Local News
Winnipeg Board of Jewish Education awarded judgment in lawsuit brought against parents of former Gray Academy students – but costs likely to be limited only to $100
By BERNIE BELLAN
A story about which we have been reporting since December 2018 has been the lawsuit brought by the Winnipeg Board of Jewish Education against Ido and Rochelle Raam for unpaid tuition relating to the 2017-18 school year.
In a judgment delivered by Justice Shawn Greenberg on December 17, 2019, Justice Greenberg found in favour of the plaintiff (the WBJE) in the amount of “$7,450 plus pre-judgment interest and post-judgment interest at the agreed rate.”
The lawsuit attracted considerable interest for a number of reasons: It is only the second time in its history that the WBJE has gone so far as to sue anyone for unpaid tuition; the lawsuit was filed in Court of Queen’s Bench rather than Small Claims Court – which is the usual venue for lawsuits claiming less than $10,000.
In a 20–page decision Justice Greenberg repeatedly indicated that she accepted evidence given on behalf of the WBJE that the Raams were in default of tuition payments owed for three children who had been attending Gray Academy in the 2017-18 school year.
Justice Greenberg wrote: “In my view, the evidence is clear. The Raams were provided bursary assistance that decreased the tuition payable for their three children to $14,950. Their request for further financial assistance was not considered because they did not provide the financial disclosure necessary to support their application. To date, the Raams have only paid $7,500 towards tuition leaving $7,450 payable.”
However, Justice Greenberg went on to suggest that the costs that will be awarded to the WBJE will only amount to $100. She noted that “Plaintiff’s counsel indicates that, although the plaintiff’s full legal costs to date are $12,000, it is only seeking costs of $10,000.” Yet, Justice Greenberg added, “the costs sought must be reasonable. A plaintiff cannot…seek re-imbursement for a costly procedure when a less expensive procedure would suffice” (emphasis mine).
“Plaintiff’s counsel argued that the legal costs to her client would be the same whether this matter proceeded in this court or Small Claims Court. I find it hard to believe that she would have billed the plaintiff $12,000 for a small claims hearing. But, in any event, the issue in assessing costs is not what is reasonable for the lawyer to bill the plaintiff, but what is reasonable for the defendant to pay.”
Justice Greenberg noted at the end of her judgment, however, that she will defer final “consideration of the costs issue” until the lawyer for the plaintiff (Alyssa Mariani) has an opportunity to make an argument that she is entitled to higher costs because the defendants were given the opportunity to settle the lawsuit.
As it is, the WBJE may end up paying more in legal costs than it would stand to recoup from the actual judgment.
As we noted in a story published in July 2019, the original statement of claim filed by the Winnipeg Board of Jewish Education back in 2018 against the Raams was for $9,383.93 (which included interest accrued to that point). As we noted in our Dec. 26 issue, we wondered why that statement of claim had been filed in Court of Queen’s Bench rather than Small Claims Court (which can deal with claims up to $10,000). We sent an email in December 2018 to David Borzykowski who, at the time, was Director of Marketing & Communications for Gray Academy, asking that question. The response we received was: “As this matter is private, we have no comment, and we will have no further comment.”
Subsequently, however, as we noted in that July 2019 issue, on March 5, 2019 a new statement of claim was filed by the WBJE against the Raams, this time for $11,307.78. At the time that the new statement of claim was filed, we sent an email to Borzykowski, asking why the amount being sought in March was so much higher that what was being sought in the statement of claim filed in December. (It couldn’t have been because of further interest accumulated since the rate of interest for unpaid tuition was set at 1.5% per month.)
We further asked whether there was any limit as to how much the WBJE was prepared to spend in contesting this lawsuit. No response was received.
We contacted Ido Raam to see whether he will appeal the court’s decision. Ido says he is considering it, but he feels sorry for Gray Academy and how much they’ve spent on legal fees already.
Local News
Thank you to the community from the Chesed Shel Emes
We’re delighted to share a major milestone in our Capital Campaign, “Building on our Tradition.” Launched in November 2018, this campaign aimed to replace our outdated facility with a modern space tailored to our unique needs. Our new building is designed with ritual at its core, featuring ample preparation space, Shomer space, and storage, creating a warm and welcoming environment for our community during times of need.
We’re grateful to the nearly 1,000 generous donors who contributed over $4 million towards our new facility. A $750,000 mortgage will be retired in November 2025, completing this monumental project in just seven years.
We’re also thrilled to announce that our Chesed Shel Emes Endowment Fund has grown tenfold, from $15,000 to $150,000, thanks to you, the Jewish Foundation of Manitoba’s FundMatch program, and Million Dollar Match initiative in 2024. Our fund helps ensure that everyone can have a dignified Jewish funeral regardless of financial need.
As we look to the future, our goal remains to ensure the Chevra Kadisha continues to serve our community for generations to come. Our focus now shifts to replenishing our savings account and growing our JFM Endowment fund.
We’re deeply grateful for your support over the past several years.
It’s our privilege to serve our community with care and compassion.
With sincere appreciation,
Campaign cabinet: Hillel Kravetsky, Gerry Pritchard, Stuart Pudavick,
Jack Solomon, and Rena Boroditsky
Murray S. Greenfield, President
Local News
Winnipeg Beach Synagogue about to celebrate 75th anniversary
By BERNIE BELLAN (July 13) In 1950 a group of cottage owners at Winnipeg Beach took it upon themselves to relocate a one-room schoolhouse that was in the Beausejour area to Winnipeg Beach where it became the beach synagogue at the corner of Hazel and Grove.
There it stayed until 1998 when it was moved to its current location at Camp Massad.
On August 2nd members of the synagogue will be holding a 75th anniversary celebration.
As part of the celebration anyone who is a descendant or relative of any of the original members of the first executive committee (as seen in the photo here) is invited to attend the synagogue that morning.
If you are a relative please contact Abe Borzykowski at wpgbeachshule@shaw.ca or aborzykowski@shaw.ca to let Abe know you might be attending or for more information about the 75th anniversary celebration.
We will soon be publishing a story about the history of the beach synagogue, which is something I’ve been writing about for over 25 years.
Local News
Vickar Family cuts ribbon on new Tova Vickar and Family Childcare Centre
By MYRON LOVE In the words of Larry Vickar, the Shaarey Zedek’s successful Dor V’ Dor Campaign “is not only a renewal of the synagogue but truly a renewal movement of Jewish life in our community.”An integral part of that renewal movement was the creation of a daycare centre within the expanded synagogue. On Monday, June 23, Larry and Tova Vickar cut the ribbon, thereby officially opening the Tova Vickar and Family Childcare Centre in the presence of 100 of their family members, friends and other supporters of the project.
The short program preceding the morning ribbon-cutting began with a continental breakfast followed by a welcome by both Fanny Levy, Shaarey Zedek’s Board President, and Executive Director Dr. Rena Secter Elbaze. In Elbaze’s remarks, she noted that Larry and Tova wanted their family (including son Stephen and family, who flew in from Florida) and friends at the event to celebrate the opening of the Tova Vickar and Family Childcare Centre, “not because of the accolades, but because, as Larry put it, he hopes that their investment in the congregation will inspire others to do the same.”
“When Larry and I spoke about what this gift meant to him and the message he wanted people to take away,” she continued, “I couldn’t help but connect it to the teachings of Reb Zalman Schachter-Shalomi whose book – Age-ing to Sage-ing – changes the whole way we look at the concept of ageing and basing it on our ancestral teachings.”
She explained that his concept of “Sage-ing” is based on three key ideas – Discover your meaning and purpose; accept our mortality and think about the legacy you want to leave.
“Larry spoke about these exact concepts when we met,” she said.
Elbaze also noted the presence of Shaarey Zedek’s newly-arrived senior Rabbi Carnie Rose, former Rabbi Alan Green, and area MLAs Mike Moroz and Carla Compton.
Larry Vickar expressed his great appreciation for all those in attendance. “Tova and I are deeply moved to stand here with you today for this important milestone in our community”, he said. “We are grateful to be surrounded by all of you, the people we care about, our family and friends… you who have touched our lives and played some part in our journey.”