Local News
19 members of BBYO Red River Region attend BBYO International Convention
By REBECA KUROPATWA
When Ian Baruch accepted the position of Youth Program Coordinator at the Rady JCC – in charge of BBYO, back in August 2019, he was excited to be leading a program in which he himself had been a member only a few years previously.
Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Baruch moved to Israel with his family as a baby, then seven years later to Winnipeg.
“I moved to Winnipeg and essentially grew up here,” said Baruch. “Since I moved here, I’ve been pretty involved in the Jewish community. From 2003 to 2019, I went to Camp Massad, either as a camper, counsellor, or, this past summer, as assistant director. I attended Gray Academy of Jewish Education all through elementary and high school. From Grades 9-12, I was part of BBYO here in Winnipeg and was in a chapter called ‘Alophim,’ so it feels like I’ve come full circle – which is a great feeling.”
While BBYO offers four conventions a year, three of them are local and the fourth is the international one. The Red River Region (essentially Winnipeg) has six chapters, three of which are for girls and three for boys, with some 130 teens registered, from Grades 9-12.
This year’s international convention took place in Dallas, TX from February 11th-17th.
“Every year, BBYO International puts on this international convention to bring together all the BBYO regions of the world, so they can share meaningful experiences with fellow Jewish young leaders,” said Baruch. “This year, we had over 5,000 people from over 50 different countries.”
As far as any effects felt on the convention due to the Corona virus, Baruch said, “When the convention was happening, there were only the flying restrictions of China into the U.S., so it was still pretty new. I’m sure if the convention were to be planned now, it would be much harder to actually execute it properly.
“This year, we had 19 people from the Red River Region (RRR) attend. Four of them were internationally recognized for their work in BBYO within RRR, and received awards.
“Another two of our members planned a program that the international boards of teens noticed. And they had them put on this program for other regions at the convention.”
The highlights for Baruch included meeting young leaders from the rest of the Jewish world and learning ideas and tips which he hopes to incorporate into his future programming.
The BBYO formal dance happened on March 7th at the Rady JCC, when BBYO members had a chance to come out with their (non-member) friends, dress up, dance, and have food.
From March 13th-15th, the RRR will host its final convention of the year, holding friendly competitions between the chapters that include, “Before I die, I want to _____.”
“Every year, the theme is in that style,” said Baruch. “They fill in the blank with what they want and make that their theme. They make it as serious or as foolish as they like, as long as it’s appropriate.”
Toward the end of the convention, time is spent on allowing the Grade 12 members to share about their time with BBYO. “This is also a good opportunity for the new members who have never attended this specific convention, to see what they have to look forward to and get an idea of programs that have been run over the years, and things of that nature,” said Baruch.
On March 22nd, the teens will participate in J-Serve, an international day of Jewish service. (Ed. note: As of the time of publication, this event will likely be canceled.)
This year, they will have a variety of stations set up at the Rady JCC with each station led by a BBYO team with an adult representative from various organizations. “For example, we’ll have a sandwich making station, a soup making station, a food sorting station, and more,” said Baruch. “It’s mostly geared to teens, but everyone is welcome.”
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BBYO member Adelle Bloom’s report on the convention
By ADELLE BLOOM
This year, I had the opportunity to attend one of the world’s biggest Jewish youth conventions: BBYO’s International Convention, commonly referred to as I.C. I met with over 3,000 delegates from around the world in Dallas, Texas, USA. The convention ran from February 12th to 17th. To say I was overwhelmed would be an understatement! There were teens from over 40 countries, including 19 people from Winnipeg, all meeting in one place. I met so many people from around the world and made friendships that would have never been possible otherwise. There were chances to go sightseeing, including, The Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, The Dallas Aquarium, The Dallas Zoo, and so much more!
I got to hear so many amazing speakers, including Chris Ulmer, founder of “Special Books by Special Kids”‘ and David Dobrik, YouTuber and influencer. Ted Cruz, Senator of Texas, and Prime Minister Trudeau made video statements as well!
Jesse Eisenberg, award winning actor and playwright, talked about his Jewish upbringing, the role mental health plays in our lives, and his activism with domestic violence and sexual assault.
Bari Weiss, writer and editor for the New York Times, and author of How To Fight Anti-Semitism, talked about her experiences with anti-Semitism and growing up at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh. She mentioned some questions she had heard as she travelled across the world, speaking to Jewish communities, such as: “Who are we, why are we here, and what are we fighting for, and what is the Jewish future.”
But, the best part was actually seeing how we each come together, to make this community what it is today. It was truly an unforgettable experience, and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a place to make lifelong memories, and lifelong friends!
Local News
Beneficiary agencies of the Jewish Federation have received $210,000 less this year than last year as of September 1
By BERNIE BELLAN
For the first time in at least 10 years the Jewish Federation of Winnipeg has reduced the amount distributed to its 12 beneficiary agencies from what had been distributed the previous year. The funds were distributed September 1 for 2023-24.
The total amount distributed this year was $210,000 less than what was distributed in both 2022 and 2021 and is actually $500,000 less than the total that was requested by the beneficiary agencies. (The amount distributed last year was $216,000 less than what the beneficiary agencies had requested.)
In explaining why allocations are being reduced this year, the Federation reported that “Over the past few years, the Federation and community have collectively faced significant challenges, placing a strain on our financial resources. In response to these challenges, the Federation stepped in during our community’s time of need, dedicating over $200,000 from our reserves to sustain our beneficiary agencies.” (In a later explanation it was clarified that $100,000 was taken from Federation reserves in each of 2022 and 2021.)
It was further noted that the decrease in funds to be allocated to agencies represents a 7% decrease over the previous year. Dipping into reserves was described as an “unsustainable practice.” It was also noted that the Federation “notified our beneficiaries of a probable reduction in the amount of funding available well ahead of the allocation request deadline.
In describing the pressures that the Federation’s Allocations Committee faced this year in coming up with its allocations, committee chair Brent Schacter said that “We knew after the budget process last year we were going to be in a bind.” Schacter further elaborated that the two whammies that hit this year were the ongoing repercussions of Covid along with the rapid increase in inflation.
In discussing the pressures that the Allocations committee faced this year, it should also be noted that although the amount raised by the Combined Jewish Appeal – while not much more than the previous year ($6.3 million as opposed to $6.25 million), the negative effects of the drop in allocations are somewhat mitigated by two things:. A good portion of the amount raised by the CJA is in the form of “designated funds,” given by large donors and, while those funds are not available to the B & A committee to distribute, many of the beneficiary agencies did receive large distributions from those “designated funds.”
As well, the Jewish Foundation of Manitoba increased its total distributions this year by $1.3 million over the previous year. While the Foundation’s gifts were spread among a very wide number of recipients, a number of the Federation’s beneficiary agencies did benefit from the increase in Foundation distributions.
Still, the challenges facing the Federation in meeting the needs of the community are leading to a major reassessment of how Federation planners are implementing budgetary planning.
A number of new innovations have now been adopted by the B & A committee, including:
- New application forms – one for agencies requesting more than $250,000 and one for agencies requesting less
- Beneficiaries were asked to state the anticipated outcomes of projects/programs that receive Federation funding, and to develop indicators so that they can measure those outcomes.
- Site visits took place along with periodic meetings with agencies as a whole throughout the year to ensure that the committee gets a more complete picture of beneficiaries’ activities, challenges, and plans.
In describing the process that the Federation undertook to “streamline” the budget allocation process, Federation President Gustavo Zentner said “Lay leadership and management had a responsibility to look at the business model.”
It was determined that the Federation needed “a more effective way of managing the allocations process,” Zentner stated, including “more meaningful communication with the agencies to bring to light their projects.”
Not only does the Federation want to improve its own fundraising process, Zentner continued, “We also want to help agencies to raise funds on their own.”
Despite the reductions in allocations available to agencies this year, Zentner stressed that “we wanted to address the needs of those members of the community who are most in need.”
Brent Schacter added: “We want to see people dig a little bit deeper” when it comes to giving. The Combined Jewish Appeal is now into its fundraising campaign for the 2023-24 fiscal year.
A total of 17 lawyers were appointed King’s Counsel by Order in Council on August 29. Six members of our Jewish community were among those appointed. Although appointments as King’s Counsel are usually accompanied by biographical information about those appointed, there was no press release issued by the Manitoba Government announcing the appointments. When we contacted the Manitoba Government news room to ask why there was no biographical information available, the response we received referred to KC appointments announced in February (no surprise there – these are bureaucrats we’re dealing with). When we asked again why there was no biographical information available about the most recent batch of KC appointments we were told “the Province of Manitoba is in the middle of an election blackout and department communications are limited as a result. News Room has nothing further to add.”
As a result, we present here photos of Jewish recipients of KC appointments, but without any further information.
Myron Love It was in the summer of 1984 when Kayla Gordon was appearing in the Rainbow Stage production of “Kismet,” that the long time actor/director/producer/photographer found herself doing her make-up sitting next to Nia Vardalos, the writer and star of “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” fame, who was also appearing in the production.
“We both were playing opposite each other in the comic roles as the Ayahs to the Wazir (the main lead), and we began talking about our plans for the future,” Gordon recalls. “Nia was talking about moving to Toronto and joining the Second City company. As for me, I was in a comedy troupe in Winnipeg and just found out I was pregnant with my first child. My plan was to stay in Winnipeg, even though I was a bit jealous that she was going off to pursue her dream and I was staying put. That was my ‘Kismet’ and I never looked back.”
Rainbow Stage is where Gordon began her career in musical theatre at the age of 17 in a production of “Fiddler on the Roof.” After a career of more than 40 years, both on stage and behind the scenes – it is fitting that one of the leading lights of community theatre in our city has been recognized for her contributions by Winnipeg’s longest-running theatre company. On Wednesday, August 17, Gordon was one of the five inductees to Rainbow Stage’s Wall of Fame under the “Builder” category. The award is given to someone who has been part of nurturing and building our theatre community.
“It was a wonderful surprise,” says the honoree. “It brings my career full circle.” Previous honours for Gordon include the Leadership Award from the Canadian Friends of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and the Theatre Educator’s Award from the Winnipeg Theatre Awards for her long-time leadership within the arts community.
Gordon reports that the induction ceremony, attended by about 100 friends and family members of the inductees and Rainbow Stage staff, was held just prior to the opening night performance of “The Little Mermaid,”,the second of three shows the company is putting on this summer and early fall.
“It was also special to have one of my grandchildren, my husband Art Maister, my mom Ethel, and my aunt Evelyn Hecht at the induction ceremony,” she adds. (Evelyn also performed at Rainbow Stage in the 1950s.)
Gordon notes that while she appeared onstage in seven Rainbow Stage productions – from 1977 to 1993, she was honoured not for her acting, but for her role as a nurturer of talent through teaching acting and musical theatre at the University of Winnipeg for 18 years, as well as teaching at the University of Manitoba, Prairie Theatre Exchange and The Manitoba Theatre for Young People – also, later as the Artistic Director of Winnipeg Jewish Theatre for over 10 years and Winnipeg Studio Theatre, which she founded in 2006.
“I get a lot of satisfaction watching actors I’ve directed and students I have taught and nurtured performing at Rainbow Stage and other venues in the city,” Gordon notes. Many of them have gone on to work professionally and have appeared across Canada, as well as in Broadway productions. Some of them include: Alexandra Frohlinger (Soul Doctor/Broadway), Samantha Hill (Phantom of the Opera/Broadway), Jaz Sealey (Aladdin/Broadway), Andrea Macasaet (Six/Broadway), and Nyk Bielak (Book of Mormon/Broadway).
Gordon was an actor and high school drama teacher at West Kildonan Collegiate for the first 15 years of her career. By the mid-1990s she found herself becoming more interested in working behind the scenes as a director/producer. In 1994, she became the Winnipeg Jewish Theatre’s second artistic director – succeeding WJT founder Bev Aronovitch – a role she played until 2006. Following her time at WJT Gordon observed that local theatres were not hiring many female theatre directors.
“I realized that if I wanted to work as a director, I would have to create my own projects,” she recalls. So, she started Winnipeg Studio Theatre (WST) in 2006. Soon after forming the company, she invited her longtime theatre associate Brenda Gorlick to run the StudioWorks Academy, a program for emerging artists.
In 2021 she stepped down from her position at WST. “I am still interested in directing – but without the added pressures of being a producer or the full-time responsibility of running a professional theatre company,” she observes. “I like having the freedom to pick and choose the projects I want to work on.” I still plan to work on independent contracts directing theatre and creating entertainment for special events or fundraising activities in the community.”.Last year she produced and directed the Jewish Federation of Winnipeg’s Negev Gala tribute honouring Gail Asper and Michael Paterson. As well, stepping down from her responsibilities with WST has also allowed Gordon to devote more time to her other passion – photography. “I have been interested in photography since I was 15,” she recounts. “My father Ralph had a dark room in our basement.”
Over the past couple of years, she has achieved accreditation with the Professional Photographers of Canada in four different areas of photography: street photography (her favourite), portraiture, performing artists, and figure study. And, last year, she co-authored a coffee table book – “The Murals of Winnipeg,” with fellow photographer Keith Levit as a fundraiser for Take Pride Winnipeg, with 80 pages of photos, which sold out in two weeks and the funds will go to emerging mural artists. (That story can be found on the jewishpostandnews.ca website.)
Kayla is grateful to have stayed in Winnipeg and she sums up her career, and how and why she managed to work in theatre all these years with a quote from Henry Winkler (aka ‘The Fonz’) “I live by tenacity and gratitude. Tenacity gets you where you want to be, and gratitude allows you not to be frustrated along the way”.
