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JNF holds successful online event – with home-delivered nosh thrown in

Danny Greaves of “The Watchmen”
was one of the performers

By MYRON LOVE
On Sunday, November 15, Jewish National Fund (JNF) chapters across Canada “hosted” “A Night of 100 Dinners” during which participants received in their homes a mix of nosherei and watched a virtual performance featuring YidLife Crisis and a host of other celebrities. David Greaves, the JNF’s executive director for Manitoba and Saskatchewan, reports that the Winnipeg response exceeded expectations.

“We had just over 100 homes and donors that participated and the feedback has been nothing but positive,” Greaves reports.
Nola Lazar, JNF President, also had much praise for Shaarey Zedek Chef Joel Lafond and his catering department, which prepared the party sandwiches and pastries for participants. “The sandwiches and pastry were delicious as always,” she says.
JNF volunteers delivered the goods, so to speak.
The amount of food and wine that each participating received was calibrated with the category of donation to the JNF for the event. Top donors – the L’chaim level or $1,800 category – received sandwiches (the nosh or forshpice), plus dessert and two bottles of wine. For the Negev ($75) and Young Adult ($54) categories, you received a delivery of sweet treats.
The 40 minute virtual performance that was part of the program across Canada included such celebrities as Martin Short; Gal Gadot (of Wonder Women Fame); the star of “Fauda”, Lior Raz; Colin Mochrie; and Howie Mandel.
Greaves notes that the last five minutes of the program were set aside for locally relevant programming. For Winnipeg participants, there was a little shticking from “YidLife Crisis” about Winnipeg. Schmoozers and the Viscount Gort received notable mentions.
The program also featured a live performance by Danny Greaves (David’s brother), who is the lead singer of the Winnipeg-based band, “The Watchmen”. Danny Greaves played an unplugged version on piano of ‘Any day now’ a hit song about Winnipeg that the band recorded many years ago.
The program closed with a “Hello Winnipeg” from David Broza and a five-minute version of ‘Yihiye Tov’ (It’ll be alright) an appropriate song for the times we are living in.
David Greaves reports that the Winnipeg portion of “Night of 100 Dinners” raised about $25,000, which will go toward JNF Winnipeg’s project in Israel – JNF Canada House of Excellence – an after-school educational enrichment centre aimed at helping high school students in Sderot and surrounding communities in the south to enhance their academic performance.
The multipurpose hall will be used for workshops, lectures, performances, film and social gatherings. The ‘house’ will also be a safe place as the 3000 plus square foot building will also be a reinforced shelter.
As a national JNF project, JNF Winnipeg is very proud that the lead gift of $1 million has come from the son of Berdie & Irvin Cohen z’l in their honour.
Greaves, however, suggests that “Night of 100 Dinners” was more about community engagement than fundraising.
“This has been a tough year,” he observes. “We had to cancel our gala and our annual High Holiday campaign. With this program, we were trying to reach out to the community in a unique and interesting way. We are trying to stay relevant.”
As for the Negev Gala, Greaves reports that the JNF staff and board are planning to reschedule last year’s gala honouring community leader Dr. Ted Lyons for the spring. “We care not sure what it will look like yet,” he says. “It may be a mixture of virtual and live parts. We have David Broza rebooked as our feature performer and he is excited about being part of the Gala – we hope in person. We want to make sure that we are able to put together a really special evening for Ted Lyons.”

 

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The Jewish Post Ltd.’s brand new website

Click here to be taken to our new website featuring foods you can find on Facebook Marketplace

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First year medical student Tim Rozovsky founds new association for local Jewish medical students

By MYRON LOVE In the face of a concerning surge in antisemitism over the past nearly three years, I am happy to report a good news story in that regard.  Tim Rozovsky, the founder of the new Jewish Medical Students’ Association of Manitoba, reports that he and his fellow Jewish students enrolled in the University of Manitoba’s Max Rady College of Medicine are not experiencing any significant issues involving antisemitism.
Hopefully, the matter of the notorious Med school Valedictorian who used his podium to attack Israel was a one-off.
“My goal in forming the Jewish Medical Students’ Association of Manitoba,” says the first year medical student, “was to create a safe, supportive environment for my fellow Jewish medical students.”
He reports that the current first year class at the school has eight Jewish students – an increase over more recent years – with maybe a dozen more in the other years.
For a new medical student, Rozovsky already has an impressive resume. He was born in Russia and grew up in Israel. After the completion of his army service in 2018, the then-22-year-old rejoined his parents, Dr. Katya and Alexander, who had moved to Winnipeg a few years before.  
Prior to coming to Winnipeg, Rozovsky had completed a personal trainer program out of The Academic College at Wingate in Jerusalem. Some readers may know the young man from his work as a Master Personal Trainer at the Rady JCC.
Shortly after arriving here, he enrolled in a kinesiology program at the University of Winnipeg. He graduated with a BKin Honours in 2023 and did post graduate work at the University of Manitoba. Last fall, he received his MSc in Physiology and Pathophysiology  – earning two gold medals, along with 32 awards and scholarships in the process.
Rozovsky says that it was his mother who inspired him to pursue a career in medicine. Dr. Katya Rozovsky is an associate professor at the University of Manitoba and an attending radiologist, specializing in pediatric diagnostic imaging. 
(Tim also adds that his wife, Irina Gelzin, whom he married about a year ago, is training to be a nurse.)
Insofar as the  Jewish Medical Students’ Association of Manitoba is concerned, Rozovky reports that the group gets together multiple times a year. One of its programs was a joint Chanukah celebration with the Jewish Physicians Association of Manitoba.
There was also a joint program with the Christian Medical and Dental Students’ Association of Manitoba.
“More recently, we have been helping prospective Jewish medical students with their applications,” he says. “Hopefully we will be able to get together over the summer with the incoming Jewish students.”
As to his own future plans, Rozovsky notes that it is too early for him to be deciding on a specialty.  “My goal,” he says, “is to work hard and get good grades and become the best doctor that I can be.”

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Gray Academy to Represent Manitoba at National Reach for the Top Competition

Gray Academy staff (l-r): Daniele Miller, Lindsey Leipsic, Nick Maier

By NOAH STRAUSS Posted June 6) Gray Academy’s Reach for the Top team is headed to Moncton, New Brunswick, to represent Manitoba at the National Reach for the Top tournament.
Reach for the Top is a Canadian school league that quizzes teenagers on a variety of different topics, from science and history to pop culture. Reach started out in 1961 in Vancouver, where a local CBC station broadcasted the new show; it eventually became a national broadcast starting in 1966. Alex Trebek, who famously hosted Jeopardy!, started out by hosting Reach for the Top.
Gray Academy’s very own team, made up of Grade 7 and 8 students, will travel to Moncton, New Brunswick, to compete as Team Manitoba. By winning the provincial Reach tournament, they secured their spot in the national competition.
Faculty members at Gray Academy are very supportive of the program. The Jewish Post spoke with three different staff members at the school. Coach and high school teacher Danielle Miller says she is excited for the trip; although she will not be accompanying the team herself, shehas coached them all year.
“This year we had over 20 students come to the club to join us, they practice twice a cycle at lunch,” Miller said. Due to the large turnout this year, two teams had to be formed. At lunch practices, students split into two teams of four where each player has a buzzer. The two teams compete to see who can answer the most questions correctly.
One of the two teams did exceptionally well at various tournaments throughout the year and will be traveling to nationals as the sole team representing Manitoba.
Co-coach Micah Doerksen described Reach as a great academic competition where young minds are tested on various topics through quick,fast-paced questions.
High school guidance counselor Lindsey Leipsic said, “We have athletes, non-athletes, we have students who are really involved and students who are not as involved at school, and we have quiet leaders, and we’ve seen friendships be built in Reach.” Some of her favorite memories of Reach involve seeing students from across Winnipeg come to Gray Academy and bond with one another. Lev Chisick, who is competing at nationals, agreed, saying, “Moncton is going to strengthen our school spirit and make us a better team.”
As the junior team makes their way to Moncton, the senior team will head to provincials. Later this week, students from the senior team will travel to Virden, Manitoba, to compete at the provincial level. The team qualified after placing high enough at their most recent tournament, which took place at St. Paul’s.
Confidence is high as the school heads into these final tournaments. When Nath Goldenberg, who is also competing at nationals, was asked what he is most looking forward to, his answer was short and sweet:“Winning.”

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