Local News
New Jewish Child and Family Service president has lengthy history with the organization
By MYRON LOVE
Seventeen years ago, a Gray Academy high school student by the name of Ari Hanson began doing volunteer work for the Jewish Child and Family Service (JCFS). Today, the 32-year-old tax and civil litigation associate with Fillmore Riley LLP is the youngest president in the history of the JCFS.
“It happened that one day a couple of representatives from the JCFS came to the school looking to recruit student volunteers,” recalls the son of Shelley and Hugh Hanson.
“One of the needs was for volunteers to help socially isolated seniors by taking them grocery shopping, out for walks, and to programs in the community. I continued to help my first client for six or seven years, almost right up until she passed away.”
His volunteer work resulted a couple of years later in a summer job offer from JCFS, doing what he was already doing as a volunteer but with many more seniors. “That was my first full-time job,” he says.
“Each summer, I had a client load of 25-30 seniors whom I would take out weekly for groceries, appointments, walks, or drives. Being a history buff, I really enjoyed hearing their stories.”
While working at JCFS in the summers, Hanson was excelling at university, earning the 2012 Gold Medal in law with a grade point average of 4.29 over three years. In an interview with The Jewish Post & News at that time, he credited his success to “hard work and some luck”.
(Hanson’s undergraduate degree is from the Asper School of Business.)
His decision to pursue a legal career – specifically as a civil litigator, he noted earlier in our interview, grew out of his participation in Gray Academy’s debating program. He continued his involvement in debating at university. He was president of the University of Manitoba Debating Union, participating in debates across Canada as both a debater and a judge.
A year or so after he passed the Bar, he recalls, he was approached by Emily Shane – who was the JCFS executive director at the time – with an invitation from the Board’s executive team to become a member.
“They were looking for younger board members,” he says. “It was a good fit for me because I already knew a lot about JCFS.”
He initially joined the Board and the Finance Committee. Two years ago, he was asked to become vice-president. “I developed an excellent relationship with Sherry (Lercher Davis), my predecessor,” he says. “I learned a lot from her.
“I am really excited about my new role. The JCFS has always been dear to my heart. I am impressed with all the activities that the agency is engaged in. A lot of people think that the JCFS is only here for people undergoing hard times. But we do so much more. We respond to a wide variety of community needs.
“The JCFS is one of the pillars of our community, along with Gray Academy and the Rady Centre.”
Of course, Hanson has assumed his new leadership role at a particularly challenging time for all concerned. “Because of COVID our staff, like many others, has had to transition to providing our services partially or fully remotely,” he points out. “I am very impressed with how quickly our staff has adapted.
“As a result of the current situation, many of our older adult client and clients impacted by mental health issues have become more vulnerable and isolated. We are still feeling our way, trying to be as responsive as possible when new needs emerge.”
Naturally, he adds, fundraising is a further concern when so many donors are dealing with difficult work situations. The annual fundraising activities of JCFS are very important for purposes of meeting ever-increasing day to day costs and supplementing the generous support received by JCFS from crucial community organizations. On a positive note, the JCFS endowment fund at the Jewish Foundation of Manitoba has grown by more than $1 million in the past fiscal year as a result of significant donor support, and now sits at $3.1 million, he reports.
When not involved in work or JCFS responsibilities, the lifelong North ender indulges his passion for vintage cars. He still has his first car, a ‘64 Buick Riviera given to him by his grandfather (Yudie Schacter) while in high school, which he drives in the summers and has been slowly restoring over the years.
And, he and his father share a love of vintage car racing. They have a Sunbeam Alpine and a Canadian-built ‘67 KIKI sports racer that they enter in Canadian competitions.
“My dad’s the driver, I’m the crew chief. My mom wouldn’t have it any other way,” he says.
Local News
Winnipeg-born Elliot Lazar to star as Paul Simon in “The Simon & Garfunkel Story” at Centennial Concert Hall
By BERNIE BELLAN Elliot Lazar’s career has long been chronicled in the pages of The Jewish Post & News. Do a search for his name in our “Search Archives” button and you will find a multitude of stories about Elliot from the time he was five years old.
A talented singer, musician, and musical arranger, also a graduate of Gray Academy, the University of Manitoba’s Desautels Faculty of Music, and the Boston Conservatory, Elliot has appeared many times in Winnipeg, including most recently last summer in Rainbow Stage’s production of “Rent.”
He’s been constantly busy – as a review of some of his past acting credits reveals. Last season alone, in addition to his performing in “Rent,” Elliot also appeared in the National Tour of “Fiddler on the Roof,” and “The Band’s Visit” (Huntington/Speakeasy Stage).
We’re excited to announce that Elliot will be appearing in Winnipeg for one night only, May 21, starring as Paul Simon in “The Simon & Garfunkel Story.”
Here’s Elliot’s own story about his growing up in Winnipeg:
“I grew up in Garden City, attended Gray Academy (K-12) and majored in vocal performance at the University of Manitoba’s Desautels Faculty of Music. I lived in Winnipeg until I was 22, so I’m pretty connected with the arts scene there still. The venue we’re playing, the Centennial Concert Hall, I was last seen in Guys and Dolls in concert with the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra and Rainbow Stage (2019), and before that I sang with the Manitoba Opera Chorus in 3 productions there. My last performance in Winnipeg was in Rent with Rainbow Stage this past summer. Other local performing arts companies I have a history with there are Winnipeg Jewish Theatre, Winnipeg Studio Theatre, Dry Cold Productions, Manitoba Theatre for Young People, Manitoba Underground Opera, Little Opera Company, and the Winnipeg Fringe Festival. I grew up going to see shows at the Concert Hall, so it’s a wonderful full circle moment for me.”
About “The Simon & Garfunkel Story”:
Nostalgia-inducing unforgettable hits! The internationally-acclaimed hit theater show The Simon & Garfunkel Story (www.thesimonandgarfunkelstory.com) returns to the road in 2024 with a North American tour to more than 25 cities. Kicking off in Richmond, Kentucky on January 28, 2024, the immersive concert-style tribute show will recreate the magic and authenticity of Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel on stage and chronicles the amazing journey shared by the iconic, GRAMMY-award winning folk-rock duo. It tells the story from their humble beginnings as Tom & Jerry, to their incredible success as one of the best-selling music groups of the ‘60s, and to their dramatic split in 1970. The Simon & Garfunkel Story culminates with the pair’s famous “The Concert in Central Park” reunion in 1981 which had more than half a million fans in attendance. Tickets are on sale now.
The show features a set list of nearly 30 songs and uses state-of-the-art video projection, photos and original film footage. A full live band will perform all of the hits including “Mrs. Robinson,” “Cecilia,” “Bridge Over Troubled Water,” “Homeward Bound” and many more complete with the unmistakably perfect harmonies that will transport audiences down memory lane.
With more than 100 million album sales since 1965, Simon & Garfunkel’s unforgettable songs and poetic lyrics poignantly captured the times made them one of the most successful folk-rock duos of all time. Over the years, they won 10 GRAMMY Awards and were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990. In 1977, the Brit Awards honored their “Bridge Over Troubled Water” album with Best International Album. In 2003, Simon & Garfunkel were awarded a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and the following year saw their “The Sound of Silence” awarded a Grammy Hall of Fame Award.
Local News
Ida and the late Saul Alpern have donated 2 ambulances and a scooter to Magen David Adom in past 4 years
By BERNIE BELLAN Saul Alpern passed away in 2022, but before he died he and his wife Ida had decided to make Magen David Adom a major recipient of their generosity.
As Myron Love noted in an October 2020 article the Alperns had been contributing small amounts to the Canadian Magen David Adom for some time, but it was in that year they decided to donate $160,000 for the purchase of a Mobile Intensive Care Unit for Israel’s Magen David Adom.
As Myron wrote in that 2020 article, an MICUA (which is larger than an ambulance, is staffed by paramedics, and responds only to the most medically serious cases) was donated “to the people of Israel in memory of Saul Alpern’s parents and siblings who perished in the Holocaust.
“It is an expression of my love for my family and my love of Israel,” Saul Alpern said at the time.
In early 2022 the Alperns donated yet another $170,000 for the purchase of a second MICU for Magen David Adom.
Saul Alpern passed away in November 2022, but Ida Alpern has now continued the legacy of giving to Canadian Magen David Adom that she and Saul had begun several years before. Just recently Ida contributed $39,000 toward the purchase of an emergency medical scooter. According to the CMDA website, “the scooter, which is driven by a paramedic, can get through traffic faster than the Standard Ambulance or MICU and provide pre-hospital care. It contains life-saving equipment, including a defibrillator, an oxygen tank, and other essential medical equipment.”
I asked Ida whether she wanted to say anything about the motivation for her and her late husband’s support for CMDA. She wrote, “Having survived the Holocaust, and being a Zionist, Saul felt that supporting Israel was of the utmost importance.”
On May 7, CMDA will be honouring Ida and Saul z”l Alpern at a dinner and show at the Centro Caboto Centre. Another highlight that evening will be the announcement of the purchase of an ambulance for CMDA by another Winnipegger, Ruth Ann Borenstein. That ambulance will be in honour of Ruth’s late parents, Gertrude and Harry Mitchell. The evening will also commemorate the late Yoram East (aka Hamizrachi), who was a well-known figure both in Israel and here in Winnipeg.
For more information about the May 7 event go to https://www.canadahelps.org/en/charities/canadian-magen-david-adom-for-israel/events/cmda-winnipeg-an-evening-of-appreciation/ or to purchase tickets phone 587-435-5808 or email sfraiman@cmdai.org
Local News
Simkin Centre looking for volunteers
We received the following email from Heather Blackman, Simkin Centre Director of Volunteers & Resident Experience:
Happy Spring Everyone! Hope you all are well. We have a number of upcoming volunteer opportunities that I wanted to share with you. Please take a look at what we have listed here and let me know if you are available for any of the following. I can be reached at heather.blackman@simkincentre.ca or 204-589-9008.
Save the date! The Simkin Stroll is on June 25th this year and we need tons of volunteers to assist. This is our annual fundraiser and there is something for everyone to help with from walking with Residents in the Stroll to manning booths and tables, event set up and take down and much more. Volunteers will be needed from 3 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. on this day. Come and help for the full event or for any period within that timeframe that works for you.
Resident Store – This tuck shop style cart will be up for business shortly. Residents will be assisting to stock and run the store for 2 hours 2- 3 times per week in the afternoons. Volunteer support is needed to assist residents with restocking items and monetary transactions.
Passover Volunteers
Volunteers are needed to assist with plating Seder plates for Residents (date to be determined for plating)
Volunteers are needed to assist Residents to and from Passover Services and Come and Go Teas.
Times volunteers are needed for services/teas:
April 22cnd – First Seder 1:30-3:30 p.m.
April 23rd – Passover Service Day 1 – 9:30 – 11:30 a.m.
April 23rd – Second Seder – 1:30-3:30 p.m.
April 24th – Passover Service – Day 2 9:30 – 11:30 a.m.
April 29th – Passover Service – 9:30 – 11:30 a.m.
April 29th- Passover Tea – 1:30-3:30 p.m.
April 30th – Passover Service – 9:30 -11:30 a.m.
April 30th – Passover Tea – 1:30-3:30 p.m.
Admin/Paperwork Volunteers – Volunteers are needed to assist with filing and other administrative duties. A monthly volunteering job is also available to input information on programming into Recreation activity calendars. Support would be provided for this.
Adult Day Program – A volunteer is needed to assist with the Mondays Adult Day Program Group. A regular ongoing weekly commitment on Mondays from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Assist with Recreation programming and lunch supervision for our Adult Day Program participants that come in from the community for the day.
Biking Volunteers – Take our residents out for a spin on one of our specialty mobility bicycles. Training is provided and volunteers will be needed throughout the Spring, Summer and early Fall.
With summer coming there is also opportunity to assist with outings and other outdoor programming! Please let me know if you are interested!
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