Showing 108 results

Oral history interview with Jeffrey Barnett. Jeffrey arrived in Vancouver in 1957 at age seventeen, with seventy dollars to his name. He has led a life of hard work in the restaurant industry, with businesses such as Pizza Patio and Elephant and Castle, as well as ensuring the success of the British Pavilion at Expo '86. In more recent years he has helped to make the annual Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver (JCCGV) Sports Dinner a success, sat on the JCCGV Board of Governors, and, with his wife Hildy, funded the JCCGV Teen Lounge.

Peter and Jeffrey Barnett are twin brothers who went into a number of business ventures including restaurants, clubs and property investments. They are best known for being the founders and owners of: Pizza Patio, Elephant and Castle, Ole Cantina, the first topless club in Canada, the first discothèque in Richmond, etc.

They are also very involved in community (both Jewish and non-Jewish) organizations. They were both heavily involved in the Variety Club telethon for years; Peter Barnett was the founder of Variety Club #1047 and past Variety Club World President (and the youngest world president of Variety Club). Jeffrey is very involved with the BC Restaurant Association and the JCC's (Jewish Community Centre) annual Sports Dinner.

They are both 2007 BC Restaurant Hall of Fame Inductees in the Pioneer Category (Pioneers of the BC restaurant industry either retired or deceased).

Number: CA JMABC A.1971.001-20.21-33
Name: Jen Jaffe
Interviewer: Unspecified
Date: Unspecified
Place: Unspecified
Project: The Jewish Historical Society of British Columbia Oral History Project

Summary:
00:00: The interviewer asks Jen Jaffe to introduce herself and her role at the Temple Sholom school.
2:05: The interviewer asks Jaffe to describe her role as principal of the school. Jaffe describes some of the general trends that have happened within the school since she became principal in 2010.
4:32: Jaffe describes who the students are that attend the school and the reasons the common reasons their parents placed them in the school program.
7:08: Jaffe describes the involvement of Rabbis Dan and Brown in the school and its activities.
10:27: Jaffe describes the use of technology in the school and how the school programming was restructured during the early months of the covid-19 pandemic that began in 2020. She also recounts how they were able to ensure each family had the sufficient technologies to be able to participate in their classes.
15:36: Jaffe describes how the Temple Sholom school works with every child to support their individual needs. The school employs Teen [Madrohim] to act as educational aids for the students who need some extra support.
18:47: Jaffe tells how the school is divided in to classes and how those classrooms are generally structured.
20:03: Jaffe responds to the interviewer’s requests to elaborate on the curriculum and philosophy.
23:45: The interviewer asks Jaffe if there is an issue of anti-Semitism that the students have expressed. Jaffe says not directly but it is a topic that is addressed in the school. The teachers also teach the kids how to cope with Christmas.
27:17: Jaffe describes the diversity in the student body.
29:11: Jaffe describes some of the electives the school offers including art, music and Lego.
31:55: The speakers discuss changes that have happened during Jaffe’s tenure at the Temple Sholom school.
33:45: The interviewer asks Jaffe if she thinks the school will encounter any significant issues in the near future.
35:31: Jaffe responds to the interviewer’s question about how the school addresses the political situation between Israel and Palestine.
37:16: Jaffe describes some of the interactions the Temple Sholom school has with other Jewish schools in Vancouver and the Lower Mainland. They also discuss how the school prepares its students for their B’nai Mitzvah.
40:43: End of interview.

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.

Interview with John Berkowitz about Maimonides School in Vancouver, BC and its transition to King David High School.

Oral history interview with Joshua Wapp who was born in Ontario, 1969. His parents are both American but left for Canada due to politics. He works as a Cartoonist.

Oral Interview with Joyce Ozier for the JMABC Artists Scribe. Interviewed by Carol Herbert. She speaks about her upbringing in the Jewish community of Boston, MA and provides a brief summary of her immediate family. She talks about her education, including her early artistic influences, and anecdotes relating to producing art and experiences as a child and teen. Joyce talks about how her arts career truly started in the experimental theatre/performance art scene in 1970 Vancouver. She talks about how this led her into arts administration in dance companies, and later teaching English as a second language into her fifties. Joyce explains how ESL teaching didn’t bring her the same happiness as the arts, and how her son convinced her to try store window dressing, which she eventually turned into a business for 10 years. She tells of how she transitioned to a full time visual artist, and how her art style is based in abstraction, movement and thematic use of colour. She also describes a prominent collection of work about the Holocaust that she is most proud of. She talks about how she continues to paint, and is also a part of a collective that she created for artists aged 65 and above called the B-Older Gallery.

Oral history interview with Judy Zaitzow who was born in Vancouver. Her Grandfather William Seidelman was a postmaster and a shochet. Judy discusses her family history in detail through her Grandparents, parents, brother and sisters. Judy volunteers time with the Beth Israel school board, Hadassah, was door-to-door volunteer for Mothers March (forerunner of United Way), and for Heart & Stroke fund.

Oral Interview with Julia Lucich for the JMABC Artists Scribe. Interviewed by Bill Gruenthal via remote Zoom call. Julia was born in the Bronx, New York, but was raised primarily in Miami, FL. She speaks briefly about her family history and her immediate family including her children and husband. Julia discusses her education towards sociology and criminology in the United States and Jerusalem and her former career in public administration and as a life insurance agent. She also talks about the beginning of her interest in portraiture art which led to her artistic studies. Julia discusses her work in galleries and art shows, including a gallery in Texas and the Calgary Stampede. She speaks about her family’s relocation from San Jose, CA to Eugene, OR to Salt Spring Island, BC which allowed her to live rurally but close enough to good schooling options for her children. Julia discusses her artistic style as representational portraiture usually done with soft pastels, including her series ‘Party Animals’ which helped kickstart her art career. Julia talks about her teaching workshops in BC, showing Party Animals and the Pooka Project at the Calgary Stampede, and how she decides who she will paint. She closes discussing finding joys in art, even for those who are not artists themselves.

Interview with Larry Goldstein on Jewish education in BC. Larry discusses his experience as president of King David High School in Vancouver. He was president during the transition period from Maimonides.

Follow-up oral interview with Leah Levitt. Interviewed by Debby Freiman. Leah talks about her extended family, education, and her involvement with B'nai Brith Girls and the National Council of Jewish Women.