,
“Evelyn was a joy to work with,” Szpiro says. “I learned through her the generosity, openness and welcoming spirit that our Jewish Community has. Her door was always open. I have tried to follow her example.”
Szpiro is being assisted in her work by Irina Gelzin and recently hired volunteer coordinator Belin Seloni.
“What we offer as a community to newcomers is unique,” Szpiro pointed out in an earlier interview. “One of the requirements to apply for permanent residency is an exploratory visit to Manitoba. We have a great number of volunteers who connect with the exploratory visitors and their families. We work to build contacts between prospective newcomers and members of the community. We try to match new families with people with similar backgrounds. They start to build their network before moving here, so when they move here they feel at home. Candidates are connected to all our organizations and services including JCFS, Rady JCC, Gray Academy, synagogues, professional regulatory bodies, and other relevant contacts.”
On Monday, August 26, Szpiro and the Federation showed its appreciation to the many community volunteers who have helped make the GrowWinnipeg initiative a success with a social evening at the Asper Campus that attracted about 130 people – a mix of locally-born host families, long-established immigrants, and recently arrived newcomers.
The evening was light on speeches with more focus on socializing and enjoying the music from Muse On, a live band, at the outdoor venue. “The members of the band,” Szpiro notes, are also volunteers who meet exploratory visitors and volunteered that evening as well.
In her remarks, Federation President Paula Parks spoke of the dreams and aspirations which newcomers to our community have brought with them. “I want to thank all of you who have extended a welcoming hand over the years to our new arrivals,” she said.
“Winnipeg is not just a good place to raise a family. I is also a great place to call home.”
Among the most recent arrivals who were out for the event was Eyal Braunstein, formerly of Sderot, who landed with his wife and baby just five months ago. “We really appreciate the quiet,” says the mechanical engineer. “It is relaxing and people have been really welcoming.”
Itai and Elona David and their four children – the oldest of whom is in first year at the University of Manitoba – have been here for three years. Originally from Hadera in west central Israel, the software engineer says that he appreciates the support from our Jewish community.
He adds that a lot of Israelis may be interested in moving to Winnipeg.
Good friends Alex Hadish and Dima Vainer have been here for 12 and 14 years respectively. Vainer is originally from Sderot and Hadish from Ukraine by way of Israel. Both work for the same IT company.
Hadish says that he and his family came for reasons of security and opportunity, Vainer and his family for a sense of safety. “This is a better place to raise a family,” he says.
Like Hadish, Asia Shvarzman is also originally from the former Soviet Union by way of Israel. The project manager in charge of research and development with Gordon Construction came to Winnipeg 14 years ago after having lived in Haifa for 19 years. In addition to her work here, Shvartzman, who has a Ph.D., is an associate professor of Computer Science at the Jerusalem College of Technology.
“I teach carbon construction and technology,” she notes. “I return to Israel twice a year. One area I focus on is building a strong working relationship in my field between Canada and Israel.”
Of the newcomers that I had the pleasure of meeting at the social evening, David and Sandra Brunstein have been here the longest. The couple arrived here from Buenos Aires in 2005.
“With the birth of our daughter, our view of the world changed,” says David, a software developer. (Sandra works with refugees and new immigrants). “We wanted to go to a place that would offer a better environment in which to raise our daughter.”
They learned about the GrowWinnipeg initiative and liked what they heard. “We got a lot of support from the Jewish community – especially from Evelyn Hecht,” Sandra recalls.
Once they were established here, David and Sandra began to give back – hosting other prospective immigrants – who came on exploratory visits – and sharing their experiences.
I was surprised to run into David and Sherrill Levene at the event. I have known them for years – but I did not know that they have been among the members of our community who have been opening their home to newcomers – something , Sherrill reports, that they have been doing since the mid-1980s – well before the GrowWinnipeg initiative came into existence.
“I was a volunteer with the Jewish Child and Family Service when the first wave of immigrants from Russia arrived here,” Sherrill recounts. “That was how we began hosting newcomers.”
David adds that, over the years, they have hosted between 50 and 60 different exploratory visitors and newcomer families.
“We have been glad to be able to help,” Sherrill says She could be speaking for our community as a whole when she added that “our lives have been enriched by all those friends we have made through the GrowWinnipeg initiative.”
“While most of our new families are now coming from Israel,” Szpiro noted in that earlier interview, “we are also still getting a lot of inquiries from Mexico, Brazil Argentina, Turkey, Hungary, South Africa, Colombia, Ukraine and Russia.”
As for herself and her family, she and Eduardo are satisfied that they made the right move. “Winnipeg not only offers a lot for families but also for young adults,” she says. “There are so many opportunities for them.”
Local News
Fringe Festival star Melanie Gall to appear at Gwen Secter Centre July 16
By BERNIE BELLAN A veteran performer at the Winnipeg Fringe Festival, Melanie Gall, will be making a special guest appearance at the Gwen Secter Centre on Thursday, July 16.
Melanie will be the featured speaker (and entertainer) for the Remis Speakers’ Series that day. The Remis Speakers’ Series is held every Thursday starting at noon and ending at 1:30. This year’s series began May 7 and will continue through the end of October. This year it has been attracting increasingly large audiences – ranging from 40-60 people, as it offers attendees the opportunity to enjoy a delicious – and kosher lunch, while listening to a very diverse variety of speakers – all the way from Gail Asper talking about returning the Ten Commandments to Assiniboine Park to Rabbi Matthew Leibl performing Christmas songs that were written by Jewish songwriters. At the same time it provides those attending a chance to make new acquaintances – or perhaps bump into old friends they haven’t seen in a long time.
Melanie Gall’s own story is sure to be riveting. I’ve written about Melanie in the past, but the past two summers had been especially nerve wracking for Melanie, as she was subjected to a torrent of antisemitic abuse over her support for the State of Israel.
You can read my story about what Melanie went through during the Winnipeg Fringe Festival – both in 2024 and again last year, at Melanie Gall subjected to antisemitic abuse.
Melanie, who will be entering her 13th year of performing at the Winnipeg Fringe Festival, will be peforming in only one show this year – a departure from her past practice of performing in multiple shows (as many as three different shows) during the Fringe Festival.
Elsewhere on this website we’ll be offering a preview of Melanie’s show (which is called “The Ballad of Isobel Gunn” and which is based on an incredible, but true story), along with previews of several other shows.
In the meantime, if you’re not already a member of the Remis Speakers’ Series group, but would ike to attend this coming Thursday, simply email us at jewishp@mymts.net and we’ll reserve a spot for you. The cost for the lunch is only $20.
The Gwen Secter Centre is located at 1588 Main Street (corner of Smithfield). There is parking available on a lot behind the centre or on the street.
Local News
Folk Festival Report
(Posted July 10) During this year’s Winnipeg Folk Festival we’re going to be running an ongoing blog report – with photos and blurbs from the festival, sent to us by Heather Silbert and Samara Ebanks.
Here’s Heather’s first entry (sent Friday at 3:33 pm): “It’s a hot hot day at the 51st Winnipeg Folk Festival! Lots of people; lots of good vibes; and an abundance of awesome music!!”
“We just moved to spruce hollow. Nice and shady. listening to Jacob Brodovsky.”
4:21 pm: “Jacob just announced that he lost his job and received a lot of vitriol from the Jewish Community because he’s a Jewish person who believes that Palestinian and Jewish lives are intertwined, and he is against the genocide. He is very deeply feeling, and expresses all these big feelings through his songs. I want to give him a hug, but it’s so hot outside!”
5:33 pm: The inscription in the plaque below begins with some lines from a Bruce Cockburn song called “Joy Will Find a Way (A Song About Dying)”: and continues with: “Memory Lane honours those who are no longer with us but whose presence lives on in the music, memories and moments we share here…”
7:06 pm “Gorgeous hand made polymer clay jewelry! Amanda Greisman makes gorgeous pieces that can be worn across many occasions! And she’s so so nice!” (See her booth called “Blue Sky Jewelry.”
(Keep checking for updates)
Local News
New GrowWinnipeg “Grow Together” highlights diverse origins of our growing Jewish community
By MYRON LOVE On Monday, June 11, about 120 younger Jewish Winnipeggers from diverse backgrounds came together at the Asper Campus for an evening of food and music, games and prizes and, most important, the opportunity to socialize with their peers from a growing community that reflects the long term success of our community’s 26-year-old GrowWinnipeg initiative.
“We are gathered here to celebrate your and your parents’ decisions to come to Winnipeg, build families and raise families here,” noted Dalia Szpiro, GrowWinnipeg’s director, in addressing the young adults in attendance.
To summarize, the GrowWinnipeg Initiative arose when our past community’s leadership recognized that our Jewish population was an aging and shrinking community with aging infrastructure.
The first stage was the planning and construction of the Asper Campus, which brought our major institutions and organizations under one roof in an attractive new building.
The next challenge was to attract more people to our community. GrowWinnipeg was created to take on the challenge. The initiative, which was officially launched in 2000, is unique in its efforts to reach out to young Jewish families throughout the Western world.
The first outreach efforts were directed at Argentina’s sizeable Jewish community at a time when the South American country’s economy was going through a very difficult period. Several of our community leaders visited the Jewish community in Buenos Aires and a website was established. Arrangements were made for local families to host Jewish Argentinians here on exploratory visits and the community helped the prospective immigrants navigate the then new Provincial Nominee Program, find jobs and establish themselves here.
Since then, many young families – from Argentina, as well as a great number of other countries – have chosen to make Winnipeg their new home. The young people at the recent GrowWinnipeg evening were reflective of the diversity of our growing community. During the course of the evening, I had the opportunity to speak with not only Israeli-born participants, also young people from Russia and Ukraine, Turkey and Uruguay – and a young lady who grew up in Ottawa.
Naomi Kirshenblatt Palansky originally came here from Ottawa to go to university. She met and married local entrepreneur Noah Palansky in 2023. (We wrote about Noah in the December 19, 2025 issue). That same year, the former competitive swimmer who competed in the Maccabiah Games in 2009 and 2013 served as manager of the Canadian Junior swimming team participating in the games. She is currently the director of operations and strategy for a company called CoinFlip.
Although born in Montevideo, Uruguay, Yael Borovich grew up in Winnipeg. She is the daughter of Dalia Szpiro and Eduardo Borovich (and younger sister of Vanessa) all of whom moved here in 2002. She is a graduate of the Asper School of Business and works as a senior client relationship manager for Scotia Bank’s commercial branch.
Siblings Igal and Edem Avimelek arrived here from Turkey six years ago with their parents, Etel and Moris. Edem is in her second year at the University of Manitoba while Igal is studying engineering at UBC.
They report that their father, Moris, has established the Upperwear Textile Agency – marketing textile products online – while their mother Etel, is senior IT Director, software development and data analytics and enterprise architecture at Standard Aero.
“Our parents were looking to move to a new country and came across the GrowWinnipeg webpage,” Edem says. “GrowWinnipeg has been really supportive of us in helping us move here and become established.”
More recent arrivals Alex Tsmokaliuk and Jane Hin are from Ukraine and Russia respectively and have been together since 2022. “We were looking for a peaceful place to start a family,”: Alex says. “We heard about GrowWinnpeg and here we are.”
Alex is a fitness trainer while Jane is working for WRE Development as a property manager.
Dora Bronstein, who is originally from Beersheva, is also a recent arrival to our community. “I came to Winnipeg because I wanted to get away from war – and I heard about GrowWinnipeg,” she says.
She is currently working for L.C. Taylor Licensed Insolvency Trustee as an estate manager.
Erele Tzidon and Daniel Mejnov
Last October, GrowWinnipeg introduced its new Youth Ambassadors program.
“Since October, we have been working to create an organized system and opportunities to help young newcomers find their people within our community,” wrote Youth Ambassador Erele Tzidon on Facebook.
“Our mission is to help young immigrants find a sense of home in Winnipeg and support a smooth and welcoming transition.
We are excited to help bring our young Jewish community together.
As reported in the Jewish Post about 18 months ago, Tzidon is originally from Moshav Ginaton in central Israel. She came to Winnipeg in 2018 with her parents Ofer – formerly regional manager for a car rental agency in Israel and now an RBC branch manager – and Sharon – an emotional therapist in Israel who is currently working as an educational assistant at Gray Academy – and three younger brothers.
The 20-year Gray Academy graduate has recently completed her third year in Science at the University of Manitoba. For the past three years, she has also been a member of Dr. Inna Rabinovich-Nikitin’s research team at the Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences (ICS), researching the link between pregnancy complications and the risk for heart disease.
In November, 2024, Tzidon was presented with the Dr. James S. McGoey Student Award – based on the quality of her cardiovascular research at the ICS, which operates out of the St. Boniface Hospital campus’s Albrechchtsen Research Centre.
Tzidon’s fellow Youth Ambassador is Daniel Mejnov. He was born in Beersheva but moved to Winnipeg with his parents, Dennis and Victoria (and younger brother Alon) 14 years ago. He is currently enrolled in an IT program at the University of Winnipeg.
Mejnov welcomed all those in attendance at the celebration and thanked the volunteers who helped him and Tzidon organize the event.
“It has been great being able to bring so many people together,” he said. “This is a good way to unite our community.
Two other individuals of particular note that I spoke with at the event were Orit Agabayev and Alina Plis, partners in three year old A and O Event Décor, who provided the balloon arches and walls, table settings and centre pieces for the evening.
Agabayev is originally from Netanya and Plis is from Yeruham (in southern Israel). The latter has been here for 18 years and operates a daycare. The former came 16 years. Her principal career is working in the field of animal nutrition.
In an Instagram PosI from four years ago, Plis noted that “I have always been passionate about planning parties and events. I started out with planning big surprise birthday parties for my kids. Eventually I began planning and decorating events for family and friends. Now I am taking the next step with my friend, Orit, who shares the same level enthusiasm as me. What drives me to go above and beyond is simply the excitement my creations bring to those who see my work.
On Facebook, Agabayev added that “Alina and I are so excited to start A&O event decor. We both love decorating and planning different events. We hope that you can put your trust in us to create or decorate an event for you. We do Birthday parties, anniversaries, bachelor/bachelorette parties, proposals, weddings and more..
“Message us with your ideas to get a free quote and you’re one step closer to having an unforgettable event.”
