Interview with Dan Rosenthal.

Oral history interview with Jack Austin who was born in Calgary in 1932 and worked with the BC Liberal party with Arthur Liang on campaigns and on trade negotiations between Canada and US related to water. In Ottawa he worked with Paul Martin and Arthur Liang as well as Prime Ministers Pierre Elliot Trudeau and Jean Chretien in the energy and natural resources sector. He was awarded Mexico's Order of the Aztec Eagle for his services.

Interview with Jack Huberman for On The Record: The BC Jewish Queer & Trans Oral History Project in collaboration with JQT Vancouver. Interviewed by Carmel Tanaka via remote Zoom video call. Jack (he/him) is a gay Jewish man born in Calgary, Alberta. Jack talks about his family’s origins in Poland and his parents’ livelihoods as grocers and property owners upon immigrating to Canada. Jack shares he realized he was gay very late in life, and how little dialogue about being queer and Jewish at the time made him reluctant to ‘come out’ within his Jewish community in Vancouver. He discusses the writing and mentorship of Rabbi Gil Steinlauf as a catalyst for understanding his sexuality within a Jewish context, though shares how ‘coming out’ did not make him feel welcomed across all parts of his Jewish community, including his own congregation. Jack talks about his desire to foster a greater awareness and acceptance for queer Jews. He discusses his experiences through school, including how he eventually became lawyer, and volunteering throughout the Jewish community in Vancouver. Jack closes by talking about his immediate family, including his husband, children, and grandchildren, and the importance of treating others equally and maintaining good relationships with those around you.

Oral Interview with Jack Rootman for the JMABC Artists Scribe. Interviewed by Carol Herbert via remote Zoom call. Jack describes his early artistic influences attending children’s art classes at the Kost House in Calgary where he grew up. Jack speaks about how he fell in love with sciences in his teens, which lead him to a career in medicine as an ophthalmologist and ophthalmic surgeon. He discusses how his studies by night at Emily Carr aided him in his medical practice by day, but also how attending workshops, and working in his own studio propelled his painting career forward in BC and beyond. Jack talks about the different mediums he works with, including oils and watercolours, and what influences his paintings, like nature and colourscapes. Jack discusses is work in the arts community, including his thematic shows at various galleries and creating a program for having art in hospitals. Jack speaks about advice for other artists and doctors.

Interview with Jane Cherry. Interviewed by Alyssa Routtenberg for The Scribe, 2018. Jane talks about her father Sam's restaurants, including Fruit Bowl, Fish and Oyster Bar, and Love's Cafe. She describes each business's concept and menu, and discusses the shift in Vancouver's food scene.

Interview with Janna Ginsberg. Interviewed by Debby Freiman for The Scribe, 2018. Janna talks about her family's history and her experiences growing up with Jewish food. She describes her background in horticulture and talks extensively about her catering business and restaurant, Janna's Select Catering and Tudor Rose. Janna reflects on the food scene in Victoria over the years.

Interview with Jeff Kushner for On The Record: The BC Jewish Queer & Trans Oral History Project in collaboration with JQT Vancouver. Interviewed by Carmel Tanaka via remote Zoom video call. Jeff (he/him) is a gay Jewish man, born in Winnipeg and residing in Victoria, B.C. with his partner, Randall. Jeff talks about his parents’ lives as children of immigrants in Winnipeg, telling poignant stories of his family members and their influences on his life growing up. Jeff talks about coming out at the age of 30 and how Jewish culture of family and achievement makes a lot of queer Jews come out later as to not disappoint expectations. Jeff talks about the accepting nature of the Jewish community and Victoria of LGBTQ people, which was different from growing up in Winnipeg. Jeff talks about his education, including becoming an engineer out of the University of Manitoba which led him to a career in Alberta’s oil industry. He tells stories of working for different Canadian oil corporations and the experiences he had being a gay Jewish man throughout, which included experiences of antisemitism and homophobia. He closes by talking about finding the dream home in Victoria, where him and his partner both retired early, and he continues to participate in Jewish organizations as a way to build a legacy based on tikkun olam. This includes how he wishes to work on projects for gay and/or Jewish seniors to have old folks’ homes free of prejudice or having to return to ‘the closet’ in old age.

Oral Interview with Jessica Freedman for the JMABC Artists Scribe. Interviewed by Daniella Givon via remote Zoom call. Jessica was born in Montreal, but recalls moving around as a child to Israel and back to Canada where she grew up in Calgary. She explains immediate family history which included her mother who was a professional actor, and her father and brother who are musicians. She was primarily introduced to the arts through dance and music, though eventually was trained in visual arts at Simon Fraser University. She describes her different careers as a dancer, choreographer, accountant and yoga studio owner and instructor, but pursued arts full time after quitting her job to take care of her mother who was diagnosed with terminal cancer. Jessica explains how her painting style transitioned from realism to more expressive abstracts over time, and how she is inspired by emotions and colour. She also discusses how she is motivated by nature and chaos, collaborating on commissions, and the Jewish concept of tikkun olam, having her art contribute as a light to the world.