A sole menorah in the windowsill of our future JCC home, with candles lit and the sun setting in the backdrop is a stirring memory from one year ago.

There were about 20 of us gathered in the room, leaders and rabbis, standing on cold concrete in a room bursting with hope and potential.

I call this “Hatikvah: The Hope” as it was taken just as we were finalizing the purchase of the new JCC building at 14205-109 Avenue and were permitted a visit for this special moment prior to taking possession.  

I am very pleased to inform you that the work has commenced on the future home for our community!  

I cannot think of a more fitting moment, as we enter Chanukah, to thank an incredible committee who has been hard at work planning, discussing, and overseeing this monumental project, with Marshall Hundert as our project manager. We look forward to bringing you regular updates and photos as the work progresses.

Stay tuned via emails for a special announcement and more information in our weekly newsletter, The Bridge, and on our social media channels as this progresses. 

Chanukah literally translates to dedication, as this festival commemorates the rededication of the temple in Jerusalem. As we continue to rededicate ourselves to a strengthened Jewish life and identity, we also are entering a transformational moment for our community: a rededication of our longstanding presence in Edmonton since the first Jews arrived at the turn of the last century.  

Jewish Federation supports our local community partners to ensure that we have the ability to live strong, proud, Jewish lives in Edmonton. This means that we are not only strengthening Jewish identity through formal and informal education and programs, we are also unequivocally living fulsome Jewish lives as a thriving community in full sight.  

With thanks to Rabbi Ari Dreilich of Chabad, we will have the opportunity to gather with our family, friends and allies to light the tallest menorah in Alberta on the legislature grounds this Sunday, starting in the rotunda. Jewish Federation is a proud sponsor of these efforts, and I hope to see many of you ‘at the ledge’ and sharing in latkes to follow.

Speaker Ric McIver will host us in the rotunda of the legislature, with dignitaries and all three levels of government represented. As Speaker McIver has said “We continue to honour the Jewish tradition and faith, and to showcase the strength and vibrancy of Alberta’s Jewish communities.” And for those who are in town next week, a car parade of lit menorahs will bring love and light around our city streets. 

We continue to plan for long standing programs with the 30th year of the Edmonton Jewish Film Festival approaching and our committee starting to select films. We look forward to welcoming the Greater Edmonton community to this event and to welcoming thousands more at the Israel Pavillion at Heritage Festival, which we were just informed will be returning to Hawrelak Park. Engaging and supporting the many volunteers who are committed to making these events happen and showcasing our vibrant community is something I am proud that our staff team continue to do.  

I hope you continue to place your menorahs in your windows, both literally and metaphorically. Together, we are standing strong and I want to thank all of you who continue to support our community through the UJA campaign to ensure that we do so.  

Shabbat Shalom and chag Chanukah sameach. 

Stacey