Local News
Simkin Centre dedicates memorial to the 11 residents who lost their lives to Covid last year – and unveils 5 new Chanukah menorahs

By BERNIE BELLAN It was a little more than one year ago that the Simkin Centre was hit hard by Covid for an almost two-month period. As I noted in a daily blog that I kept updating on this website, it was on December 14 that I was finally able to report that “as of today, there are no active cases of COVID-19 at the Simkin Centre. After almost two consecutive months with at least one active case every day – either among residents or staff, there is now reason to believe that the worst is over.”
But, what happened from October 22 – December 14 was nightmarish in scope.
A total of 40 cases were reported among both staff and residents, with 21 staff hit by Covid, while 29 residents also fell ill. While no staff died as a result of Covid, 11 residents did, beginning with Gwen Nelko on October 22 and ending with Mahmonir Vahdat on December 14.
On October 27 the Simkin Centre front entrance was the scene of a dedication of a memorial to the 11 residents who lost their lives to Covid during that terrible two-month period.
Rabbi Kliel Rose of Etz Chayim Congregation delivered remarks to members of families of the deceased who had gathered that cold October day, along with several employees who were also in attendance.
Marilyn Regiec read out the names of the 11 residents who died:
Gwen Nelko
Esther Shuster
Mary D Turner
Lena Parisien
Sheila Streifler
Luba Zalkind
Irene Fonseth
Annette Rosenberg
Gary Marantz
Hilda Loeppky
Mahmonir Vahdat
The memorial was donated by Larsen’s Memorials at no cost.
Project Menorah
Submitted by the Simkin Centre: During the darkest time of the year, when the sun is most hidden, the celebration of Chanukah shines a ray of hope through the shadows, and it is often through simple and unrecognized miracles that we are able to feel the warmth of the light.
This year, The Saul and Claribel Simkin Centre is delighted to announce “Project Menorah”. This extraordinary event will showcase five stunning nine-foot menorahs situated in the front of our building, our atrium, and all three courtyards. Residents, family, staff and the community at large will thoroughly enjoy basking in the light that these spectacular menorahs will be emitting.
The inspiration for this special event arose from the remarkable display observed at St. Boniface Hospital. As a Jewish organization we felt passionate and compelled to provide our Residents and community with a magnificent menorah display at our Centre.
Sponsorship for one menorah is $2500.00 and a donor recognition plaque will be placed on each, along with a full charitable donation tax receipt.
Don and Bev Aronovitch have chosen to sponsor a menorah saying, “Bev and I are thrilled to sponsor one of the Simkin Centre’s new menorahs. We are very pleased that there will be five that will be situated throughout the facility in order for Residents to see one of them. Chanukah brings hope during one of the darkest times of the year, and the menorahs bring light to the spirit of us all.”
If you would like to sponsor a menorah, please contact Aviva Tabac at (204) 589-9027.
May the Festival of Light bring blessings upon you and all of
your loved ones.
Simkin Centre CEO looks back on most harrowing year in history of Sharon Home and Simkin Centre
By BERNIE BELLAN
By now, the nightmarish situation in which the Simkin Centre, like so many other Personal Care Homes across Canada, was plunged in 2020, is receding like a distant memory.
But, for residents of the centre, along with their families, and the staff that was working to protect them, the two months of unremitting anxiety that began with the death of resident Gwen Nelko on October 22, 2020, and which didn’t end until almost two months later with the final death of a resident due to Covid, is a period in time that will long not be forgotten.
The Simkin Centre recently released its Annual Report. Not surprisingly, Covid dominates the content of the report.
Here, for instance, are excerpts from the message of Chief Executive Officer Laurie Cerqueti:
“The past year and a half has been dominated by Covid-19. This virus has affected every aspect of our operation. Despite all of the Covid related challenges, we have so much to be proud and thankful for.
“Our impeccable planning, execution and adaptability has served our organization and Residents well throughout our Covid journey. We have come to be seen as leaders in the management of Covid in the long term sector. Representatives from our site sit on a number of the Maples Working Groups that were formed following the tragic failure at the Maples Personal Care Home. Our communication strategies throughout the pandemic have been recognized and will be included as examples of best practices in Long Term Care during Covid in Canada. We are frequently contacted by the media for interviews on different topics related to Covid. One of our proudest moments was the media attention of our recovery parades…
“With the development of the Covid-19 vaccines, a new hope was brought to the Centre starting in January 2020. Curently, over 99% of our Residents and staff have been vaccinated. The vast majority of our staff did not require a vaccine mandate to roll up their sleeve and get the shot. They knew it was the right thing to do…
“I am thankful for our Residents who have shown great resilience during such a difficult time. We remembers, with sadness, and mourn the Residents that were lost due to the pandemic.I believe that the darkest days of the pandemic are now behind us. We look forward to the return of more normal times where we can welcome everyone back to the Centre.
Laurie Cerqueti, BA, BN, MSA, RN
Chief Executive Officer
In his own report, Fiscal Advisory Chair Avrum Senensky made the following observations:
“In all aspects, the fiscal year ending March 31, 2021 was a challenging one for the Simkin Centre. This definitely included fiscal management of the Centre. It is impossible to budget for all of the unknowns that were faced during the pandemic Approximately 1 million dollars was spent on pandemic related supplies and salary costs during the fiscal year.
“The Centre ended the year with a small surplus of $15,578.”
In its statement of Operations and Changes in Net Assets, the Centre shows that, while expenses were up one and a half million dollars from 2020 to 2021, revenues were up by almost exactly the same amount. The primary factor in the Simkin Centre’s being able to show a small surplus was the huge increase in funding received from the Winnipeg Regional Authority: up from $10,275,850 in 2020 to $11,903,624 in 2021.
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.