Local News
Jewish Federation launches new program: “TAP” (Teens and Philanthropy) – to give teens a voice in fundraising
By BERNIE BELLAN When Sam Slutchuk was still a student at Gray Academy – five years ago, he developed a keen interest in working with the Jewish Federation of Winnipeg.
As he told me in a recent phone interview, “I’ve been connected to the Federation since high school. I began as an intern, then when I started university, I was asked to work for the Federation part-time.”
In the five years since he first began an internship with the Federation, Sam, now 22, has taken on increasingly important roles.
“I was first involved in community outreach,” Sam says. “Then I started working with Dalia Szpiro” (the Federation’s GrowWinnipeg Director, who helps to introduce new families into the community).
Sam also worked with Madeline Lopez Ficher, the Federation’s Creative Director, helping to design the Federation’s revamped website, “jewishwinnipeg.org”, nearly two years ago. Sam was also responsible for managing the “Community Connects” initiative during the early stages of the pandemic, which offered check-in calls to over 4000 Jewish households.
More recently though, Sam has moved into a different role – as a “Development Associate” for the Federation, a role in which he is directly involved in fundraising for the Combined Jewish Appeal.
In addition to working for the Federation, Sam is a student at the University of Manitoba.
How Sam came to be involved in fundraising is itself an interesting story.
“I’ve always been interested in fundraising,” he says. “I enjoy my days spent at the Federation because I am helping raise funds for an organization I care deeply about.”
Part of Sam’s new role involves educating young people, in this case high school students, about the importance of the Jewish Federation to the Jewish community, and concomitantly, the importance of the Combined Jewish Appeal.
As Sam says, “I’m emotionally connected to the CJA and the Federation.”
Now, while many young people have volunteered at one time or another with various beneficiary agencies of the Federation, it’s Sam’s job to prepare young people for future roles with the Federation and the community at large.
As such, Sam has been tasked with running a program called “Teens and Philanthropy”.
A little while ago the Federation sent out a marketing campaign to 500 families of teenagers in the community. The email promoted the TAP program to the teenagers to see whether they might be interested in serving on a committee comprised of 14-17 year-olds that would meet once a month for two hours, and whose members would become educated in the important role that philanthropy plays in the community.
Altogether, nearly 40 students expressed interest in serving on the TAP committee through the CJA. As Sam says, “I am thrilled with the response of our teens and excited to get this project off the ground.”
The students come from a variety of different schools, including Gray Academy, Grant Park High School, Garden City Collegiate, and the University of Winnipeg Collegiate.
I asked Sam whether there was one common denominator that he could identify among the students on the committee, other than their ages? He thought about it for a moment, then said that they almost all had been involved with PJ Library at one time or another – which. by the way, shows how successful PJ Library has been at integrating families into the community.
So, what is it that the students will be asked to do when they’re on the TAP committee?
Sam explains that the committee will be given $3600 to work with. Over the course of the next few months, the committee will research the beneficiary agencies that receive funding from the Jewish Federation. The members of the committee will be asked to allocate that $3600 in a similar way that the Allocations Committee of the Jewish Federation distributes funds to the various agencies.
As Sam notes in an email he also sent to me following our interview, “The purpose of the creation of TAP is for the younger generation of our community to have a hands-on experience in philanthropy, no better way than with real-time and money. I felt it was crucial to begin recruiting members now; teens are looking to make a difference, need to fulfill volunteer hours, and what better way than to form a committee.”
I wondered though, whether the students might have an inherent predisposition to favour agencies with which they might have a greater familiarity, such as Gray Academy or the two sleepover camps, Massad and BB Camp?
Sam says that many of the students might have familiarity with other agencies as well, such as the Simkin Centre, because they have a grandparent there, or perhaps Jewish Child & Family Service, or they will learn of new agencies that may hit close to home.
Regardless, the overall purpose of giving the students the $3600 to allocate is to educate them in the process of decision-making.
“These students will be asked to voice their thoughts and opinions,” he notes.
“We need to bring younger people into the process,” Sam says, in explaining what the objective of the program is. “We want our future generation of the community to feel they have a voice.”
Given the Covid situation, however, the first meeting of the committee, which will take place toward the end of January, will, of necessity, be held online.
Sam says though that the hope is to be able to have meetings in February and March held in person.
“Down the road,” he also says, “I would like the students to sit in on focus groups, potentially work as canvassers on Super Sunday,” and to be given roles that until now would have been reserved for adults.
Once they’ve served on the TAP committee this year, each student will be given a letter of reference which should prove valuable down the road both in terms of applying to post-secondary education after high school or in seeking a job.
“We’ll be testing the waters at this point,” Sam says. But, by asking high school students to familiarize themselves with much of the process that’s involved in the work of the Jewish Federation at this relatively early stage of their lives, the hope is that the end result will be to help prepare future leaders of tomorrow for important roles in the community.
“As Sam says, “we need to bring younger people into the process. We wouldn’t have a community without the CJA.”
Local News
Cheryl Hirsch Katz, Jewish Child and Family Service’s longest serving staffer, set to retire at end of the month
By MYRON LOVE “I loved working at Jewish Child and Family Service,” says Cheryl Hirsh Katz, who is due to retire at the end of June. “I have always appreciated the warm and welcoming atmosphere here. I feel that the people working here are my extended family. I am going to miss my colleagues”.
“I have derived great satisfaction over the years to have been able to help many people in our community of all ages through my work at JCFS,” she continues.
After 44 years at the agency, Katz, the longest-serving member of the staff, was given an appreciative send-off at the JCFS’s recent (June 23) Annual General Meeting at the Shaarey Zedek Synagogue.
The daughter of Art and Bess Hirsh, Cheryl grew up in Garden City. She attended Peretz School, then Jefferson Junior High and Garden City Collegiate. She joined the staff of JCFS in 1981, shortly after receiving her Bachelor of Social Work degree.
She earned an MSW in 1990.
“I chose to become a social worker,” she recalls, “because I always wanted to be able to help people.”
Katz was originally hired by JCFS to work with newcomers. After a couple of years, she was given responsibility for looking after the needs of older adults.
“I really enjoyed working in older adult services,” she says. “That is where I spent the bulk of my time at JCFS.”
After ten years as a case worker, she was promoted to a supervisory role. Later, she was also given responsibility for mental health and addictions programming and settlement services, while keeping the older adult files under her purview.
“As a supervisor, I wasn’t directly involved with individual clients,” she points out. “I was more involved with programming. Among the programs for seniors we organized were – for example – sessions on elder abuse, digital storytelling and memory loss.”
She notes that one of the trends she has seen over the last 44 years is that people are living longer and living in their homes longer. A lot more of our clients are living well into their 90s,” she observes. “We have had to continually expand our staff and the services we provide in order to accommodate the growing demands of an aging population.”
She also spoke of the mental health needs of seniors and aging Holocaust survivors.
She says that she has mixed feelings about leaving JCFS. “After so many years working full time, I am going to have to create a new routine,” she comments.
She notes that, now that she is retired, she will have more time to spend with her parents – who are in their 90s.
And then, there are the two dogs to look after. “I will have time now to try new activities,” she says. “ I might learn to play mah-jong.”
She speaks about maybe doing some traveling – although her husband, Murray, is still working full time.
(She and Murray have one daughter, Farah.)
“Retirement may also include some volunteering,” she adds.
It is quite likely, she will be continuing her association with JCFS but in a volunteer capacity.
Local News
Gray Academy students shine in provincial, national debating competitions
By MYRON LOVE It has been another good year for Gray Academy’s high school students who participated in provincial and national debating competitions. The best results were recorded by Grade 9 student Noa Mednikov, who finished fourth overall nationally, fourth in interpretive reading, and fifth in persuasive speaking at the junior National Public Speaking Championship in early May in Vancouver.
Last October, in the Junior Provincial British Parliamentary Championship – which was held at St. John’s-Ravenscourt – Noa and her partner, Raya Braunstein, finished third as a team while Raya placed third in individual debating.
Their fellow Grade 9 student Maxim Moscalenkov tied for first in persuasive speaking in Vancouver, while the Gray Academy team of Gabe Tapper and Aaron Koplovich finished fifth. Aaron also finished fifth in his individual debate.
Earlier, in March, Maxim finished fifth in the Provincial Juniors debating competition, which was held at Balmoral Hall He and his debate partner, Nate Shenkarow, finished seventh among the teams entered. Last November, he and partner, Ethan Tenenbein, finished seventh in the Junior Prepared Tournament – just behind the Gray Academy team of Nate Shenkarow and Jack Kay.
At the senior high level in that competition, the team of Jacob Tenenbein and Jonah Novoseller finished fourth and Jacob was recognized as fifth best in an individual capacity. Jonah and Jacob also paired up to win the Asper Cup, which was held at their home school.
Jacob represented Manitoba at the Junior National Speech Championship in Vancouver in May and, last October, he and Grade 12 Gray Academy students Julie Krozkin and Daniel Bokser represented Canada at an international debating tournament in Bermuda.
Gray Academy’s debating program was introduced by Linda Martin in 2003. She also led the debating teams at Balmoral Hall. In 2011, Martin was succeeded by Gray Academy high school English teacher Andrew Kaplan.
“Andrew has done a wonderful job with the debating program” says Martin, who has a debating trophy at Gray Academy named in her honour, as well as a provincial trophy for best individual junior debater. “Over the years, Gray Academy students have done very well in many local, national and international competitions,” she adds.
About three weeks ago, this writer had the opportunity to sit down with Andrew Kaplan and six of the school’s top debaters while they discussed the benefits of learning how to debate. According to Noah Strauss – who competed in the Junior Provincials at Balmoral Hall in March, public speaking leaves him with a feeling of accomplishment.
“It’s a good skill set to have,” he observes. “It builds confidence.”
“A benefit of being able to debate is that you learn how to convince people that you know what you are talking about,” adds Maxim Moscolenkov.
Raya Braunstein notes that being able to debate is a skill that she expects to be helpful in many university courses which she may choose to take.
As Andrew Kaplan notes, the ability to express yourself has a great impact in whatever career you choose to pursue.
He points out that debating is compulsory at Gray Academy for all Grade 7 and 8 students – and students can continue debating as an option in the higher grades
Of course, competitive debating is not for everyone. For those students who opt to take that path, the journey begins with internal school debate competition – with the top debating teams and individuals qualifying for local tournaments and – potentially – beyond.
Andrew Kaplan reports that a small number of high schools in Winnipeg and southern Manitoba have active debating programs – including St. Johns Ravenscourt, St. Paul’s High School, St. Mary’s Academy, Garden City and Maples Collegiates in the Seven Oaks School Division, St. Maurice (a Catholic School), as well as Morden Collegiate and Dasmesh, a Sikh private school.
Kaplan expresses his appreciation to the Asper Foundation and an endowment spearheaded by the Kives Family for providing funding for the Gray Academy debating program – as well as the Andrew Slough Foundation – which was established by his friends in memory of the outstanding former Ravenscourt student debater and lawyer who passed away suddenly two years ago at the still young age of 38.
I am confident that our Jewish community can look forward to the continued success of Gray Academy’s star debaters and to the continual emergence of future stars as the times goes by.
Local News
Antisemitism has crept into grade school in Canada
Antisemitism in Canada has moved beyond protests and politics; it is now entering classrooms and altering how Jewish children see themselves functioning within them.
A a university student I have observed the experience of my younger brother in grade eight as a Jewish student. Over the past few months, his school has been at the center of several deeply troubling incidents that have made him feel unsafe in our parks, community, and even his school. Swastikas were drawn around the community, in parks and ponds. Additionally, an older man, who claims to be a pro-Palestinian influencer, stood outside his predominantly Jewish school wearing a keffiyeh, filming a video which then circulated between students on TikTok.
This same man later showed up to our local Jewish community center in keffiyeh to allegedly watch his son play basketball where my brother and many of his classmates go for their lessons, basketball games, and Jewish events. These moments made him and his peers feel watched and targeted just for being Jewish. Local political representatives condemned the incidents and raised awareness about antisemitism, but the fear among students didn’t go away. The feeling of being targeted for simply existing has been taught to my brother, something my parents had tried their hardest to escape from.
Most recently, my brother was chosen to represent his school at a regional science fair. When one of the judges arrived wearing a keffiyeh, he froze. For many, including my brother after the incidents he has faced, the keffiyeh represents a political message. But even more so for my younger brother, it is tied to the fear and intimidation he had already experienced. He felt nervous, distracted, and unsure of how to act.
This is not about silencing political expression. It is about a child who came to share his ideas and left feeling uncertain and afraid. It is about the atmosphere forming in Canadian schools, where Jewish students are being made to feel targeted and unwelcome.
His school made an effort to address the incidents, but the impact is lasting. Posts on social media, much can be very vague at times about inclusion cannot fully undo the feeling of being singled out. A kind word from a teacher does not erase the fear that builds when threats are left unspoken but deeply felt.
I am writing this as a sister who watched her younger brother lose a moment that should have been filled with confidence and pride. He deserved to feel safe. So do all Jewish students in this country.
Moving forward, schools must take concrete steps to protect all students. Antisemitism cannot only be addressed when it becomes violent or overt. It must also be recognized when it appears as intimidation, symbolic targeting, or political messaging that creates fear among students. Children should never have to question whether they are safe in their own classrooms or community spaces.
Events that are meant to support and celebrate students must remain focused on them. Individuals who feel the need to bring political symbols or messages into school grounds or children’s events should not be welcomed in those spaces. Schools must make it clear that their environments exist to support learning, safety, and inclusion, not to host agendas that can intimidate or isolate students.
Administrators and educators must develop clear guidelines for identifying and responding to antisemitic behavior in all its forms. This includes strengthening security measures, offering ongoing staff training, and engaging directly with Jewish families to understand their concerns. Inclusion is not a one-time statement. It is a responsibility that must be reflected in everyday decisions and actions. No child should ever feel unsafe or unwelcome because of their identity.
The author is a Campus Media Fellow with HonestReporting Canada and Allied Voices for Israel who lives in Toronto.