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.
Interview with Alan Herbert as part of the BC Jewish Queer & Trans Oral History Project, in collaboration with JQT Vancouver. Alan shares his experience of being both gay and Jewish in Vancouver. In part 1, he discusses his family, coming out as gay, the AIDS crisis, his involvement with AIDS Vancouver. In part 2, Alan discusses Vancouver during the AIDS crisis, getting the first funding for AIDS Vancouver, and feeling relatively accepted as a Jewish man in the LGBTQ+ community.
Interview with Jacqueline Walters as part of the BC Jewish Queer & Trans Oral History Project, in collaboration with JQT Vancouver. Jacqueline shares her experience working at Jewish Family Services in Vancouver as both a counselor and community worker. She discusses undertaking a needs assessment to better understand the needs of LGBTQ+ folks in the Jewish community.
Interview with Yosef Wosk, interviewed by Carol Herbert. Yosef speaks about his family’s history in Ukraine and Russia and how pogroms and anti-Semitism led to their immigration to Vancouver, Canada. Yosef discusses his father’s beginnings in Vancouver and the growth of the Wosk business as peddlers in the furniture business, primarily in South Granville. He talks about his upbringing and relationship to his family and their immense presence in both the Jewish and business community. He speaks about his lengthy education at numerous secular institutions and rabbinic schooling at two Yeshivas and with scholars in North America and Israel. Yosef discusses his career as a rabbi in North America and his directing of interdisciplinary programs at Simon Fraser University.
Interview with Romy Ritter as part of the Canadian Jewish Congress oral history project, interviewed by David Schwartz. Romy speaks about her parent’s involvement with the Vancouver Jewish community. She discusses how her participation in March of the Living and hearing a Holocaust survivor speak at camp inspired her involvement in Canadian Jewish Congress. Romy talks about her career as community relations coordinator and regional director of CJC Pacific Region. She speaks about the successes of Canadian Jewish Congress, including inter-faith dialogue, Israeli issues, and being a role model for other organizations in Canada. Romy talks about Canadian Jewish Congress’ collaboration with the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver and provincial political parties. Romy also discusses the dissolvement of Canadian Jewish Congress due to it’s reorganization and it’s impact on the wider community. She states her present relationship with the Jewish community and her sentiment towards current Jewish advocacy organizations.
Interview with Ann Daskal 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. Ann identifies as a ‘bisexual, non-monogamous celibate’ and describes connection to genderfluidity and the lesbian identity. Ann was born in Joplin, MO and currently resides in Vancouver. Ann talks about her changing relationship with the Jewish community and Judaism from a child in the American midwest to present. She talks about her parents’ lives in Missouri, Michigan and California amongst others, with family history in Eastern Europe. Ann talks about her school experiences, including moving away to Wayne State University where she enjoyed the independence and the culture of the ‘60s, including rock concerts and hitchhiking across the US. Ann discusses how they came to Vancouver and the political action they encountered, including the women's movement and WAVAW. Ann talks about same-sex marriage at Or Shalom, as well as an event with the lesbian theoretician Sandra Butler at Temple Sholom. Ann reflects on involvement in the group called the Glowing Alefs, and in lesbian and/or feminist Seders.
Interview with Selina Robinson 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. Selina (she/her) is a Jewish politician who is the mother of a gay son. She is an NDP representative and Member of Legislative Assembly of BC residing in Coquitlam. Selina talks about growing up Jewish in Montreal, and Richmond, BC where the Jewish community was much smaller. She talks about organizing community-led Jewish education in Burquest that focused on inclusion of all sects of Judaism during the ‘90s. Selina talks about working for Jewish Family Services, and their attempts to make safe spaces for gay Jewish kids and their parents. She talks about guidance from her son Aaron, who is similarly pursuing queer Jewish community initiatives. She also tells an anecdote about Aaron’s coming out and how his leaving for university worried her about his preparedness for the world at large. Selina talks about Aaron being openly Jewish growing up and creating positive spaces for him to share his Jewishness with non-Jewish peers, but the difficulties of not knowing the perfect way to parent a queer kid as a straight parent. She also talks about Aaron inviting her to Shabbat dinner with Pride Colours and how proud she was. Selina talks about how Jewish organizations can become more welcoming to queer Jews by including queer Jews in their leadership and becoming more self-reflective.
Interview with Syd Lapan 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. Syd is a Jewish lesbian born in Denver, CO and currently residing on Gabriola Island. She talks about her family’s transition from a well-to-do background in Eastern Europe to starting over again in American midwest. She talks about her and her sister meeting a half-sister that her mother had put up for adoption at the time of WWII. Syd talks about going to university and being taken under the wing of a lesbian couple that she remained friends with for 50 years. She also talks about a gay friend who introduced her to gay activism. Syd talks about her varied education, and moving to Canada with a Canadian partner after attending Queen’s University. She talks about misogyny she experienced as a woman in the tech industry. Syd talks about the Jewish lesbian community in Denver, and also encountering antisemitism in the lesbian community. She talks about how music runs in her family, and how she reconnected with music through choir and the Klezbians. Syd talks about her profession as a private investigator and a significant relationship in her life with a woman named Carolyn. Syd closes by reflecting on her activism and the importance of following one’s heart.
