(Editor's note: Howard Morry was introduced by Larry Vickar. Larry's introduction is posted here after Howard's acceptance speech)

Thank you for those kind words, Larry. I can honestly say I wouldn’t be here without you.

I want to thank the Selection Committee. I am honored to be mentioned in the same breath as Sol Kanee, let alone any of the previous medal recipients.

My sincere congratulations to all the award recipients tonight.  Thank you for contributing your precious time to this community.

I also want to recognize the people who raised me and the people who raised my sights.

First and foremost, my parents, Julius and Shirley Morry and my late-in-laws, Florence and Sid Gutnik.

The studies tell you at some point you are supposed to discover that your parents have feet of clay. I have yet to find that.

My parents and my in-laws are my true north in life.

I can start even earlier with my grandparents, especially my grandmother Sally Slotnikov, who taught me what it is to be both fearless and selfless.

What a lesson, and what a standard to live up to.

I have had so many role models and mentors. I want to single out two - Izzy Asper and Harold Buchwald.

Izzy was a shooting star who lit up the night sky for so many of us. Izzy taught me to aim high.

Harold Buchwald taught me to be tireless in pursuit of all my goals, including tikkun olam, making the world a better place.

Izzy and Harold also showed me how important it was to be a mentor to others, and I have never forgotten their lessons.

I have many close friends here tonight, and even some people who flew in for this event. Thank you, Barry and Bev Segal, thank you Sam Holloway.

And of course, thank you Hope.

If I’m being honest, I could not have done this without my wife, Hope. Not just her love and support, but her wise counsel.

I know Larry says the same thing about Tovah.

Hope taught me to be true to myself, that if you try to please others, you end up pleasing no one and just hurting yourself. 

I love you Hope.

And then, there are our kids. Josh and Samantha.

Since I am thanking the people who have raised me or raised my sights, you might wonder why I am thanking our kids.

I like to say there are three phases to parenting.

The first phase, which I call “directing traffic”, is where you tell the kids what to do.

The second phase, which I call “gatekeeping”, is where you tell your kids what not to do.

In the next phase, if we’ve done our job as parents, and if we’re lucky, our kids, start to direct traffic and gatekeep for us.

And that’s exactly what our kids are doing. Thank you, Josh and Samantha, and your significant others, Samantha and Steve.

We couldn’t be prouder of you.

I’ve been asked to share some of the insights I’ve gained over the years.

My approach to life is simple. It’s all about “family”. You just have to decide who is in your family and what you are prepared to do for them.

In my case, it was easy to answer both questions.

Who’s in my family?

It turns out “family” includes more than your parents, siblings, spouse and children. Even more than your aunts and uncles, nephews, nieces and cousins.

It includes all the people you care about, whether you know them or not, and that list is long.

And I discovered way back in the I.L Peretz School that my family includes the Jewish people.

As to the second question, how much was I prepared to do for my family? I think most of us would answer – everything, or at least, as much as we possibly can.

As Hillel said, if I am not for me, who will be for me?

Of course, we all have different skills and resources and claims on our time. We also have access to different organizations and institutions that offer us a platform to participate and contribute.

In other words, we do what we can.

The first step, at least for me, was to live a Jewish life, accepting Jewish values and traditions, but never at the expense of living a full life as husband, a father, a friend, a lawyer and a Canadian and global citizen.

Thank God, you don’t have to choose between your different identities. In fact, as we’ve seen too many times lately, advancing your identity at the expense of others divides us more than it unites us.

If you think of the Jewish people as part of your family, our goal as Jews in the 21^st Century is simple. Nothing less than the continuation of the Jewish people as a vital force in the world.

And that means not doing anything to break the chain of Jewish life that led us from Abraham to Moses to the children born today.

Over the years, a lot of people, Jews among them, have asked me why they should care about Jewish continuity?

After all, there aren’t many Jews left.

Even if we stretch it, there are only 16 million Jews in the world.

In fact, 27.5 percent of the global population is Christian, 20.2 percent are Muslim, and only 0.2 percent are Jewish.

Not 2 percent but 0.2 percent.

That’s a rounding error, and yet the history of the world, part 1 or 2, couldn’t be written without us.

So why do we matter? 

We can start off by asking what the world would look like if the Jewish people disappeared, as we almost did many times, most recently during the Holocaust.

We could begin with the giants of history who were Jewish. Moses, Jesus, Paul, Kafka, Freud, Einstein, Jonas Salk.

But in my view, our greatest impact has been the Jewish ideas that have been adopted by billions of people around the world.

Much of our morality and ethics is Jewish. Values that give meaning to our lives, like education and peace, are Jewish.

The idea that we must strive to leave the world better than we found it is a Jewish idea.

But is Jewish continuity still important today? Or are we a spent force?

The answer is up to each of us.  I strongly believe that as much as we’ve given, we have so much more to give to our community and to the world.

Now Hillel also said, if I am only for me, what am I? That means we have to care about everyone, not just our own family.

In fact, I don’t think you’re tricking yourself if you say, we’re all one big family, the human family. As I say, it all depends on how you define family.

In my case, for example, I worked with a dedicated team to build the Arab-Jewish Dialogue. Over time, and yes it took time, the Jews and Arabs in that group decided we were all part of the same family, just from different branches.

I feel the same way about my work with indigenous people. In fact, that work and more importantly those friendships have been among my most rewarding.

And once again, being Jewish wasn’t an impediment, as it might have been for millennia - in fact it was a gateway to expanding my horizons.

Hillel ended his famous three questions with, “if not now, when?”

There is no time like the present to ensure the continuity of Jewish life, even if the work is sometimes hard.

God told Abraham to be a father to his people.

We have a simpler job.

We are asked to do our part to keep the Jewish people alive, as a vital living people – for our neighbors, our children and ourselves.

We owe a duty to keep the torch of Jewish life lit for our ancestors, millions of whom gave their lives to keep it lit for us.

As my wife Hope says, L’dor v’dor. “From generation to generation.”

Thank you again. I am deeply grateful.

LARRY VICKAR'S INTRODUCTION OF HOWARD MORRY

Good evening.

The name of Sol Kanee is synonymous with altruistic commitment to service, to community, and to individual well-being. Sol’s passion and dedication to our community were truly inspiring and set an example for all of us to follow.

It is my honour to introduce to you a remarkable individual, and a close friend, who has dedicated much of his life to the betterment of our Jewish community and to the values that defined Mr. Kanee.

It is with great pleasure that I introduce to you to Howard Morry, the 2023 recipient of the Sol Kanee Distinguished Community Service Medal. Although, I suspect that Howard needs little introduction for many of you who are in this room tonight.

It’s always a great pleasure to speak about someone who has devoted so much time and energy to helping others. And this is especially true when that person has made such a difference in the lives of so many people.

Sol Kanee said that his greatest achievements were derived from service to both the Jewish community and the community at large, and Howard has approached his endeavors with the same philosophy throughout his lifetime of distinguished service at the local, national, and international levels.

Let’s begin with Howard’s commitment to building the local Jewish community, which if I recall correctly, he used to call “the Miracle on the Prairies”.

Howard served as the President of the Jewish Federation of Winnipeg and is a former two-time Chair of the Combined Jewish Appeal campaign, once (proudly) as co-chair with his incredible wife, Hope.

Howard was always looking for ways to ensure that we have a vital Jewish community. He knew how fragile and precious this community is. It was under his leadership that Federation established Grow Winnipeg, which gave an aging, shrinking community a roadmap to turn things around, and turn around we did.

Howard also chaired the Millennium Committee, which set out to reverse 15 straight years of declining campaigns, and to set us on the path we’re on today, raising over six million a year to support our partner agencies and ensure we all have a chance to participate in Jewish life, regardless of our circumstances.

Howard also helped to build the Winnipeg Jewish community through his work with organizations like The Jewish Foundation of Manitoba, the Shaarey Zedek Synagogue, the Jewish Heritage Centre, the Gray Academy of Jewish Education, the Chesed Shel Emes burial society and BB Camp.  

Howard was recognized on this very stage eleven years ago for his contributions to  the Jewish community with the Max and Mollie Shore Award, which Adam Levine was deservedly awarded tonight.

Howard has also been a tireless supporter of Israel.

He was on the Board and Executive of UIA Federations Canada and was given their Chai Award. He was one of the architects of the CIJA, the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs, which is the Canada’s advocate for Jewish interests.

Howard has been recognized for his leadership by State of Israel Bonds, the Jewish National Fund (JNF), and Haddassah-Wizo.

Howard was also the President of the Winnipeg Chapter of Canadian Friends of Hebrew University and chairman of its national New Leadership. Granted, that was a few years ago.

Howard and I are on the Global Board of Governors for Ben Gurion University of the Negev. I was honored to serve as co-chair at a national dinner put on by the BGU for Howard and Hope in 2019.

I could stop there, but then we would leave out Howard’s work in the community at large. Howard has worked with countless community organizations.

Just to name a few:

Howard was the President of a Rotary Club, which is near and dear to my heart.

Howard was the founder of the Canadian Association of Farm Advisors, a national organization that ensures our farmers get access to the advice they need.

Howard is one of the founders of the Arab-Jewish Dialogue, which I am proud to be a part of. The AJD, has been working for over 15 years to improve relations between the two communities and has been recognized nationally and locally for its efforts.

Howard is a big supporter of the University of Manitoba and he has been on the Executive of the University of Manitoba Business School Foundation, known as the Associates, for a number of years. Howard is also leading the national effort to fund a chair in Indigenous Law and Economic Reconciliation in the name of Phil Fontaine at Robson Hall School of Law.

Howard, along with his wife Hope, have been enthusiastic supporters of the Canadian Museum for Human Rights. Howard has been on the Board of the Friends of the CMHR for a number of years and was chair of the Manitoba Capital Campaign for the Museum.

Howard has also made a significant contribution to the advancement of aboriginal leadership in the Canadian business community. Howard has mentored numerous young aboriginal professionals and businesspeople across the country and has been a standard bearer for advancing economic reconciliation with the indigenous peoples of Canada.

Howard is committed to advancing leadership more broadly. The student leadership of the Asper School of Business recognized this commitment by naming their annual conference The Howard Morry Leadership Conference.

Howard's commitment to volunteerism and philanthropy is born from his immense pride in his Jewish identity and a deep celebration of Jewish peoplehood and the Jewish narrative throughout history. In receiving The Max and Mollie Shore Award in 2011, Howard shared his perspectives on Jewish life - that the world Jewish community has always punched above its weight - in business, the arts, science, and in other fields. For this, he believes, we should be proud. Jews have always persevered against all odds. Through faith, strong bonds, inner strength, and collective spirit, the Jewish community has survived adversity, and has successfully retained its culture and values – thanks to the contributions of people like Howard.

What has driven Howard’s community service is his passion and desire to make a difference, and that it is incumbent on each of us to do our part, working with other like-minded people, to change the world, or at least our part of it. Starting with how we interact with our children, our family, and our friends; how we perform in our careers; and how we choose to contribute to our communities - each of us can make a difference in people's lives, and partake in tikkun olam.

Howard’s kindness, compassion, and generosity have inspired others to follow in his footsteps, and his leadership has been instrumental in strengthening the Jewish community.

And Howard has not done any of this at the expense of his career and professional life.

Professionally, Howard is a respected lawyer who has been keen to give back to his profession. He was a Governor of the Canadian tax Foundation and President of the Canadian Association of Estate Planning Councils of Canada. He has been recognized by Best lawyers and Who’s Who. For almost a quarter-century his peers have scored him 100 percent in competence and integrity through Martindale Hubbell, the world’s oldest ranking service for lawyers.

Howard has chaired numerous national conferences for the Globe and Mail, Financial Post, Insight, Canadian Institute, and others; and was contributing editor to numerous legal, tax, and financial journals across Canada; he was given a regular column at the age of 18 in the late, lamented Winnipeg Tribune. He was even selected as a keynote speaker at the federal government's Prosperity Initiative.

Howard was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal in recognition of his volunteerism and professional accomplishments.

And in September the University of Manitoba will be awarding Howard its Distinguished Alumni Award for Community Service. Howard is proud to be following in the footsteps of his son Josh, who won the Outstanding Young Alumni award a couple of years ago.

Howard is surrounded and empowered by the love and support of his wife Hope - who could easily be standing here instead of Howard receiving the same award - and his incredible children Joshua and Samantha, who Howard and Hope are so rightfully proud of, and who I know are carrying his legacy forward.

Howard’s many years of service to the Jewish Community clearly demonstrates why he is this year's recipient of the Sol Kanee Distinguished Community Service Medal. He is a fixture in the Jewish community, and a true mensch.

I know that I speak for everyone here tonight when I say that we are deeply grateful for everything that Howard has done and continues to do for the Jewish community.

I cannot think of a more deserving candidate.

So without further ado, it is my great pleasure to present this year’s Sol Kanee Distinguished Community Service Medal to a true leader and visionary in the Jewish community.

Please join me in welcoming Howard and congratulating him for his incredible dedication and service to our community.