3636 Shelbourne Street, Victoria, BC V8P 4H2

250-477-7185

[email protected]

January May 2104 2103 May 2014

A Publication of the Jewish Community Centre of Victoria

May 2014/ 5774

Jewish Community Centre of Victoria 3636 Shelbourne Street Victoria, B.C. V8P 4H2 Managing Director – Edie Reckon 250-477-7185 Fax: 250-477-6283 email: [email protected] http://www.jccvictoria.ca President – Larry Gontovnick Vice President – Nanci Secter Treasurer & Past President – Ethel Chochinov Secretary – Janis Diner Brinley

Members-At-Large

Phyllis Arron, Sharon Atnikov, Rose Carr, Susan Corman, Michael Gans, Sandra Glass, Tim Humphreys, Bridget Ittah

Librarian: Joel Fagan Website Design & Maintenance: Qualum Design

The Shalom is a publication of the Jewish Community Centre of Victoria Editor: Edie Reckon Editor & Designer: Julie Elizabeth Proofing: Earl Chochinov

2013/2014 Membership Fees

Family/Couple* – $100.00 Individual – $65.00 Single Parent Family* – $65.00 Student – $18.00 Life Membership – $1000.00 Life Member Annual Donation Request – $36.00

* Includes dependent children under 21 One time donation : At your discretion

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President’s Message It seems like just yesterday, but as I write this month’s President’s Message, I’ve been back from New Zealand three weeks already. In last month’s Shalom, I summarized our wonderful 3 weeks on New Zealand’s North Island and in this month’s Shalom I summarize our amazing 3 weeks on the country’s South Island. I hope you enjoy this month’s trip summary and the few pictures I selected to include along with the summary. We’re very busy with building maintenance and renovations at the Centre. The plans for the kitchen renovations are well underway with the designs and estimates being finalized for the new countertops and cabinets. The new sliding door fridge, gas stoves and stovetop vents have been ordered. The actual construction will take place in July when the deli is closed. We’ve also been busy with several other building maintenance and repair projects. The roof mast that supports the electrical service into the Centre is rotting and needs to be replaced. We received estimates for this repair and will also undertake this work when the deli is closed in July. There are a number of other maintenance and repair items on the list and we are prioritizing all of them. In the next few months, we are also going to focus on cleanup at the Centre, both inside and out. The large drop down projector screen is now installed at the back of the deli and is ready for upcoming Food For Thought Luncheons, Jewish Movie Nights, and any other events at the JCCV that utilize the computer projector. We will be having a new twist for the next Jewish Movie Night on Saturday, May 10th. In addition to introducing the new large projector screen, we are having a “Souper” Jewish Movie Night with an Israeli comedy (that’s right, a comedy!), and “Jewish Wedding Soup” with bread, tea and coffee during the discussion following the movie. Everyone is asked to bring a veggie or a starch to add to Nanci’s wonderful soup broth (see the advert for this event on page 5.) Continued on page 3.

President’s Message, continued from page 2. Tickets are selling quickly for the JCCV Fundraiser Dinner at the Olive Grove Restaurant. Tickets are $50 each and you receive a tax receipt for $36, so it’s a great value for an evening of delicious food, schmoozing with friends and fabulous draw prizes, of course!! And your support of the JCCV is greatly appreciated!! We will be selling only 100 tickets, so purchase yours soon before the event sells out!!

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At last month’s Food-for-Thought Luncheon, Phyllis Arron, coordinator of this popular JCCV program, gave an honorarium to UVic in recognition of the many years that the UVic Speakers Bureau has provided excellent speakers free of charge for our Luncheons. Please see Phyllis’s article and picture on page 4 for the details. I would like to thank Phyllis for the absolutely wonderful job she had done over the past 10 years arranging for the entertaining and informative speakers we have all enjoyed at these Luncheons. If you have any ideas for programs and/or fundraising, or if you would like to volunteer at the JCCV (we can always use more help!), I would love to hear from you. You can reach me by email at [email protected] or by phone at 250-658-5836. Until next month…….

Larry Gontovnick

Travels on the South Island of New Zealand After a fabulous 3 weeks on the North Island of New Zealand, we boarded the Bluebridge Ferry in the Wellington harbour and departed from this beautiful capital city and crossed Cook Straight to Picton on the northeast coast of the South Island. The trip was 3 and a half hours long and was a very scenic ride through the majestic Marlborough Sounds and into Picton harbour. The Bluebridge Ferry was not as new or efficient as BC Ferries, but was quite comfortable. There was good food and movies to watch if you didn’t want to take in the scenery. We drove to Kaiteriteri, and stayed at an “eco resort” on the south edge of Abel Tasman National Park, at the northwest corner of the South Island.  We had a great three days in Abel Tasman, one day hiking part of the Coastal Track, through the forests above the shore.  There were so many little hidden coves and beautiful golden sand beaches, with hardly any people.  Another day we kayaked with a group, getting dropped off at a remote beach by water taxi, then paddling back along the coast.  One of the highlights was seeing a little blue penguin swimming close by our kayak. And on our third day we got to do some stand up paddling in the protected cove at Kaiteriteri Beach, which was quite fun. We drove back to Picton, along a very winding shore road with photo op views of the Marlborough Sounds at every turn.  While in Picton, we took a Continued on page 8.

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Shalom Food-for-Thought Luncheons As Coordinator of the Food For Thought Luncheons at the JCCV for the past 10 years, I am offering a short history of this interesting, informative and entertaining program. Over the years I have had the opportunity to meet people from all walks of life who bring their special talents and enjoy our very delicious lunch catered by our very capable food coordinator, Nanci Secter, and her team of volunteers. Our speakers are mostly provided through the University of Victoria Speakers Bureau. The UVic Speakers Bureau is a community service provided by volunteer speakers from among the faculty, staff, graduate students and retirees who teach, conduct research, study and work at the University of Victoria. Through the bureau, experts and knowledgeable individuals from UVic make themselves available to speak to community groups, schools, clubs and other organizations throughout Greater Victoria and southern Vancouver Island. The service is free. We have also had plays, musical entertainment and long time Victorians giving us very interesting historical perspectives. At our March 31st Luncheon, the Board of JCCV approved giving an honorarium to UVIC recognizing their Speakers Bureau. After the Luncheon speaker was thanked, the honorarium was presented by me to Mandy Crocker, the Speakers Bureau Coordinator (see picture). The honorarium will go towards the UVic University 101 program which provides introductory academic courses to people whose economic and social circumstances normally pose obstacles to university education. Our final Luncheon of the 2013/2014 year was on April 28th and the Luncheons will restart for the 2014/2015 year in the fall. Please check the JCCV calendar and the Shalom newsletters for upcoming Luncheons. As our Luncheons have become increasingly popular, you are urged to reserve early by contacting the JCCV at 250-477-7185 or at [email protected]. Phyllis Arron

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J EW I S H F I L M N I G H T Modern Israeli Cinema Hosted by Michael Gans Saturday May 10th 7:00 p.m.

A Matter of Size

is an Israeli comedy (yes, comedy!)

May 2014/ 5774

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Scrabble anyone? Call Julie at 250-388-4161 or email .

Lee Bloomfield

Chartered Accountant #212 – 895 Fort Street Victoria, BC V8W 1H7

250-380-6414 Fax: 250-384-7247

Like nothing you’ve seen before, a hilarious and heartwarming tale about a coming out of a different kind: four overweight guys who learn to love themselves through the Japanese sport of sumo wrestling!

Jewish Community Centre of Victoria 3636 Shelbourne Street 7:00pm 9:00pm after the movie

Movie and Popcorn Discussion of the movie while enjoying soup, bread, coffee & tea

Admission: $5.00 per person. Please bring a veggie or a starch to add to Nanci’s soup broth to make a wonderful “Jewish Wedding Soup.”

T heo ’ s S harpening S ervices

For Professional Knife Sharpening

Theo Lipworth

3992 Bear Street Victoria, BC V8N 3R1

Tel/Fax: 250-472-3162 [email protected]

Jewish Family Services Confidential Information and Referral Services Lunch with us Volunteer and Food Relief Programmes

250-370-9488

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May 2014 / 5774

Shalom Tickets on sale now at the JCCV ! It was So Much Fun, We’re Doing it Again!! Jewish Community Centre of Victoria

Fundraising Dinner Sunday, June 8th

Olive Grove Restaurant, 4496 West Saanich Rd Cocktails (cash bar) at 5:30 pm, Dinner at 6:30 pm

Fabulous buffet menu with lamb, fish, chicken, ratatouille, side dishes, salads and desserts Draw Prizes Tickets $50 each (includes a $36 tax deductible receipt from the JCCV)

Lox Stock & Bagel Deli THE place to fress and schmooze in Victoria! 6

David’s Poetry Corner Pinball Music roared, lights flashed, bells rang, but all I sensed was the sound of adrenalin dripping. I pounded against boundaries I knew were wrong, bouncing hard from obstacles that were always there. Looking With little hope for a smooth place to roll, I heard a distant voice call out to me “you are the player not the ball”.

Dr. David Heft grew up in Montreal where he attended McGill University and obtained a BSc. and a DDS. He moved to Victoria in 1976 and has three wonderful grown

The full blown sails stretched and full of glorious tight pushed the cutting edge of my bow through the whitening froth spewing spray and the ideas of living and dying all around me as I braced myself against the wheel in a game I played with the western wind.

I never noticed the dust that had collected in the corners of my life getting thicker and thicker day by day year by year.

children and four adorable grandkids.  Although he likes to wander, he is never far from the Jewish Community where he has volunteered his services and feels at home. He has served on the boards of Congregation Emanu-El and the JCCV of which he is a founding member. David bartered his poems to get through university and writing has remained his passion to this day. 

A Note from the Librarian I would like everyone to be aware of our JCC Library, and encourage its use. This lending library contains a collection of more than 900 books, on a wide variety of subjects related to Judaism. All of these books have been donated. There is a fine selection of fiction by many Jewish authors, including Philip Roth, Bernard Malamud, Elie Wiesel, Herman Wouk, Isaac Bashevis Singer, and Mordecai Richler, to name just a few. There is an excellent collection of biographies of prominent Jewish personalities. Other major categories include Jewish history (both ancient and modern), Jewish theology and ethics, a large selection of books related to the Holocaust, and a variety of Jewish encyclopedias.

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For those of you interested in Jewish cooking we have a nice collection of cookbooks. We even have a section of compilations of Jewish humor. If you are interested in modern Israel, you will want to see the books of photos and commentary concerning this extraordinary country. Last, but certainly not least, there are books on Jewish feminist thought, and a wonderful selection of beautiful books of Jewish art. The catalogue of these books can be found on the JCC website. It is a simple matter to borrow a book. Simply fill out the card with your name and phone number, and place it in the appropriate plastic box. The usual lending period is three weeks. When you return the book, simply place it in the large blue box that is easily seen. I am happy to say that, over the past few months, the library has seen greater use. Please come and see it for yourself. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions. Also, if you have books to donate, please let me know of this. In particular I would be happy to receive biographies of Chaim Weitzmann and Theodor Hertzl.

Joel Fagan Librarian [email protected]

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May 2014 / 5774

Shalom Travels on the South island of New Zealand, Continued from page 3. wine tasting tour to some Marlborough vineyards. The vineyards are expansive and consist mainly of Sauvignon Blanc grapes, the signature wines of the Marlborough district. The rows of grapes are perfectly manicured so the grapes can be harvested by custom-made grape picking machines. Like the Okanagan, wineries sprung up in the 70s and 80s replacing fruit orchards (and sheep farms in New Zealand!), and it’s become a hugely successful industry. We did a day of hiking on a section of the Queen Charlotte Track. On our boat ride out to the start of the track, we chatted with a mother and daughter who were hiking the whole 71 km track over several days. The mother was at least 80 and had hiked all the tracks in New Zealand more than once.  We were very impressed! Hiking along the many “tracks” in New Zealand is a hugely popular activity with locals and visitors alike. There are backpacker lodges and buses throughout the country and huts along the tracks that can be reserved for multiday trips. New Zealand is a backpacker’s paradise!!

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We then spent a couple of days in Christchurch and the Banks Peninsula, where we got to see the earthquake effects three years later.  There are many empty spaces still in the city. Christchurch Cathedral looks Continued on page 9.

A Community of Cultural Jews

Upcoming Events Talk and Discussion

on Sunday, May 18 - 2:00 pm Martin Blank will speak on the topic “People of the Book”. Discussion will follow.

Shavuot

on Sunday, June 1 - 2:00 pm Henry Summerfield and Sharon and Vernon Kobrinsky will lead a discussion on the “History of Jewish Ritual” Both events at the Jewish Community Centre of Victoria 3636 Shelbourne Street

Everyone is welcome. Email [email protected] Website www.vshj.ca

Victoria’s Reform Jewish Congregation Rabbi Louis Sutker

Weekly Kabbalat Shabbat Services are held at 7:30 pm at the JCCV. These are led by Lay Leaders, and one service monthly is led by Rabibi Louis Sutker.

In May, Rabbi Louis will lead our Kabbalat Shabbat Service on the 9th. Torah Study in his home will be on Saturday the 10th at 3:00. Everyone welcome.

Kolot Mayim Reform Temple at the Jewish Community Centre of Victoria (JCCV) 3636 Shelbourne Street, Victoria, BC V8P 4H2 250.704.2503 www.kolotmayimreformtemple.com

Travels on the South island of New Zealand, continued from page 8. so sad, missing its roof, the bell tower in ruins, and surrounded by fencing.  There are quite a few vacant, condemned buildings that still need to be demolished. But the Re-Start area with brightly coloured containers being used as stores and coffee shops is a great idea. Also, lots of cranes in the skyline, signs of the big rebuilding effort in the city centre.

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We then spent a couple of days at Lake Tekapo, in the foothills of the Southern Alps, where some of the second Hobbit movie was filmed.  You can certainly see why, the area is absolutely breathtaking, with the turquoise lake surrounded by hills and snow topped mountains, and lupins growing wild around the rocky shore.  We hiked in the nearby Mount Cook National Park up to the Hooker Glacier and Hooker Lake at the foot of Mount Cook. We spent 3 days in Milford Sound (another iconic New Zealand destination) and stayed at the Milford Sound Lodge, a typical backpacker’s lodge with really good facilities. It does feel like camp, though. Mostly 20 somethings here from all over the world, but also families and old guys like us. We had a wonderful afternoon of kayaking with a small group and a local guide.  We went out by boat to the Tasman Sea and we kayaked all the way back down the sound, some 16 km, but with the wind. We got to do some rafting together sailing (with a sail tied to paddles) for part of the way, which was really fun.  We got very close to the seals and kayaked into a waterfall. Lots of rainbows along the way from waterfall spray.   No beaches to stop at because the cliffs come straight down to the water.  We also took a boat cruise around the Sound for a leisurely look at the gorgeous scenery, and to get some better photos.  It’s hard to get a good kayak photo when the waves are sloshing you around.  We spent a couple of nights in Queenstown, the centre of all things extreme, like bungy jumping (where this activity originated), hang gliding and skydiving. We didn’t get up the courage to do any of these extreme activities, but did enjoy a day of cycling around the lake in Queenstown. We then spent a couple of nights at Franz Josef Glacier and walked with crampons on the ice at nearby Fox Glacier. We then drove over Arthur’s Pass to Christchurch and flew home the next day. It was an amazing trip. We drove over 5,500 km and wanted to keep on touring the country, as there were a number of areas we did not get to see, but it was nice to get back home as well. We would love to go back to New Zealand, but there are so many other places on our list to see!!

Victoria Jewish Walking Tours

with Gary Cohen

May 25 Walking Tours: 10:30 am -12 pm Synagogue Tours: 1 pm

Walking Tours begin outside Congregation Emanu-el (Pandora and Blanshard), rain or shine.

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May 2014 / 5774

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Shalom One Member’s Response to Anti-semitic Advertising

On page 45 of Focus magazine’s April 2014 issue, an ad appears accusing Israel of the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians, paid for by the Victoria Coalition Against Israeli Apartheid and the rabidly anti-Israel BDS – Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement. It is truly disappointing that Focus, a local Arts and Cultural magazine, would expose its good name and the reputation of its advertisers to derision by appearing tacitly in support of or indifferent to the singling out and bullying of Israel by these two groups. In 2001, after the failure of the Second Intifada, in which Palestinians committed untold atrocities against innocent Israeli civilians, a group of Palestinian organizations decided upon a more insidious way to continue their war against Israel by creating the BDS movement. Seemingly peaceful, the BDS plans to slowly erode the existence of the only country on earth where Jews are the majority by targeting Israel’s vital institutions through boycotts, divestment and sanctions. Of course, it is totally acceptable to criticize the policies of any country but why has the crescendo of threats and actions by BDS members against Israel reached such a feverish pitch? Why aren’t they holding the government of Syria responsible for the murder of well over 150,000 people? Turkey still denies its genocide of more than 1.5 million Armenians and it, along with Iran and Iraq still occupy the hopes and dreams of a Kurdish homeland. Iran threatens Israel with a nuclear holocaust while Palestinians still persecute members of the LGBT Community with total impunity. One of Israel’s most vehement and vociferous critics, Norman Finkelstein, had this to say about the BDS movement. “They don’t want Israel,” Finkelstein declared, “They think they’re being very clever. They call it their three tiers… We want the end of the occupation, we want the right of return, and we want equal rights for Arabs in Israel. And they think they are very clever, because they know the result of implementing all three is what? What’s the result? You know and I know what’s the result: there’s no Israel.” Finkelstein demanded that Palestinians drop this program, “Because, if we end the occupation and bring back six million Palestinians and we have equal rights for Arabs and Jews, there’s no Israel.” He also insisted that a “two-state solution” was the only outcome supported by international law. And to those local BDS members who paid for that slanderous and contemptuous ad, all warm and cozy in homes built on the occupied lands of North America’s Indigenous peoples, I ask, aren’t you being rather hypocritical conspiring to uproot Jews from their ancestral homeland, all the while, denying your own occupation? When will you call for a boycott of Russian goods produced in Crimea or demand an academic boycott of Chinese universities for their annexation of Tibet? I smell something rotten in your double standards. And then there is the issue of antisemitism! In a recent article in the Jerusalem Post, Alan Dershowitz questions if singling out Israel for boycotts is antisemitic? He asks why only Israel is targeted by the BDS movement. They treat Israel as the Jew among nations – singling it out for condemnation when others are far worse by any relevant standard – the advocates of BDS are simply expanding the notion of anti-Semitism beyond the individual to the nation state of the Jewish people. When Nazis condemned “Jewish physics,” “Jewish art” and “Jewish business practices,” they too claimed that they were focusing on Jewish institutions rather than Jewish individuals. That defense won’t work. Treating the Jew among nations precisely the way classic anti-Semites have treated the Jewish people is simply a new adaptation of the oldest of prejudices. It has also become popular among anti-Israel supporters to label Israel an apartheid state. How can Israel, the only true democracy in the Middle East, be called an apartheid state when more than 6 million Jews, from over 100 different countries and 1.5 million Muslims and Christians live together as equal citizens? It might be more appropriate to use the term apartheid when speaking about a future Palestinian state in which Palestinian leaders continue to insist on uprooting and deporting every Jew from within their future state; thusly, creating a Judenfrei1 Palestine. And to you, my friends and fellow supporters of Israel, remember that “silence = death”. Tell others Israel’s side of the story! Join and support recently created organizations like SPME - Scholars for Peace in the Middle for they defend an Israeli’s right to live within safe and secure borders. Take action! Support those publications and advertisers that present the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in a fair and balanced manner. We must never forget that the Nazi’s also called for the boycotting, divesting and sanctioning of Jewish businesses and institutions in Hitler’s Germany which, as we all know, led to the isolation and ghettoization of European Jewry, leaving them vulnerable and defenseless against the onslaught of the Final Solution. Never Again!

Michael Gans

Endnotes 1 Judenfrei- Nazi term to designate an area “cleansed” of Jewish presence during The Holocaust

GENTLEMEN:

May 2014/ 5774

Shalom

Come to the Back Table ON FRIDAYS ENJOY LUNCH WITH THE BOYS GREAT FOOD AND CONVERSATION!

The RUMRUNNER Pub & Restaurant

9881 Seaport Place, Sidney, BC

Discussion Group

250-656-5643

2 n d & 4 t h S u n d a y s m o n t h l y at 10:30 a.m. Lively Discussion served with Bagels and Coffee

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May 2014 / 5774

Shalom Professional and Business Directory Chartered Accountant, Lee Bloomfield

250-380-6414

Chartered Accountant, Adam Sharpe

250-386-8834

Fax: 250-384-7247

Clarinet and Flute Instruction Mary Lowther 250-507-5865 [email protected] Dentist, Bernard Bild 250-595-6125 Environmental Resource Consulting [email protected] Jonathan Secter, B.S.A., M.S., R.P.Bio 250-477-6912 www.sercbc.com Systems Ecologist/Natural Resource Planner Graphic Designer, Julie Elizabeth

250-388-4161

Highrise Elevator Ads, Harry Abrams

250-386-6246

[email protected]

Jewellery Artist, Mona Acker 250-598-6596 [email protected] Lawyer, Robbie Sheffman

250-590-2951

Mortgage Specialist, David Steinberg Painter, Carver, Gilder, Anthony Thorn

250-858-7160

www.davidsteinberg.ca

250-595-7410

Personal Travel Specialist, 250-381-8120 H [email protected] Pauline Cohen, CSP ACC 250 744-7636 C [email protected] Realtor, David Rusen, 250-384-8124 B Pemberton Holmes Realty 250-413-7594 C Reliable Companion Services Ltd. Rachel Stouwer 250-480-5532 Security Representative, Residential/Comm. Adam Speigel 250-413-8905 [email protected] Web design | Logo design | Computer-aided design Qualum Design & Technical Services 250-590-3299 [email protected] Jonathan Stoppi 250-595-7259 www.qualum.com Writer & Editor Katrina Greenfield Hanevelt

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250-382-5694

[email protected]