Features
Some of the most important years in my life were spent as a Topper in AZA
Editor’s introduction: Elsewhere on this website we have a story about Elliot Rodin. During the course of one of our conversations Elliot remarked that his years spent in AZA were among the most important in his life. Elliot suggested that the subject of AZA would be one that Gerry Posner would be well suited to tackle.
So, I decided to contact our nostalgia expert and, although he semeed a little uncertain why we would want him to write about AZA, I wrote to him that he was the perfect choice to go back to a time that would certainly raise memories for many of our readers. And, ever the sport that he is, Gerry agreed. I also asked Gerry whether he might have any pictures from his own AZA years, but he said that he didn’t.
Being the resourceful newshound that he is though, Gerry was able to come up with the picture that you see on this page. Okay Gerry – now how about taking on BBG next?
By GERRY POSNER
The pandemic has given me (and I suggest way more people than me) time to reflect and ruminate about matters of importance and less so. To me, the past is important and I have spent some time recalling events of my past and indeed of those of my era. I hearken back to the days of BBYO and our teenage times.
Let’s step back to 1958. My life and I suspect the lives of many of my contemporaries were occupied pretty much by school, sports, and BBYO. Some, of course, were involved in USY (United Synagogue Youth), others had extra curricular activities, school related or not. There were a few, not many, who had jobs he or who went to during the week or weekend either regularly or not, but for the most part our lives were what might be considered very simple and narrow by today’s standards. My life was ruled by AZA, the male section of BBYO. In those days, there were five viable chapters: Winnipeg 38s (the 38th chapter in the organization), Toppers, Eskimos (and no one thought of changing the name then) Omegas and Slotins. As I recall there were about the same number of BBG (the female version for B’nai Brith Brith Girls) chapters. They were: Delilahs, Chalutzot, Gabriels, Bat Sheva, Israelis, and Rachels. (I apologize if I’ve missed any others.)
For many of the readers who recall those times in their lives, it was, shall I say, a much simpler time. My life revolved around BBYO. In fact, I was so immersed in it and I made so many phone calls for the chapter, that the names of each of the 41 members in the chapter are ingrained in my memory alphabetically.
I am not sure if the fact that I recall these names even now – over 60 years later is a plus or a minus. But here are the 1958-59 members of Toppers AZA in case you could not sleep last night wondering just who these guys were: Bob Akman, Larry Booke, Lloyd Cohen, Sam Corman, Joe Diner, Bruce Druxerman, Brian Fleishman, Sheldon Gilman, Martyn Glassman, Bert Knazen, Martin Knelman, Jack Lazareck, Larry Leonoff, Roger Lyons, Ted Lyons, Brian Malinsky, David Matas, Alan Moss, Butch Nepon, Michael Nozick, Eric Ostfield, Harvin Pitch, Arnold Popeski, Gerry Posner, David Rich, Elliot Rodin, Arthur Ross, Ken Rubin, Laurie Rubin, Ron Rubin, David Secter, Bob Segal, Paul Shuster, Lyle Silverman, Gary Smith, Ken Steiman, Neil Stitz, Errol Tapper, Irv Tessler, David Winestock and David Wolch. Sad to say that five of them – Corman, Fleishman, Knazen, Moss and Nepon have passed on. Still, I would suggest if you could ask the remaining 36, you would receive a uniform opinion about that time in their lives – and it would be warm and favourable. Why is that and what was it about that period that made it so that many of us would wish this kind of life style for our grandkids?
To be sure, we did not have iPhones, iPads or computers. We had television, but only one station. What we really had was time with friends and the ability to roam reasonably free. We took the bus or biked anywhere we had to go. Our parents did not worry about us and we could be outdoors until the streetlights came on. We had what I would call a sense of freedom that is absent today with so much structured activity. We did chat on the phone a great deal, but then that telephone line was shared by everybody in the family and so we had limits imposed on us. We bonded with friends; AZA and BBG were an integral part of that bonding process. I recall that in AZA we had the five-fold objectives of the organization, including religious, community service, fund-raising, social and athletic. The key was to try to be involved at some point in the year in all of these aspects of the organization.
In that respect, I recall well on the weekend of October 24-26 of 1958, we had the Toppers Convention weekend where we tried to complete all five folds of AZA within the three days. We began with a religious service at the Shaarey Zedek Synagogue on Friday night, where we participated in the service. Then, on Saturday in the AM, we had a Fund Raising activity (not exactly kosher on the Shabbat and a more than a slight contradiction of the night before at shul) where we sold doughnuts door to door. In fact, one member, Elliot Rodin, sold 512 doughnuts that day (although there were suggestions he recruited his brother and friends to do the heavy selling).
On Saturday night we had a party at the home of Bob Akman, who lived at 614 Waterloo Street. (Would that I could remember what I had for breakfast yesterday.) I know we all were supposed to invite dates and I recall whom I took to the party and would identify her but fear that if I did so, she might be asked about it and she would have to admit she has no memory of me or that night. On Sunday in the AM, we had a community service programme, followed by a football game in the afternoon against another AZA chapter. All that in one weekend. We were busy with friends and out of our parents’ hair in useful activities. We were not looking down at a device all day. You know the rest of this story.
Toppers was good for me and not just me. We all benefited from that more innocent time where we were learning about ourselves, the opposite sex and the world around us. But we had the benefit of deep and lasting friendships which occurred as a result of the time and place we were in and at then. Many of those deep friendships formed at that time last to this day. I say sadly that it is hard for me to project that kind of relationship for my grandchildren – so occupied are they on their phones, computers and with themselves. Perhaps you see it differently, but I always say I was privileged to have grown up where and when I did, and Toppers 921 AZA was a central part of that experience.
Features
Colleges With the Largest Jewish Student Communities
Choosing a college is hard enough without factoring in whether you’ll be the only Jewish person at the Shabbat table. For students who want Jewish life to be a real part of their college experience – not a weekly drive to the nearest city – campus community matters as much as academic reputation.
The good news: several major universities have Jewish student populations large enough that Jewish holidays are actually acknowledged, kosher dining isn’t a special request, and you’ll find everything from traditional minyanim to social justice groups to Jewish Greek life. What follows is a breakdown of the schools that consistently rank highest, based on Hillel International’s annual data and campus reporting.
What to Look For Beyond the Numbers
Raw population numbers don’t tell the whole story. Some students want a large Jewish population to maximize the number of organizations, fraternities and sororities, and participation at Jewish events. Others want schools with easy kosher dining options and a range of religious options for services. Still others want easy access to a large Jewish community off campus.
Top schools also come with serious academic demands. Jewish students who want to stay active in community life while keeping up with coursework often treat writing as something to outsource strategically. Students who decide to hire essay writer online guidance for specific writing tasks often find that the quality of that support keeps them on track without sacrificing everything else. Some things are worth delegating so you can actually show up for Shabbat or make it to the Hillel event on a Tuesday.
The questions worth asking before committing to any campus:
- Does the Hillel have a dedicated building, or does it operate out of shared space?
- Is kosher dining available in the main dining hall, or is it a separate facility that separates you from non-Jewish friends?
- Does the school adjust exam schedules around major Jewish holidays?
- Is there a Chabad house nearby for students who want a more observant environment?
- What’s the campus climate like regarding antisemitism, and how does the administration respond?
The Top Schools by Jewish Population
University of Florida
UF has 6,500 Jewish students – bigger than some entire colleges. The Jewish community is so established that they have multiple Jewish fraternities and sororities, plus Hillel programming that goes well beyond awkward mixers. The Hillel at UF is nationally recognized, with kosher dining and daily minyanim. Gainesville’s Jewish community includes Orthodox synagogues within reach, and UF’s administration’s efforts to combat antisemitism, as noted in 2024 Hillel reports, ensure a welcoming environment.
Rutgers University
With 6,400 Jewish students, Rutgers gives you every type of Jewish person – from very religious to “only goes to synagogue on Yom Kippur.” Being in New Jersey means NYC is accessible for internships, Shabbat with family, or just a real bagel. Rutgers Hillel is one of the most active in the country and the campus has a long history of Jewish student life.
University of Maryland
One of the most significant Hillel building projects underway anywhere in the country. The new Ben and Esther Rosenbloom Hillel Center For Jewish Life at University of Maryland will be a 40,000-square-foot building in College Park, including a kosher dining area, café, rental catering spaces, and classrooms. Maryland’s Jewish population is large, geographically convenient to Washington D.C., and has been growing.
New York University
NYU sits in the middle of one of the largest Jewish communities in the world, which changes what campus Jewish life looks like entirely. The off-campus options – synagogues, kosher restaurants, Jewish cultural institutions – are unmatched anywhere else on this list. NYU Hillel is active, and students who want a more immersive Jewish urban experience rather than a contained campus bubble tend to thrive here.
Brandeis University
A different category from the others. Brandeis was founded as a Jewish-sponsored institution and still reflects that in its campus culture. Brandeis Hillel recently announced a $20 million project to renovate a former administrative building into a new 28,000-square-foot center for Jewish life on campus. Jewish studies programs are among the strongest in the country, and the campus calendar is built around Jewish holidays as a matter of course.
Cornell University
Cornell has the largest Jewish student population in the Ivy League and is finally getting the college hilel building to match. Construction began in spring 2026 on the Steven K. and Winifred A. Grinspoon Hillel Center for Jewish Community at Cornell – a 24,000-square-foot facility expected to serve over 3,000 Cornellians each year, featuring a kosher café, event hall for Shabbat dinners, a communal kosher kitchen, and a Beit Midrash. Until it opens, the community operates out of Anabel Taylor Hall, where space has been consistently stretched.
Princeton University
Smaller numbers than the large state schools, but the infrastructure is serious. Princeton’s Mandelbaum Family Dining Pavilion opened in March 2025, providing twenty kosher meals a week supervised by the Orthodox Union. Anyone on a Princeton meal plan can eat there – and students of all backgrounds eat there because the food is genuinely good.
Campus Comparison
| School | Approx. Jewish enrollment | Kosher dining | Hillel building | Chabad presence |
| University of Florida | ~6,500 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Rutgers University | ~6,400 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Cornell University | Largest in Ivy League | Yes (new facility 2027) | Under construction | Yes |
| University of Maryland | Large | New facility opening | Under construction | Yes |
| NYU | Large | Yes + off-campus | Yes | Yes |
| Brandeis | Majority Jewish | Yes | Renovation underway | Yes |
| Princeton | ~13% | Yes (OU-certified) | Yes | Yes |
What Actually Makes a Jewish Campus Community Strong
Numbers matter, but they’re not everything. When you get above around 25% Jewish, the whole campus culture shifts. Jewish holidays become things that professors acknowledge. Kosher food isn’t some weird special request. Everyone understands why you disappear for three days during Rosh Hashanah.
Beyond that threshold, what separates good Jewish campus communities from great ones is programming depth and physical space. A Hillel with a real building, a kosher kitchen, and regular Shabbat dinners creates the conditions for genuine community. A Hillel sharing a conference room and running events sporadically does not.
The schools on this list all offer something real. What varies is the scale, the feel, and whether you want a sprawling state school where Jewish life is one of many communities, or a smaller institution where it’s closer to the center of things.
Features
Is AI Making the Canadian Gaming Sector Safer for Consumers in 2026?
The phrase “artificial intelligence” seems ubiquitous nowadays. It represents an extremely efficient technology that is revolutionizing virtually all industries; the Canadian online gambling market is not an exception. Although the first associations related to AI in the context of online gambling are connected with the creation of new content, it performs one of its key functions far from the spotlight.
By 2026, AI will become an absolutely necessary means for ensuring consumer safety within the regulated gaming market.
If it’s fraud prevention or responsible gaming promotion, artificial intelligence is used by operators to increase the security level in the market. This task becomes especially relevant in the case of a regulated market like Ontario where consumer safety becomes a primary concern.
Let us have a closer look at the concrete applications of AI for this purpose.
Detecting and Preventing Fraud
Among the primary risks faced by any online website that conducts financial transactions is the risk of fraud. This can range from using stolen credit cards to more complicated cases of bonus abuse.
In the past, such activities could only be detected through manual analysis by the security team of the organization. However, modern technologies have brought about significant changes in how this challenge is handled.
The current generation of online gambling sites employs advanced algorithms that help monitor all activities conducted on the site in real-time. The algorithm is designed to detect any suspicious patterns that could indicate any malicious intent on the part of the user.
In addition, the program can examine several data points within seconds, identifying any abnormal behavior of the player. For instance, the AI may identify a situation where a player makes many deposits using different payment instruments.
This helps to address potential issues before they become problematic for the operator and the users of the platform.
Ensuring Fair Play
In order to ensure fairness in an online world that is full of competition, especially within a game such as poker, it is essential to keep cheating at bay. AI technology is being applied in order to do this.
One of the major issues that arises when it comes to online poker is the use of bots. Bots refer to computerized systems that play poker without a human being.
Using AI to protect a poker room includes using AI security measures that can distinguish the patterns in which bots play. AI can help identify other types of unfair plays such as collusion, where there is cooperation among players at the same table.
These AI security measures have the capability of analyzing the hand histories and patterns of play that would take human beings too long to do.
Promoting Responsible Gaming
The most important application of AI in the Canadian gaming industry could be seen as the area of responsible gaming. The gambling license holders should offer various instruments to help players control themselves, but the AI technology will allow taking a step further.
With the help of AI algorithms, licensed operators may learn to detect signs of gambling disorder based on specific patterns of playing. It is worth mentioning that AI technology is not meant to evaluate the gambler but analyze his behavior objectively.
For instance, the algorithm can warn the operator about a player who spends much more time or money than before, as well as someone who chases their losses.
Once the patterns are detected, the appropriate measures can be taken. For instance, an automated warning could be sent to the gambler informing about responsible gaming resources. If necessary, the player can be contacted by a person who has undergone special training for this purpose.
It can be considered a highly effective solution to make the gaming process safe.
A More Personalized and Secure Experience
Furthermore, AI is employed in creating a customized and safer environment for players and currently, many platforms utilize AI algorithms to provide personalized suggestions regarding games.
By analyzing the preferences of the user and the kinds of online slots in Canada they like, the system can make recommendations on other games they would enjoy playing. Thus, users have the opportunity to explore new games and get greater satisfaction from using the platform.
Regarding security, the technology is also used in order to make the login process more secure. Many platforms currently utilize AI algorithms based on behavioral biometrics.
Thus, the system identifies unique patterns of a specific user, including how he/she types or moves the mouse and in case somebody tries to log in under someone else’s name, the algorithm detects unusual behavior and initiates extra verification procedures.
Final Thoughts
There is no denying that artificial intelligence is quietly working in the background to ensure the safety of Canadian gamers.
From fraud and cheating detection to the benefits of promoting responsible gambling, the application of AI is aiding the development of a more reliable gaming industry.
With new developments expected in the future regarding AI, the industry will continue to benefit from this technology and this is indeed good news for all Canadians who enjoy online gaming as entertainment.
Features
A Jewish farmer broke ground on a synagogue in an Illinois cornfield. His neighbors showed up to help.
By Benyamin Cohen May 8, 2026 “This story was originally published in the Forward. Click here to get the Forward’s free email newsletters delivered to your inbox.”
Benyamin has been reporting for more than a year on the improbable story of Nik Jakobs. Catch up here and here, and stay tuned for a forthcoming piece about a trip they took to the Netherlands to visit the towns where the Jakobs family survived the Holocaust. Yesterday was an important moment in Jakobs’ overall journey, and we wanted to share it with you.
STERLING, ILLINOIS — On Wednesday, Nik Jakobs was planting corn. On Thursday, the 41-year-old Illinois cattle farmer stood in a two-acre cornfield preparing to plant something else: a synagogue.
Around 75 people gathered on the edge of the field this week in Sterling, Illinois, a two-hour drive west of Chicago, where Jakobs and his family broke ground on a new home for Temple Sholom, the small congregation that has anchored Jewish life here for more than a century, and where his family has prayed since the 1950s.
The planned 4,000-square-foot building will also house a Holocaust museum inspired by the story of Jakobs’ grandparents, Edith and Norbert, who survived the war after Christian families in the Netherlands hid them in their homes for years. Jakobs described the future museum as a place devoted not only to Jewish history, but to teaching the dangers of hatred and division. “If you have the choice to be right or kind,” he said, repeating advice from his grandmother, “choose kind.”
A 60-foot blue ribbon — chosen by Jakobs’ wife, Katie, to match the color of the Israeli flag — stretched across the future building site. His four daughters held it alongside his parents, brothers and friends. Then they lifted oversized gold scissors and cut the ribbon as pastors, farmers, city officials and members of neighboring churches applauded.
The synagogue rising from this Illinois cornfield will house pieces of the past.
A nearby storage area holds Jewish objects Jakobs rescued from shuttered synagogues across the country: stained-glass windows, Torah arks, rabbi’s chairs, memorial plaques and wooden tablets engraved with the tribes of Israel. Many came from Temple B’nai Israel, a 113-year-old synagogue that closed down in 2025. It served generations of Jews in McKeesport, Pennsylvania, now a ghost town since the steel mills closed. Its remaining congregants donated sacred objects to Jakobs so their story could live on rather than disappear.
The day before the groundbreaking, the Jakobs family began opening some of the crates for the first time since they were packed away nearly a year ago. Nik’s father, Dave Jakobs, pried open one box with a hammer and crowbar while Nik loosened screws with an electric drill, the family gathered around like archaeologists opening a tomb.
Inside was a stained-glass window with images of a tallit and shofar bursting in jewel tones of blue, yellow and red. Jakobs’ mother, Margo, lifted Annie, the youngest of Nik’s daughters, so the 4-year-old could peer inside. The bright red glass matched the bow in her hair.
Nearby sat the massive wooden ark salvaged from Pennsylvania, topped with twin Lions of Judah whose carved paws once overlooked generations of worshippers.
Faith on the farmland
Temple Sholom — founded in 1910 — was once the center of Jewish life in Sterling, a town of 14,500 surrounded by flat farmland and tall grain silos. Its Jewish community once included a pharmacist, the manager of Kline’s department store and the owner of a local McDonald’s franchise.
Over time, membership dwindled. The roof sagged. The pews emptied.
Last year, the congregation sold its aging building and relocated High Holiday services to a tent on the Jakobs’ farm, where prayers mingled with the smell of manure and cattle lowing nearby.
At a moment when many small-town synagogues are closing, Temple Sholom is doing something increasingly rare: building a bigger new sanctuary from scratch. The synagogue will sit prominently along one of Sterling’s main roads — a highly visible expression of Jewish life in a region where Jews are few.
Thursday’s groundbreaking took place on the National Day of Prayer, the annual observance formalized under President Ronald Reagan, who grew up a few miles away in Dixon, Illinois. Earlier that morning, attendees gathered inside New Life Lutheran Church for a breakfast sponsored by Temple Sholom.
“I was so happy to see bagels, lox and cream cheese,” said Rev. James Keenan, a Catholic priest originally from Brooklyn. “It reminded me of home.”
Inside the church sanctuary, a large wooden cross glowed amber and blue above the dais while two giant screens displayed the National Day of Prayer logo. Jakobs, wearing cowboy boots, jeans and a powder-blue blazer, addressed the crowd.
“Tolerance is not weakness,” he said. “It is strength.”
The new synagogue will sit beside New Life Lutheran Church on land sold to Temple Sholom by farmer Dan Koster, 71, who has known the Jakobs family for three generations.
“We need more religious presence in the community,” Koster said.
For Drew Williams, New Life’s 38-year-old lead pastor, the synagogue and museum represent more than neighboring buildings. His church already hosts food-packing drives, summer meal programs and community events. He imagines future partnerships with Temple Sholom.
“I don’t think there’s any community that is immune to hate,” Williams said. “That just means it’s on us” to be on the other side “spreading peace.”
Sterling Mayor Diana Merdian, who is 41 and grew up in town with Jakobs, said the project reflects a broader desire among younger generations to preserve local history and identity. “If we don’t carry those stories, we lose them,” she said. “Once you lose that, you can’t get it back.”
During the ceremony in the cornfield, Temple Sholom’s longtime cantor, Lori Schwaber, asked those gathered to remember the congregation’s founding members and recite the Mourner’s Kaddish together. Jews and Christians stood side by side in the prairie wind as Hebrew prayers drifted across the open farmland.
Lester Weinstine, a 90-year-old congregant who was the first bar mitzvah at Temple Sholom when the shul was still housed out of a Pepsi bottling plant, looked out across the field in disbelief. “I never thought I would see this,” he said.
For Jakobs, the synagogue project has become inseparable from the lessons his grandparents’ survival taught him. “You sometimes feel on an island as a Jew, especially in rural America,” he said. “But this community — that’s not what I’ve experienced here.”
If construction stays on schedule, the synagogue will open in fall 2027. Its first major service will not be a dedication ceremony, but the bat mitzvah of Jakobs’ oldest daughter, Taylor.
Members of the Pennsylvania congregation are planning a bus trip to Illinois for the occasion, after donating many of their sacred objects to help build Jakob’s synagogue. Their former rabbi has offered to officiate.
“If a farmer can build a synagogue in a cornfield,” Jakobs said, “anybody can do it anywhere.”
Benyamin Cohen is a senior writer at the Forward and host of our morning briefing, Forwarding the News. He is the author of two books, My Jesus Year and The Einstein Effect.
This story was originally published on the Forward.