Dear Community Members, 

As we welcome more daylight into our lives (at the expense of a bit of sleep), it means that winter has almost come to an end – and what a long, cold winter it has been! With spring happily in our sights, I’d like to reflect of a few of many great things that have taken place in our community, and inform you about a few interesting things that are just around the bend.

First off, we hope you enjoyed the first Partner Agency of Month last month which spotlighted the Gray Academy of Jewish Education. The second partner agency we will be featuring is Jewish Child and Family Service and will be featured in the next installment of that series which will be hitting your inboxes very soon.

Last Thursday, the Jewish Federation along with Congregation Etz Chayim, Congregation Shaarey Zedek, Rady JCC, and Winnipeg Friends of Israel held an Israeli Election Town Hall where over 60 community members received an excellent background on the upcoming April 9 election from Dr. Tami Jacoby, a political studies professor from the University of Manitoba. Those in attendance exchanged views on the candidates, parties, what they stand for, and the hot topics. Thank you, Dr. Jacoby, Bernie Bellan, and our co-sponsors for facilitating and hosting such a timely, informative event.

With our 2018 Combined Jewish Appeal Campaign closing on March 31, I wanted to acknowledge how fortunate we are to live in such a generous community. We would not be where we are without the support of our donors and the tireless efforts of many dedicated volunteers – whose contributions directly support the vital work of our partner agencies in Winnipeg, nationally and in Israel. As CEO of the Jewish Federation, I sincerely thank you. If you have not made a donation yet, it is not too late!

Along with CIJA, we are pleased to sponsor the 57^th Annual Sisterhood Interfaith Luncheon