This past week I visited the National Holocaust Monument in Ottawa, as part of the Shalom Hartman Institute’s Courageous Leaders Canada program, along with seven leaders selected from our own community. (More about this initiative in a future message.) If you have been to this monument, you will have appreciated the thoughtfulness in the architecture and layout, the educational components, reflective spaces, and photography interwoven into the stark concrete. As we head into Holocaust Education month, this visit marked my second and felt fitting. It also seemed appropriate while we are reassessing our education and advocacy initiatives in terms of a post-October 7 lens and signifying being a people that survives and thrives.
Deborah Lyons, Canada’s Special Envoy on Preserving Holocaust Remembrance and Combatting Antisemitism, had her office release the Canadian handbook on the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) Working Definition of Antisemitism the next day. The Government of Canada developed the handbook in partnership with her office. This initiative is a valuable resource for grasping, recognizing, and addressing antisemitism and will be beneficial to law enforcement, lawmakers, and administrators. It was born from the consultations and work of several organizations who contributed to its development. We look forward to engaging locally with our many partners to understand and use this tool.
I departed from the program in Ottawa with a significant question weighing on my mind, involving Holocaust education, recognition, and the increase in antisemitism. What does it mean to enter the post-October 7 era—as a community in Edmonton, as Canadian Jewry, and as a Jewish people? How timely, given that the Torah portion of Noah this week. It is one thing to know of the flood, but what does life look like after the deluge? As Mijal Bitton states in this Times of Israel article:
“The question we must ask then is this: How do we carry on after the flood? How do we rebuild, without a neat, happy-ever-after? This week’s Torah portion, Noah, depicts despair after disaster. But it also offers an alternative: living and rebuilding with grace, in a world shattered by the flood.”
The revival of antisemitism and the renewed interest in Jewish community participation are topics of discussion among our diaspora communities as we tackle a myriad of issues and concerns. Security, education, and advocacy are top of mind. So too are Jewish continuity, Zionism, and Jewish joy. Physically and intellectually, these aspects converge in the planning of the new Jewish Community Centre.
It is imperative that we conceive a Jewish Edmonton that thrives and is future-oriented, where our community feels and recognizes its central address and presence. Where we can walk in, and like Norm from the hit TV sitcom Cheers, we are seen and immediately feel comfortable and where people know our name. A place where we can come together for conversation, for programs and events. We can welcome the many allies who want to learn and engage with us in this place, and we can also acknowledge our rich tradition.
The JCC redevelopment committee has worked with architects to arrive at a structure concept and the next step is hiring a general contractor. Because of the request for a proposal that was sent to several firms, we are reviewing proposals. We are working with a cost consultant, ensuring we have adequate funds for the building we desire while also planning its operations. After submitting a few major grants, we express gratitude to individuals who have shown interest in financially supporting this project.
We continue to provide Jewish educational and commemorative opportunities. The insight into Iran and the geopolitical situation in the Middle East provided by Jerusalem Post Journalist Yonah Bobb was illuminating to many of you who attended the event. The Holocaust education committee is planning another fascinating evening to commemorate Kristallnacht on November 10, welcoming Globe and Mail columnist Marsha Lederman to our community. Marsha will speak of her experience as a second-generation survivor. She recently published her first book, Kiss the Red Stairs: The Holocaust, Once Removed. It became a national bestseller and won the Western Canada Jewish Book Award for Memoir or Biography in 2023. I hope to see you there.
Shabbat Shalom,
Stacey