Local News
17 cases of Covid now at Simkin Centre
Updated April 2 The past few days have seen a resurgence of Covid at the Simkin Centre, although the current variant affecting residents, Omicron B-1 is milder than the previous Delta and Alpha variants. According to information provided on the Simkin Centre Facebook page, 14 residents on Simkin 2 are currently testing positive for Covid, while three residents on Weinberg 1 are also testing positive.
Previously, seven residents on Weinberg 1 had tested positive but, as of March 28, four have recovered. The outbreak on Simkin 2 was first made public on March 28. At that point only one resident on Simkin 2 tested positive. The fact that the outbreak has now spread to 13 other residents is an indication how virulent the current strain of Covid is.
The April 1 Simkin Centre Facebook post warns that “Designated Caregivers on Simkin 2 are welcome to visit at their own risk. Personal protective equipment will be provided and must be worn during your visit.”
The post goes on to say that “With the rising number of Resident and staff cases we are experiencing significant staffing shortages. We want to thank the Designated Caregivers for their assistance during this challenging time.”
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Poarws Jan. 17 A total of 20 Residents have tested positive for Covid. Of those 20, 15 have recovered. The remainder are in the Covid isolation unit. In addition, two more staff have tested positive, bringing the total number of staff who have tested positive to 31. Twenty-six of the staff have returned to work.
Updated Jan. 13 Three more Residents have now tested positive for Covid. The total number of Residents who are now in the Covid isolation unit is up to 15. One Resident has recovered and has been released from the isolation unit.
Updated Jan. 11 Of the 29 staff who had testd positive for Covid, 26 have now returned to work following the mandated five-day quarantine period. One more Resident has tested positive for Covid. The first Resident to test postive for Covid has been released from the Covid isolation unit.
Updated Jan. 10 On Sunday, Jan. 9 the Simkin Centre reported that a total of 10 Residents have now tested positive for Covid. On Jan. 8 3 Residents had been reported as having tested positive. The total number of Residents who have now tested positive stands at 10. The Centre reports that additional tests for some Residents on Weinberg 3 have been administered.
There are no additional reports of staff having tested positive. Twenty-six staff will have recovered and were expected to return to work today.
Posted Jan. 7
A total of 29 staff mmebers have tested positive for Covid. By Monday we expect 20 staff will have recovered and returned to work.Staffing at the moment has stabilized.
There are no new Resident cases of Covid to report. The one Resident with Covid is stable.
Posted Jan. 4
Some staff who tested postive are now back at work. A total of 24 staff have tested positive, with 8 having completed their isolation period.. So far, still only one Resident has tested positive.
Posted Jan. 3
An additional three staff cases have now been identifed at the Simkin Centre, bringing the total number of staff affected to 16. There are no further Resident cases to report.
The Simkin Centre welcomed back Designated Caregivers today. Only one Designated Caregiver is allowed to visit at a time.
Posted Jan. 2
The Simkin Centre now reports that three more staff have tested positive for Covid, bringing the total number of staff affected to 13.
As well, late in the evening of December 31, the Centre was advised that a Resident from Simkin 2 tested positive for Covid.
According to the Centre, “the Resident has been transferred to our Covid Isolation Unit and is receiving excellent care. Family members of Residents living on the affected unit will be contacted. All visitations, including designated family care givers, have. been suspended until further notice.
Posted Jan. 1:
The Simkin Centre now reports that 10 staff members have tested positive for Covid. According to the Centre, “One staff member did not work during their infectious period.”
There are no Resident cases at this time.
Posted Dec. 31:
The Simkin Centre now reports that a total of seven staff members have tested positive for Covid. As well, the Centre reports that “We have also had visitors adivse us that they have tested positive after being at our Centre.”
The Centre also reports that they “are experiencing staffing shortages in all departments.” As a result the Centre has implemented the following steps:
1. Tub baths and showers will be suspended. Residents will be receiving sponge baths instead.
2. Bed linens will be changed only when wet or soiled.
3. Beds will be clean however not necessarily “made” as per usual expectations.
4. Resident personal clothing may be worn for more than one day at a time unless wet or soiled prior to sending for laundering.
5. Residents may be dressed in hospital gowns to facilitate expedited care delivery.
6. Pandemic meal plans will be iniitiated. This includes the use of disposable clothes, standardized menu items such as pureed soup and dessert for all residents.
7. Housekeeping services have been prioritized for Resident areas and high touch surfaces.
As well, the Simkin Centre issued the following all for help on their Facebook page:
Are you a retired health care aide who is interested in coming back to work at the Simkin Centre to assist with our staffing shortages during our outbreak? If so please reach out to hr@simkincentre.ca as soon as possible. We need your experience!
Posted Dec. 30
On December 26 the Simkin Centre reported that “we were notified of a staff member testing positive for Covid-19 who worked on Simkin 2 night shift on December 22nd…”
Then, on December 29 the Simkin Centre issued another report: “Today we were notified of two more staff testing positive for Covid-19 who worked on Weinberg 3 and Simkin 2. Their cases are linked which means we are now in a Covid-19 Outbreak….
“We have no Resident cases at this time. Residents on affected units will be closely monitored and tested if they develop any symptons. The visting restrictions being implemented tomorrw will remain in place.”
To read the complete list of rules that are now in place at the Simkin Centre go to https://mailchi.mp/simkincentre/volume-1-issue-10713006?fbclid=IwAR2mW0ZZgLlC89EM0V7yuK97OFQXGPjFedGQaEMK7N1jJVtQy6BUJTpBHuA
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Talented Winnipeg composer Sara Kreindler teams up with her mother Reena Kreindler to create new satirical show to premiere here in May
By BERNIE BELLAN It’s been many years since I’ve heard from Sara Kreindler. Sara’s name first appeared in The Jewish Post & News in 2002 when a satirical musical titled “A Touch of Class” was reviewed by the late Arnold Ross. That particular production featured songs from popular Broadway shows that touched upon themes such as “greed, poverty, oppression, and social unrest.”
When she appeared in that show, Ross noted, Kreindler had just recently returned to Winnipeg from England, where she had obtained a doctorate in Social Psychology from Oxford University.
While at Oxford, Kreindler found time to compose a satirical musical titled “Charity,” which played to rave reviews there, and was performed five times.
Continuing in the theme of writing satirical musicals, Sara has now teamed up with her mother, Reena, to write a new musical titled “A Perfect Man,” which is set to run at the Gargoyle Theatre from May 6-17.
According to a press release we received, “A Perfect Man” is “a satirical musical, set on a fictional analogue of ‘The Bachelor’.
“The story follows an anthropologist who arrives to research TV’s hottest reality-dating show — only to discover she’s been made a contestant, and the bachelor is her high school crush. Past and present collide against an exuberant pastiche score that uses vintage musical styles to highlight modern absurdities.”
“Praised as ‘a musician [who] can make biofuels funny’ (CBC), Sara is known for whip-smart satire on a panoply of topics. Her digital musical, ‘Larry Saves the Canadian Healthcare System, created during her former life as an academic, has garnered over 84,000 YouTube views. Naturally, she had a field day with the subject of reality dating.
“The topic just begs for campy zaniness, which I think we all need in these times — but also for a more cerebral critique of what these shows say about the culture that spawned them,” says Kreindler. And thanks to the romance context, the satire is woven into a deeper, more personal story. “It’s satire with a heart.”
Here is some more information about Sara Kreindler, taken from a 2009 article I wrote about her:
“Born in Israel, Sara’s precocious talent was nurtured by her mother, Reena, whose own particular talent is literary, not musical. According to Reena, however, Sara was singing from the time she was a baby, and she began to study piano at the age of four.
“As a young girl, Sara began writing her own songs and poems, along with the “occasional musical”, notes Reena. Yet, Sara’s rare talent put her at odds with the typical interests of other children her own age, on top of which she attended a school to which she was exposed to a fair degree of antisemtism.
“As a result, Sara says, being bullied was a common aspect of her childhood. On one occasion, when she was nine, she notes, Sara fought back against one particular bully by reciting the following little ditty:
“I write so many epigrams to you that all the people laugh.
I’m tired of writing epigrams.
I want to write your epitaph!”
“Sara went on to compose a musical titled ‘Flutesong’ while she was a student at Vincent Massey Collegiate, she says. After doing her undergraduate work at the University of Manitoba, majoring in Psychology, Sara won a Rhodes Scholarship to attend Oxford University.
“Sara eventually earned a doctorate in Social Psychology and returned to Winnipeg, where she began teaching at the University of Manitoba, but she said she didn’t enjoy the “mass production” style of teaching upwards of 300 students at a time, so she switched careers and began doing health research for the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority.”
All the while Sara has been continuing to compose and perform her own songs, often teaming up with her mother, as she has for “A Perfect Man.”
Showtimes and ticket information for The Perfect Man are available at:
http://www.thegargoyletheatre.com/upcoming-events/the-perfect-man
Local News
Rabbi Kliel Rose to leave Congregation Etz Chayim for new post in Ottawa
The following email from Congregation Etz Chayim Executive Director Morissa Granove was sent to members of the congregation on Friday, April 10:
“Dear Members and Friends,
“As we know, Rabbi Kliel recently spent a weekend with Kehilllat Beth Israel where he has since been offered a position. After much thought and consideration, he has made the decision to sign a contract in Ottawa. He will continue to lead our congregation through Yom Kippur.
“This news marks a significant ending for our Etz Chayim community, and at the same time with change comes opportunity. Congregation Etz Chayim will soon embark on our own Rabbinical search with excitement as we look for our perfect candidates and explore the new possibilities that will help us to continue to shape a strong future for our synagogue and members.”
Kliel Rose took up the position of rabbi at Etz Chayim in August, 2018.
In an article announcing his appointment to the position in the June 6, 2018 issue of The Jewish Post & News, Myron Love wrote:
The congregation has been without a permanent rabbi since last summer when Rabbi Larry Lander chose to retire – after ten years here – and relocate to Toronto.
Kliel Rose is already a well-seasoned rabbi. He was ordained in 2004 by the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York.
He previously served as spiritual leader at the West End Synagogue in Nashville and Temple Enamu-El in Miami Beach. His current posting is Beth Shalom Synagogue in Edmonton.
Following the example of his parents, Kliel Rose has been active in interfaith dialogue and human rights work for which he was honoured in 2014 with the Human Rights Hero Award by Truah: The Rabbibic Call for Human Rights.
He has also participated in the Kellogg Management Education for Jewish Leaders program at Northwestern University and was most recently chosen to be among 20 rabbis from different denominations chosen to train in the Clergy leadership Incubator – a two-year program, under the leadership of Ranni Sidney Schwarz, intended to educate younger rabbis in innovative thinking, change management and institutional transformation.
In Edmonton, Rose also served as Jewish chaplain at the University of Alberta and took the lead on a program called “Faith and Inclusion”, whose mandate was to support individuals with cognitive and physical learning challenges to feel more welcome within various faith communities.