Accession Number

2013-5-2

Material Format

multiple media

Physical Description

10 cm of textual records and other material

Date

2011-2012

Scope and Content

Accession consists of records documenting the 100th anniversary celebration of Congregation Knesseth Israel. The records were compiled in an indexed binder by Edwin Goldstein, president of the synagogue. Included are newsclippings, press releases and advertisements; invitations and programs; a commemorative calendar; a volunteer t-shirt, a kippa and a gift bag; correspondence with the Ontario Trillium Foundation; information on a guided architectural walking tour of the area; an Israel Today DVD featuring the synagogue; the book "One Hundred Years at the Junction Shul" written by Neil Ross and Lorne Miller; and a DVD compilation featuring video and photographic highlights from the various anniversary events.

Administrative History

Congregation Knesseth Israel was established in 1911 at 56 Maria Street in the West end of Toronto. Early 20th century membership in the synagogue consisted mainly of new jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe, many of whom lived and worked in the Junction as artisans, peddlers, shop owners and scrap and metal collectors. Known as the Junction Shul, Knesseth Israel Synagogue was built with the labour and funds provided by the founding members and their families.

Orthodox services first began in 1913 and since the 1930s the synagogue has functioned without a rabbi, with services being led by a cantor or the congregants themselves. Some family names associated with this early period include: Alexandroff, Goldstein, Nickolaevsky, Kronis, Greenblatt, Usprich, Tanenbaum, and Naftalin.

Knesseth Israel is the oldest Toronto synagogue still in use as a synagogue today and is now cared for by the descendents of these founding families. Although members of the synagogue are now few (as the Jewish population of the Junction has waned greatly since the 1960s), the synagogue still performs High Holiday services for some 75-80 full members and 300 associate members.

Descriptive Notes

Physical description note: includes 1 text, 3 objects and 2 DVDs.

Subjects

Anniversaries

Synagogues

Name Access

Knesseth Israel (Toronto, Ont.)

Source

Archival Accessions

Accession Number

2013-9-1

Material Format

graphic material (electronic)

textual record

Physical Description

3 photographs (tiffs) : col.

1 folder of textual records

Date

2005-2012

Scope and Content

Accession consists of graphic material and a textual record documenting the Transnistria Survivor Association. Included are three photos: 1) Member Arnold Buxbaum standing in front of Memorial for Transnistria at Earl Bales Park; 2) Arnold Buxbaum and Joe Leinburd at UJA Foundation Event, 2011-12; 3) Hazkarah, 2005 at Sharei Shomayim Synagogue. There is also a speech by Arnold Buxbaum presented in 2011 at Sharei Shomayim Synagogue.

Custodial History

Originals were loaned for reproducing.

Administrative History

Founded in 1994, the Transnistria Survivors’ Association works to provide a voice for and raise awareness of a lesser known group of Holocaust survivors. Transnistria was the Romanian authorities’ name for the former Ukrainian region located between the Rivers Dniester and Bug. It was placed under Romanian administration following the German and Romanian conquest of Ukraine in the summer of 1941. Prior to the Second World War, Romania was home to the third largest Jewish population in Europe; but beginning with the Citizenship Revision Laws of 1938, the Jews of Romania were deprived their citizenship rights and became the targets of repressive antisemitic policies and laws. Neighbours turned on neighbours. Thousands of Jews were murdered in pogroms, either by Romanian or German troops, Nazi Einsatzgruppen, or the local population. In 1941, the Jews who remained alive in the Provinces of Bucovina and Bessarabia were deported to camps and ghettos in Transnistria. Thousands were jammed into freight trains while others were marched by foot. Many died along the way. Between 1941 and 1944, it is estimated that German and Romanian authorities, along with Ukrainian collaborators, murdered or caused the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Romanian and Ukrainian Jews in Transnistria. Some of those who survived these tragic circumstances, especially from Bucovina and Bessarabia, and made a new home in Toronto gathered together to lend each other support and to tell their largely unknown story of oppression and survival. The Transnistria Survivor’s Association organized yearly Hazkarah (memorial) services and its dedicated members continue to share their extraordinary stories of survival through speaking engagements at schools, colleges and synagogues. Past presidents include:

1. Felicia (Steigman) Carmelly

2.Osias Nadel

3.Etti Ziegler

4.Lou (Leizer) Hoffer

As of 2017, the current President is Joe Leinburd.

Subjects

Societies

Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)

Name Access

Transnistria Survivors Association

Buxbaum, Arnold

Leinburd, Joe

Hoffer, Lou

Source

Archival Accessions

• 
• 

Accession Number

2013-12-9

Material Format

textual record

Physical Description

1 cm of textual records

Date

2009-2012

Scope and Content

Accession consists of records documenting UJA Federation's Maot Chittin program in Cuba and a campaign event featuring Shimon Peres.

Use Conditions

UJA Federation meeting minutes and general correspondence are closed for 10 years from date of creation. Contracts and donor agreements are permanently closed.

Subjects

Presidents--Israel

Prime ministers--Israel

Name Access

Peres, Shimon, 1923-2016

Source

Archival Accessions

Accession Number

2014-7-5

Material Format

textual record

Physical Description

1 folder of textual records

Date

2013

Scope and Content

Accession consists of items gathered to comprise the time capsule commemorating the 60th anniversary of the Miles Nadal JCC. Documents include event programmes, ticket stubs, a timeline, a summary of the history of the Miles Nadal JCC, and several newspaper clippings.

Subjects

Anniversaries

Name Access

Miles Nadal Jewish Community Centre

Source

Archival Accessions

Accession Number

2014-10-3

Material Format

textual record

graphic material

Physical Description

40 cm textual records

ca. 50 photographs

Date

1940-2012

Scope and Content

Accession consists of records of Canadian Young Judaea. Records include correspondence, camp committee meeting minutes, camp committee and staff lists, the CYJ constitution, organizational newsletters, donation lists, flyers and camp reunion ephemera. Records also include clippings and reproductions from the Zionist Archives, and Camp Solelim photographs, as well as publications from other Jewish organizations.

Administrative History

Canadian Young Judaea was founded in 1909 as a Zionist movement for Canadian youth by members of the Herzl Zion Club. As a Zionist organization, Young Judaea continues to be committed to fostering a sense of Jewish identity and values in today's Jewish youth and to encouraging a lifelong commitment to Israel. In order to foster a closer connection to Israel, Canadian Young Judaea employs educational Shlichim from Israel who are posted to various Jewish communities throughout Canada and to offices at the national level in Toronto Young Judaea also operates several Zionist summer camps located in each region of Canada, and a summer leadership institute called Camp Biluim in Quebec. In addition to the social programme of the organization, Young Judaea also offers educational seminars and conferences.

Use Conditions

Partially closed. Researchers must receive permission from the OJA Director prior to accessing some of the records.

Descriptive Notes

Access restriction note: Files contain personal information of donors, campers, committee members and applicants for subsidies.

Subjects

Camps

Youth

Zionism

Name Access

Canadian Young Judaea

Source

Archival Accessions

Accession Number

2015-3-1

Material Format

textual record

graphic material

Physical Description

30 cm of textual records

7 photographs : b&w ; 23 x 36 cm or smaller

Date

1928-2014

Scope and Content

Accession consists of records documenting the life and cantorial career of Rev. Alexander Steinberg, and to a lesser extent his son, Ben Steinberg. Included are photographs of Cantor Steinberg, fellow cantors and the Shaarei Shomayim cheder class; Cantor Steinberg's scrapbook; hand-copied solo and choral music books; correspondence; and materials relating to Ben Steinberg's cantata Echoes of Children memorializing the children who perished in the Holocaust.

Students identified in Cheder class include: Avrom Buckstein, Arnie Morrison, Reuvein Landsberg, Jack Geller, David Satok, Norman Rasky, Leon Gasner, Gerry Benson, Harvey Kofman, Leo Snowbell, Ben Steinberg, Earl Farber, Albert Strauss, Jerome Levine, and Saul Goodman (sitting third from the front against the wall).

Administrative History

Chazzan Alexander Steinberg was born Eliyahu Steinberg in Zhitomeir, Ukraine in 1893 to Chava and Chaim Steinberg. His father was the owner and operator of a lumber yard and, as a devout Jew, brought his son Eliyahu regularly to the synagogue where he developed a love of chazzanut and, in the then traditional apprenticeship method, studied the skills which would lead him eventually to a lifetime career in the music of the traditional synagogue.

At the age of 15 he emigrated to Winnipeg, Canada and worked in a men's clothing store until he could find employment as a cantor. He began his professional life as a visiting cantor in the 1920s, travelling to smaller communities in Alberta and Saskatchewan, officiating at services for Shabbat, High Holy Days and the Fesitvals, as well as presenting concerts of Hebrew and Yiddish song.

By the 1930s, he officiated regularly at the Atereth Yisrael Synagogue in Winnipeg and appeared as a concert cantor throughout the western Canadian provices (Lethbridge, Regina, Prince Albert, Edenbridge, Melville, Edmonton, Calgary, etc.) as well as Ontario (London, Hamilton, Kitchener, Sarnia, Ottawa, Fort William and Toronto) and as far away as St. Louis, Missouri and Detroit, Michigan.

He was appointed cantor of Atereth Yisrael Congregation of Winnipeg in 1930 and maintained a relationship with that Shul throughout his time in Toronto, visiting regularly to daven and present concerts.

After the death of his first wife, he married Polly Shapiro in 1928, and in 1933 he moved his family including four children (three, Sam, Ida and Laurie from his previous marriage) to Toronto, where for a time he served as cantor at Goel Tzedec Congregation.

In Toronto, Cantor Steinberg became renowned for his beautiful tenor voice and his knowledge of the liturgy. He was much sought after and officiated througout the Toronto area in synagogues such as the Hebrew Men of England, Ostrovtzer, Beth Jacob, Kiever, Goel Tzedec, Palmerston, Anshei Minsk and Lubavitcher. All this activity brought him to the attention of various synagogues in the United States as well and he travelled to Detroit and Rochester on several occasions.

In 1941, he was appointed Cantor at Shaarei Shomayim on St. Clair Ave., a congreation he served until 1950. He continued to serve outlying congregations in Hamilton, London and Sarnia until he was invited in 1953 to establish the King David Congregation in Toronto, to serve the unaffiliated during the High Holy Days. His cantorial career came to an end in April 1960 when he experienced a heart attach in London, Ontario while leading that community's Pesach service. He died at home in Toronto two days before Yom Kippur in 1960.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Benjamin Steinberg is a composer, conductor, organist, and teacher. He was born in Winnipeg on 22 January 1930 and received his Bachelor of Music from the University of Toronto in 1961. He and his wife Mildred have two children.

A soloist at age 8 in the synagogue choir conducted by his father, Cantor Alexander Steinberg, he began conducting choirs himself at age 12. At the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto from 1948-1951 and 1957-1960 he studied composition with John Weinzweig, piano with Samuel Dolin, and voice with Weldon Kilburn. After teaching from 1953-1958 in public schools in the Toronto area and studying music education at the University of Toronto, he served from 1961-1964 as head of the music department at Winston Churchill Collegiate Institute and from 1961-1964 and in the same capacity at Forest Hill Collegiate Institute from 1964-1986. He was director of school music (1950-1960) and music director (1960-1969) at Holy Blossom Temple, and in 1970 he became music director at Temple Sinai. His method for youth choirs, "Together Do They Sing" (New York 1961), was commissioned and published by the Union of American Hebrew Congregations.

Steinberg's music includes five sacred services (four published - 1963, 1969, 1969, and 1990 - by Transcontinental Music); works for choir and/or soloist and organ or orchestra (some published by Transcontinental Music and Israeli Music Publications); The Vision of Isaiah (1970) for tenor, choir, and organ or instrumental ensemble; Yerushalayim (1973) for soprano, choir, and orchestra; Echoes of Children (1979), a cantata for soloist, narrator, chorus, and orchestra (which won the International Gabriel Award and has twice been televised on PBS); and instrumental works including a suite for flute and string trio based on Israeli folksongs. Steinberg was invited by the city of Jerusalem to be an artist-in-residence in 1978 and 1980; he received the Kavod (Honour) Award of the Cantor's Assembly in 1983, and that same year received a composer's award from the American Harp Society for his Suite for Flute, Viola and Harp (1981, commissioned by Suzanne Shulman). A number of temples, synagogues, and congregations in the USA commissioned some 18 works from Steinberg between 1980 and 1991. He has also received commissions from Paul Brodie (Suite Sephardi 1980), the Chamber Players of Toronto (Suite for String Orchestra 1983), and Lawrence Cherney (Invocations 1990). Baritone Richard Allen recorded several of Steinberg's works on the cassette A Ben Steinberg Concert. (ca 1989, Transcontinental unnumbered).

Of Steinberg's music Michael Isaacson wrote, 'While conservative, pragmatic and always well-mannered, it is also gratefully mindful of its tradition in a deeply lyrical way' (Journal of Synagogue Music, June 1973). Steinberg has presented Jewish music on the CBC, has published articles on it, and has given many lecture-recitals on it in Australia, Canada, Japan, and the USA. He is a contributor to EMC, a member of the CLComp, and an associate of the Canadian Music Centre.

Descriptive Notes

Biographical Note: Further biographical information on Ben Steinberg is available with the accession record.

Subjects

Cantors (Judaism)

Families

Heder

Name Access

Steinberg, Alexander, 1893-1960

Steinberg, Ben

Source

Archival Accessions

Accession Number

2015-1-6

Material Format

textual record

Physical Description

11 m of textual records

Date

[195-]-2012

Scope and Content

Accession consists of United Restitution Organization (URO), Toronto Office case files for the following funds: Hardship Fund; Hardship Fund, Pre-1965 Austrian; German Social Security (EB); German Social Security (DE); Article 2 Fund; Ghetto Lodz; and the immidiate post-Second World War Wiedergutmachung reparations. There is also a small amount of general operational files.

Custodial History

These records were left in the URO office following the departure of the URO staff person. They were boxed and moved by archives staff.

Administrative History

In Canada, the United Restitution Organization (URO) was founded in 1953 under the aegis of the Canadian Jewish Congress. The funds advanced by the Claims Conference were administered by the CJC which also gave support by providing the URO with office space and clerical staff. Offices were set up in Montreal, Toronto, Winnipeg and Vancouver. The Winnipeg and Vancouver offices closed in the 1970s and the Montreal office remained open until 2002, after which time the active cases were sent to the Toronto office. The Toronto office officially closed on April 1, 2007. There was one case worker, however, who contintued to tend to any active claims that were left. Her position was transfered to Jewish Family and Child in 2013. The URO dealt with a variety of different types of claims. The first and largest were the BEG cases (Bundesentschaedigungsgesetz), which translates as Federal Indemnification Law for the Compensation of Victims of National Socialist Persecution. This program provided compensation for individuals persecuted for political, racial, religious, or ideological reasons who suffered long-term damage to their health, imprisonment, death of family members, loss of property, reduced income, or reduced professional advancement. The other two major programs or cases covered by the URO were the Hardship Fund and Article 2. The Hardship Fund was established during the 1960s and was open to Jews who emigrated from the former Soviet Union who were not eligible for compensation under the BEG program. The Article 2 program, in turn, arose during the 1990s, after the unification of the German government. It is still operating today and is open to Jewish victims of Nazi persecution who met a certain critiera, and those who are eligible, are provided with a pension paid out in installments every three months each year.

Use Conditions

Closed. Researchers must receive permission from the OJA Director prior to accessing the records.

Subjects

Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)

Nonprofit organizations

Name Access

United Restitution Organization (Toronto, Ont.)

Source

Archival Accessions

Accession Number

2015-8-10

Material Format

textual record

graphic material (electronic)

moving images (electronic)

Physical Description

10 cm of textual records

2240 photographs (jpg and gif)

8 moving images

Date

1944-2015 (predominent 2008-2015)

Scope and Content

Accession consists of records related to the activities of Alex Levin, a Jewish war veteran and Holocaust survivor. Records include letters written to Levin from school children following various speaking engagements; interviews with Crestwood School, CHAT, and Netivot Hatorah; a recording of the Saluting Our Italian Heroes commemorative event; recordings of Remembrance Day ceremonies hosted by the Canadian Jewish War Veterans (Toronto Post); and photographs documenting events attended by Levin including Holocaust remembrance events, Yom Hashoah, Remembrance Day ceremonies, March of the Living, Miracle Dinners and Proms, Azrieli Foundation events including the launch of Levin's book "Under the Yellow and Red Stars", school visits, JWV programs with Sunnybrook veterans, portraits of Levin through the years and various scanned images of Levin's family.

Administrative History

Alex Levin (1932-2016) was born in 1932 in Rokitno, Poland. In 1941, the Germans invaded Rokitno and established a ghetto and formed a Judenrat to carry out their orders. In 1942, the Ghetto was evacuated and the Jews were brought to the town's marketplace to be transported by train to be killed. Levin was ten years old when he escaped into the nearby forest with his brother Samuel where he lived for 18 months in a hole in the ground. He was twelve when he emerged from hiding to find that his parents and youngest brother Moishe had been murdered. In 1944, he joined the Soviet forces as a messenger boy. After the war, he was sent to the USSR and enrolled in cadet school, remaining in the Soviet army until forced out for being Jewish in the 1970s. An engineer by training, Alex came to Canada in 1975 via Austria and Italy, and now lives in Toronto where he regularly speaks about his experiences in the Holocaust.

Subjects

Education

Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)

World War, 1939-1945

Name Access

Levin, Alex, 1932-2016

Source

Archival Accessions

Accession Number

2015-7-6

Material Format

textual record

Physical Description

1 folder of textual records

Date

[2010?]-[2015?]

Scope and Content

Accession consists of thank you cards from schools where Alex was a speaker, sharing his story of Holocaust survival.

Administrative History

Alex Levin (1932-2016) was born Joshua Levin in 1932 in Rokitno, Poland. (He was also known as Yehoshua and Shike.) Rokitno was occupied in 1941 by Nazi Germany and Alex escaped the Rokitno ghetto with his brother in 1942, hiding in the woods for eighteen months. Soviet troops found him in January of 1944 and invited him to join the 13th Army as a field hospital unit helper. Because his Yiddish nickname was unfamiliar (Shike, from his Hebrew name, Yehoshua), they called him Shura or Shurik, diminutive forms of Alexander, which became his formal name. He became an officer in the USSR and an engineer. He immigrated to Canada in 1975 and brought his family to join him in 1980.

Subjects

Education

Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)

World War, 1939-1945

Antisemitism

Name Access

Levin, Alex, 1932-

Source

Archival Accessions

Accession Number

2015-8-7

Material Format

multiple media

Physical Description

ca. 70 cm of textual records and other material

Date

1928-2013

Scope and Content

Accession consists of material documenting the activities of Ben Zion Shapiro and his family. The bulk of the records document the Shapiro family's involvement in Young Judaea. The Young Judaea material includes: yearbooks, photographs, correspondence, meeting minutes, event programmes, song books, newsletters, and two Camp Biluim flags made by Bunny Shapiro. One flag contains Camp Biluim's crest (1951) and the other one was created for Camp Biluim's colour war and contains the text "We will try and we will succeed Camp Biluim" (1954?). Also included is a VHS tape containing a copy of the Toronto Zionist Council's video about Camp Shalom (1991?). Of note are minute books maintained by Roy Shapiro for the Toronto Young Judaea Administrative Board (1928-1934) and for the Leadership Club (1940-1948).

Accession also contains material relating to Roy and Ben Zion's involvement with the following organizations: the Coordinated Services to the Jewish Elderly (Circle of Care), B'nai Israel Beth David Congregation, Beth Tzedec's Mispacha Program, Beth Tzedec's Israel Action Program, Congregation Beth Haminyan, and Holy Blossom Temple's Department for Jewish Living. These records include, minutes, correspondence, newsletters and publications, evaluation reports and other reports. Also included is a demographic report entitied "Rapid Growth and Transformation: Demographic Challenges Facing the Jewish Community of Greater Toronto" (1995), material from a conference at the University of Toronto on the university's partnership with Israel, CHAT alumni directories, and a CHAT book entitled, "Voices: Jewish Teens of the 90's". Of note are buttons, photographs, reports and correspondence documenting Bunny and Ben Zion's trip to the Soviet Union on behalf of the CJC's Committee for Soviet Jewry.

Finally accession includes material documenting family activities of the Shapiro and Sherman family. Included is a transcript of Bessie Sherman telling her life story (1978), haggadot, PowerPoint presentations created by Ben Zion for his grandchildren and for a family reunion outlining the family history of his family and Bunny's family. There is also a video of Ben Zion presenting his PowerPoint at the Michalski / Cohen family reunion. Also included are family films and videos containing footage of Bunny and Ben Zion's wedding and honeymoon, Camp Biluim, Young Judaea events, Bunny on Machon, family wedding anniversaries and birthday parties, trips to Israel, the United States, and Europe as well as footage of the Cousin's Club. Also included is a VHS tape containing a recorded segment from CityPulse News featuring the family's Pesach festivities in 1995.

Photo identification: Back row, left to right: Ray Markus, Michelle Landsberg, Menachem ?, Frank Narrol. Front row, left to right: Gilda Mitchell, Bunny Shapiro, BenZion Shapiro, Malka Rabinowitz.

Administrative History

Ben Zion Shapiro was born in Toronto in 1931 to Roy Shapiro and Beck Shapiro (née Cohen). He has a younger brother, Morden "Mort" Shapiro (b. 1940). His father worked as an office manager at Rotstein Furniture and Maple Leaf Cleaners, and his mother worked as a legal secretary until marriage. Roy was active in a number of organizations including: Young Judaea, Sons of Jacob Society, Toronto Camera Club, a founding member of Beth David Synagogue, Coordinated Services to the Jewish Elderly (Circle of Care) and president of the Association of Jewish Seniors. Beck was active in Young Judaea and Pioneer Women (president of the Golda Meir Club).

Ben Zion received a master of social work degree from the University of Toronto and attended the Jewish Agency Institute for Youth Leaders from Abroad in Jerusalem (1951-1952). He has worked for a number of organizations throughout his career, including: Young Judaea (he was director of both Camp Shalom [1962-1969] and Camp Biluim [1954-1956]), B'nai Brith Youth Organization, University Settlement, St. Christopher's House and director of the Novomeysky Centre in Jerusalem (1957-1961). He was also professor and associate dean of social work at the University of Toronto and three times visiting professor at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.

Ben married Bunny "Bernice" Shaprio in 1955. Bunny was born in 1934 in Noranda, Quebec to Irving Sherman and Bessie (née Consky). Bunny attended public school in Noranda, Noranda High School and Forest Hill Collegiate in Toronto, University of Toronto (BA), the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (M.Ed. in special education), and the Jewish Agency Institute for Jewish Leaders from Abroad (1952-1953).

Bunny graduated from the first Camp Biluim Institute for leadership training in 1951 and worked with Ben Zion at Camp Shalom as Camp Mother in 1962 and from 1964-1969. She also worked at Camp Biluim from 1955-1956. In 1983, Bunny and Ben Zion went to the Soviet Union to visit refuseniks on behalf of the Soviet Jewry Committee of the Canadian Jewish Congress, Ontario Region.

Bunny and Ben have two children: Ayala and Ilan. Since Ben Zion's retirement in 1996, he and Bunny have been living in Jerusalem for half of each year. In 2015, they moved full-time to Jerusalem.

Use Conditions

Copyright is held by the Ontario Jewish Archives. Please contact the Archives to obtain permission prior to use.

Descriptive Notes

Physical description note: includes ca. 300 photographs (256 tiff), 2 PowerPoint presentations, 1 textual record (doc), 4 buttons, 2 flags, 5 VHS tapes, and 18 film reels (8 mm).

Subjects

Camps

Youth

Zionism

Name Access

Shapiro, Ben Zion, 1931-

Source

Archival Accessions

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

Accession Number

2015-10-2

Material Format

moving images

Physical Description

4 DVD's (ca. 4 hours)

Date

2005-2010

Scope and Content

Accession consists of video recordings of Transnistria Survivors' Association's annual commemmoration ceremonies. Included are six DVD recordings of the annual Transnistria Survivors Association Shoa commemoration ceremonies from 2005, 2008, 2009 and 2010.

Administrative History

Founded in 1994, the Transnistria Survivors’ Association works to provide a voice for and raise awareness of a lesser known group of Holocaust survivors. Transnistria was the Romanian authorities’ name for the former Ukrainian region located between the Rivers Dniester and Bug. It was placed under Romanian administration following the German and Romanian conquest of Ukraine in the summer of 1941. Prior to the Second World War, Romania was home to the third largest Jewish population in Europe; but beginning with the Citizenship Revision Laws of 1938, the Jews of Romania were deprived their citizenship rights and became the targets of repressive antisemitic policies and laws. Neighbours turned on neighbours. Thousands of Jews were murdered in pogroms, either by Romanian or German troops, Nazi Einsatzgruppen, or the local population. In 1941, the Jews who remained alive in the Provinces of Bucovina and Bessarabia were deported to camps and ghettos in Transnistria. Thousands were jammed into freight trains while others were marched by foot. Many died along the way. Between 1941 and 1944, it is estimated that German and Romanian authorities, along with Ukrainian collaborators, murdered or caused the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Romanian and Ukrainian Jews in Transnistria. Some of those who survived these tragic circumstances, especially from Bucovina and Bessarabia, and made a new home in Toronto gathered together to lend each other support and to tell their largely unknown story of oppression and survival. The Transnistria Survivor’s Association organized yearly Hazkarah (memorial) services and its dedicated members continue to share their extraordinary stories of survival through speaking engagements at schools, colleges and synagogues. Past presidents include:

1. Felicia (Steigman) Carmelly

2.Osias Nadel

3.Etti Ziegler

4.Lou (Leizer) Hoffer

As of 2017, the current president is Joe Leinburd.

Subjects

Anniversaries

Societies

Name Access

Transnistria Survivors' Association (Toronto, Ont.)

Hoffer, Lou

Source

Archival Accessions

Accession Number

2016-2-13

Material Format

textual record

Physical Description

1 folder of textual records

Date

2016

Scope and Content

Accession consists of a typed account of Lou Hoffer's experience as a Holocaust survivor in Transnistria. The account was written on the occassion of the establishment by Lou and Magda Hoffer of the Transnistria Forest Grove in Jerusalem through the Jewish National Fund (JNF). Also included is a printout of a photo of Lou and Magda alongside a brief description of the JNF gift and the original certificate presented to the Hoffers from JNF.

Subjects

Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)

Name Access

Hoffer, Lou

Hoffer, Magda

Source

Archival Accessions

Accession Number

2016-4-12

Material Format

moving images

Physical Description

1 DVD (55 min.)

Date

2013

Scope and Content

Accession consists of one DVD copy of a film David Nimmo created regarding the life and art of his late wife, Lea Vogel-Nimmo.

Administrative History

Lea Vogel-Nimmo was born in Rozniatov, Poland in 1937. She was saved from the Holocaust as one of the "Children of Tehran" and grew up in Israel. She became an artist and travelled to various countries to study and practice art, including, Florence, Amsterdam, Jamaica and the United States. She married Dr. David Nimmo in 1974 and later moved to Toronto, Canada. She passed away in March 2012 after living with cancer for 21 years.

Use Conditions

Copyright is not held by the Ontario Jewish Archives. It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain permission prior to use.

Subjects

Arts

Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)

Women

Name Access

Vogel-Nimmo, Lea, 1937-2012

Source

Archival Accessions

Accession Number

2015-3-5

Material Format

textual record

Physical Description

1 folder of textual records

Date

2013-2015

Scope and Content

Accession consists of textual records documenting the history of the Toronto Hebrew Memorial Parks (THMP) and Sidney Freedman's role as founder. Included are writings created by Sid Freedman reflecting on mixed burial issues and the history of THMP (this writing accompanies audio recordings Freedman had created on this topic in 1997). Also included is correspondence between Freedman and Bill Draimin as well as a copy of Freedman's farewell letter to THMP's Board.

Use Conditions

Closed. Researchers must receive permission from the OJA Director and donor prior to accessing the records.

Descriptive Notes

Related material note: AC 237-240

Subjects

Cemeteries

Name Access

Toronto Hebrew Memorial Parks

Places

Toronto (Ont.)

Source

Archival Accessions

Accession Number

2017-1-24

Material Format

moving images (electronic)

Physical Description

1 MP4 video (8 min., 58 sec.) : col. , sd.

Date

27 Nov. 2016

Scope and Content

Accession consists of one MP4 video file containing a Toronto Hebrew Memorial Parks tribute video to Sidney Freedman. It was produced by the Heritage Professionals.

Subjects

Cemeteries

Name Access

Freedman, Sidney

Source

Archival Accessions

Accession Number

2017-2-23

Material Format

textual record

graphic material

Physical Description

1 folder of textual records

5 photographs

Date

[ca. 2000]-2016

Scope and Content

Accession consists of textual and graphic material documenting Lou Hoffer's involvement with the Transnistria Survivors' Association and the Neuberger Holocaust Education Centre. Included are photographs of Lou with student groups at OISE and Havergal college, an image of Lou lighting a candle with a bar mitzvah student as part of the Neuberger Holocaust Education Centre's Bar/Bat Mitzvah Project of Remembrance. Accession also includes a flyer, newspaperclippings and thank you cards.

Administrative History

Lou (Leizer) Hoffer is a Holocaust survivor who is a past president of the Transnistria Holocaust Survivors' Association and was a speaker with the Neuberger Holocaust Education Centre in Toronto.

Lou was born in 1927 in Vijnitz, Northern Bucovina, Romania to David and Chaya Sure Drassinover Hoffer. During the Second World War, Lou and his family was deported (along with all the Jewish people in his town) to the death camps of Transnistria (a territory in Ukraine). He was liberated in 1944.

After the war, Lou, his parents and his younger brother, Joe, wandered through various displaced persons camps in Europe. They eventually immigrated to Canada in March 1948 on the ship Nea Helas. He married Madga (nee Pressburger) in 1959. Together they had three sons and one daughter.

Use Conditions

Copyright is held by the Ontario Jewish Archives. Please contact the Archives to obtain permission prior to use.

Subjects

Societies

Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)

Name Access

Hoffer, Lou

Transnistria Survivors' Association (Toronto, Ont.)

Source

Archival Accessions

• 
• 

Accession Number

2017-6-1

Material Format

multiple media

Physical Description

95 cm of textual records

42 photographs : b&w and col. ; 9 x 13 cm and 10 x 15 cm

5 audiocassettes

Date

1974-2016

Scope and Content

Accession consists of the records documenting Nathan Leipciger's role as the Chairman of the Holocaust Remembrace Committee, as well as his affiliation with other Holocaust commemoration organizations in Poland and Toronto. Organizations documented in this collection include: the Canadian Jewish Congress Holocaust Remembrance Committee and its Education Sub-Committee, the March of the Living, Yad Vashem, the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., the State Museum of Auschwitz-Birkenau, the International Council to the Museum of Auschwitz-Birkenau, the Christian-Jewish Dialogue of Toronto, the Canadian Council of Christians and Jews, the Board of Education of North York, and the Holocaust Memorial and Education Centre (now Neuberger). Events documented include Yom HaShoah programs, the Canadian Gathering of Holocaust Survivors and Their Children, and Holocaust Education Week. Records include Holocaust Remembrance Committee meeting minutes, correspondence (including correspondence between Mr. Leipciger and the director of the museum at Auschwitz), programming material, curriculum development material, event flyers, newsclippings, synagogue newsletters featuring published memoirs by Mr. Leipciger. Also included are architectural drawings of the Holocaust Memorial and Education Centre (now Neuberger), one copy of a small book entitled, "60 Days for 6 Million," published by Tribe UK, and five audiocasettes of recordings from the 22nd International Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies conference on the topic of the shared history of Poles and Jews (August 2002, Toronto, Ont.).

Administrative History

Nate Leipciger was born in Chorzów, Poland, in 1928. He survived the Sosnowiec Ghetto and the camps of Auschwitz-Birkenau, Funfteichen, GrossRosen, Flossenberg, Leonberg, and Dachau. Nate and his father were liberated in May 1945, and immigrated to Canada in 1948. In Toronto Nate attended high school and eventually obtained a university degree in engineering. He later established an engineering firm with several partners. In 1982, Nate chaired the Toronto Holocaust Remembrance Committee, later becoming an executive member of the Canadian Jewish Congress National Holocaust Remembrance Committee. Nate was a member of the International Council to the Museum of Auschwitz-Birkenau for fifteen years and has been an educator on March of the Living trips to Poland and Israel for fifteen years. In 2015, The Azrieli Foundation published Nate's 280-page memoir "The Weight of Freedom" as part of their series of Holocaust memoirs by survivors in Canada. In 2016, Mr. Leipciger guided Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on a tour of Auschwitz-Birkenau.

Descriptive Notes

General: Contains photographs of the Holocaust, some of which may be disturbing.

Subjects

Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)

Name Access

Leipciger, Nate, 1928-

Places

Poland

Toronto, Ont.

Source

Archival Accessions

Accession Number

2018-3-6

Material Format

graphic material

textual record

Physical Description

87 photographs : col. ; 15 x 10 cm

1 folder of textual records

Date

2010-2018

Scope and Content

Accession consists of various photos and commemorative books documenting the Tommorow Campaign's L'Chaim celebrations, Holocaust Education Week (2011), the openining of the Joseph & Wolf JCC (2012) and the memorial service program and condolence book created for Barry and Honey Sherman. Included are two photo albums of UJA Federation of Greater Toronto's Tommorow Campaign L'Chaim celebrations honouring Sarah and Chaim Neuberger in 2010 and the Gottdenker Family in 2011. Also included are photos of the 31st Annual Holocaust Education Week on Accountability: 50 years since the Eichmann Trial including the opening night program held on 1 Nov. 2011 at Holy Blossom Temple with historian Deborah E. Lipstadt; a panel discussion on the behavior of German business leaders with Professors Peter Francis Hayes, Doris Bergen and Michael R. Marrus held at the University of Toronto's Munk School for Global Affairs on 3 Nov. 2011; and the closing program and Kristallnacht commemoration with Tami Raveh Hausner, at Beth Tzedec Synagogue, 9 Nov. 2011.

Also included is a commemorative program book in celebration of the grand opening of the Joseph & Wolf Lebovic Jewish Community Campus Phase II on October 14, 2012 and a program from the memorial service for Barry and Honey Sherman (12 Dec. 2017) along with a book of condolences and photos in loving memory of Honey and Barry Sherman.

Custodial History

Photo albums and grand opening commemorative program book were donated by Dara Solomon, Executive Director of the Holocaust Centre and the Ontario Jewish Archives.

Condolence book in memory of Honey and Barry Sherman was donated by Natalie Walden.

Memorial service program transferred by Dara Solomon, Executive Director, Ontario Jewish Archives

Use Conditions

Copyright is held by the Ontario Jewish Archives. Please contact the Archives to obtain permission prior to use.

Subjects

Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)

Name Access

Sokolsky, Ted

Wolfe, Elizabeth

Sherman, Barry

Sherman, Honey

Goldfarb, Mira

Hayes, Peter F. (Peter Francis), 1947-

Bergen, Doris L.

Marrus, Michael R., 1941-

Lipstadt, Deborah E.

Hausner, Tami Raveh

Places

Toronto (Ont.)

Source

Archival Accessions

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

Accession Number

2018-6-24

Material Format

multiple media

Physical Description

90 cm of textual records and graphic material

5 architectural drawings

1 VHS : col. ; 33:50 min.

1 Hi8 video cassette

Date

[198-]-2011

Scope and Content

Accession consists of records documenting the operations of the Knesseth Israel Synagogue, including the preparations for the 100th anniversary celebrations in 2011. Records include meeting minutes for the Davening Committee, Fundraising Committee, Media Committee, Archives Committee, Book Committee, and the Board of Directors; membership lists; programming materials; notices for meetings and services; records related to the repair and restoration of the synagogue in the late 1980s including five architectural drawings of the synagogue showing required restorative work; general correspondence; a small amount of financial materials; planning records, research materials and publicity records related to the 100th celebrations; and a photo album and VHS recording of the provincial heritage plaquing of the synagogue in 2001. The video features remarks by Edwin Goldstein and Joey Tanenbaum as well as a short historical lecture by Dr. Stephen Speisman.

Custodial History

Records were housed in a storage locker belonging to the synagogue.

Subjects

Synagogues

Anniversaries

Name Access

Congregation Knesseth Israel (Toronto, Ont.)

Places

West Toronto Junction (Toronto, Ont.)

Source

Archival Accessions

Accession Number

2019-1-4

Material Format

textual record

Physical Description

ca. 2 cm of textual records

1 textual record (docx)

Date

2017-2019

Scope and Content

Accession consists of textual records documenting the history of the Toronto Hebrew Memorial Parks (THMP) and Sidney Freedman's role as founder. Included are: printouts of email correspondence that touch on issues of interfaith burial; funding, specifically the Sidney Freedman Endowment Fund; and THMP's relationship to UJA Federation of Greater Toronto. There is also a short version of the speech Sidney delivered on the occassion of a tribute dinner in 2016.

Administrative History

Sidney Freedman was born in 1928 in Ivansk (Iwanska) Poland. In 1929 the family of eight immigrated to Canada, first to Winnipeg, and then in 1933 to Toronto. He put himself through law school by working in construction jobs and opened a law firm after graduation. He later became president of Temple Sinai and became interested in the operation of cemeteries. In 1970 he purchased the land that would become Pardes Shalom Cemetery and later founded the Toronto Hebrew Memorial Parks.

Use Conditions

Closed. Researchers must receive permission from the OJA Director prior to accessing the records.

Subjects

Cemeteries

Interfaith marriage

Name Access

Beit Olam (Toronto, Ont.)

Pardes Chaim (Toronto, Ont.)

Toronto Hebrew Memorial Parks

UJA Federation of Greater Toronto

Places

Toronto (Ont.)

Source

Archival Accessions

Accession Number

2019-2-7

Material Format

textual record (electronic)

textual record

Physical Description

8 textual records (electronic)

1 folder

Date

2017-2018

Scope and Content

Accession consists of material collected and/or created by Sidney Freedman. The accession includes four hard copy records and eight records in electronic format. The hard copy records include a memoir of Ivansk Poland around the time of his birth, a visit to Poland and Ivansk in 2006, and an essay titled "The Book of Job and Related Matters." There is also a copy of the The Funeral Chronicle with an article by Mr. Freedman. The electronic records include Mr. Freedman's speech at the dedication of Pardes Shalom Cemetery, and essays/stories titled "Ecrite Intimes," "Holocaust Memorials," "Hungarian Rhapsody," "Israel and Palestinians," "O Canada," "Pride and Celebrity," and "The Enduring Hatred."

Custodial History

The donor emailed the eight records in electronic records to an OJA archivist in February 2019; he mailed the hard copies shortly thereafter to the same archivist shortly thereafter.

Administrative History

Sidney Freedman was born in 1928 in Ivansk (Iwanska) Poland. In 1929 the family of eight immigrated to Canada, first to Winnipeg, and then in 1933 to Toronto. He put himself through law school by working in construction jobs and opened a law firm after graduation. He later became president of Temple Sinai and became interested in the operation of cemeteries. In 1970 he purchased the land that would become Pardes Shalom Cemetery and later founded the Toronto Hebrew Memorial Parks.

Descriptive Notes

Scope: Regarding the speech he made at the Pardes Shalom dedication, the donor noted: "Some of the comments I made at that time were adopted as a legend in THMP's promotional material. In reading it however I see how I schmaltzed up the audience with gratitude to the number of institutions and people who really didn't deserve it. The story about our priorities as to number one of first paying back invested monies to buy land etc. was completely false. In fact the only contribution came later as the archives will show when in serving the land a commercial loan from the predecessor to federation came up with something like $350,000 in increments which got paid back at 10% interest cumulatively and retired on five years. On that basis the speech I gave was feel-good but not one that was at all accurate in terms of who assisted in establishing the cemetery."

Subjects

Authors

Cemeteries

Essays

Name Access

Freedman, Sidney

Places

Toronto (Ont.)

Source

Archival Accessions

Part Of

David Pinkus fonds

Level

Fonds

Fonds

138

Material Format

textual record

graphic material

graphic material (electronic)

architectural drawing

philatelic record

sound recording

cartographic material

object

Date

1854-2021

Physical Description

ca. 2.4 m of textual records

ca. 600 photographs : b&w and col. (ca. 90 negatives); 30 x 35 cm or smaller

other material

Admin History/Bio

David Pinkus (1924-2021) was born on May 11, 1924, at the Toronto General Hospital to Isadore Pinkus (1887-1947) and Molly (Mollie) Pinkus (née Parelstein) (1892-1990). Isadore was born in Kiev Gubernia of the Russian Empire; Molly was born in Podolia Gubernia of the Russian Empire and later moved to Ukraine with her family. Isadore and Molly met and married in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in 1910 and moved to Toronto in 1911. The Pinkus family settled in Kensington Market in around 1914 and was one of the first Jewish settlers to the Kensington neighbourhood. David spent his entire life living in the Kensington Market area. He lived on 83 Huron Street until 1927 when the Pinkus family moved to 34 Nassau Street, which has been the house of the Pinkus family ever since. David had two siblings: brother Max and sister Goldie.

In his childhood, David attended the Brunswick Talmud Torah daily and learned Hebrew. He had his bar mitzvah at the Kiever Shul. David attended William Houston School until 1930 and Ryerson Public School until grade eight. Later, he attended Harbord School for high school and was also involved with sports at Harbord Collegiate and YMHA. In 1947, David obtained his Bachelor of Applied Science degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Toronto. After graduation, he worked at Goodyear for one year and returned to the University of Toronto as an instructor of engineering drawing and machine design. Later, he worked at various places such as Canadian Industries Limited in Maitland, Toronto Iron Works, and Avro Aircraft Limited.

David’s father, Isadore, was one of the founders of the Kiever Synagogue. David’s involvement with the Kiever Synagogue started in 1947, following Isadore’s death. David served as president and held positions on the executive of the Kiever Shul and played a principal role in the restoration of the shul. He also served on Toronto’s Board of Health as well as the boards of the Toronto General Hospital, Toronto Western Hospital, and St. Christopher House. In addition, David was an active community leader and local historian. He did genealogical research for many Toronto Jewish families. David had been recognized by the National Jewish Federation of North America as a Jewish community hero in 2011. He passed away on May 6, 2021.

Custodial History

Records received after the death of David Pinkus through Joseph Solomon, the executor of David Pinkus’ estate. Records have been selected by archivists following a site visit at David’s home at 34 Nassau Street, Toronto.

Scope and Content

Fonds consists of textual records, graphic material, sound recordings, architectural drawings, artifacts, and a small number of philatelic records, most of which document David Pinkus’ career and personal life, the Pinkus family, the Kiever Shul, the Kiever Cemetery, as well as Mount Sinai Cemetery Association (Mount Sinai Memorial Park) and the Dawes Road Cemeteries (Amalgamated Dawes Road Trustees), of which the Kiever Congregation is a member organization. Also included are documents and photographs of other individuals and families, which David collected for his genealogical research, and those that are pertaining to Kensington Market and other congregations and cemeteries.

Textual records include correspondence; scrapbooks; education records; identification documents; research notes and clippings relating to David’s genealogical research; documents pertaining to his Kensington Market activism and community work; files on David’s engineering career and his role as president of the Kiever Shul; and files documenting the Pinkus family members, such as funeral documents, notebooks, family correspondence, voters’ lists, and records relating to Pinkus Fruit Co. and 34 Nassau Street. Also included are records documenting the Kiever Shul, which include meeting minutes, ledger books, financial documents, legal documents, membership lists and application forms, address books, high holiday service cards, and historic papers dating from the 1920s and 1930s. Textual records documenting the Kiever Cemetery, Mount Sinai Memorial Park, and the Dawes Road Cemeteries are mainly comprised of cemetery maps, burial plot cards, burial record books, by-laws and regulations, and meeting minutes. Also present are records pertaining to other congregations and cemeteries, such as constitution books, brochures, booklets, and copies of legal documents.

Photographs mainly feature David Pinkus and the Kiever Cemetery, with a small number featuring the Pinkus family members, the Junction Synagogue (Congregation Knesseth Israel), the Great Choral Synagogue of Kyiv, and those that David collected for his genealogical research.

Architectural drawings of this fonds include the restoration and renovation plan for the Kiever Shul and the alteration plan for Mount Sinai Cemetery Administration Building.

Also present are sound recordings, including cassettes and microcassettes of David Pinkus; and artifacts, including felt patches, pin back buttons, medals, Toronto foot-pedlar registration badges, and a wooden gavel of the Kiever Shul.

Fonds has been arranged into the following series: David Pinkus’ personal records; Kensington Market; David Pinkus’ genealogical research; the Pinkus family; the Kiever Shul; the Kiever Cemetery; Mount Sinai Memorial Park; the Dawes Road Cemeteries; and other associations, congregations, and cemeteries.

Notes

PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION NOTE: Also included are 22 architectural drawings, 7 maps, 4 audio cassettes, 2 microcassettes, 1 optical disc, 8 drawings, 2 prints, 1 photo collage, 34 pinback buttons, 15 Toronto padler-on-foot registration badges, 8 felt patches, 3 medals, 3 brooches, 1 wooden gavel, 2 tax tokens, 2 postage stamps, 1 sales tax stamp, and 9 revenue stamps.

SCOPE AND CONTENT NOTE: Books that were initially included in this fonds have been removed and incorporated into the OJA’s library collection. These books are: Spadina Avenue by Rosemary Donegan with an introduction by Rick Salutin, Toronto No Mean City by Eric Arthur revised by Stephen A. Otto, Canadian Jewish Directory edited by Edmond Y. Lipsitz, The Toronto Jewish Directory, and The Canada Year Book 1905 (second series).

HISTORY/BIO NOTE: Information is sourced from OH 413 and the content of the fonds.

Name Access

Pinkus, David, 1924-2021

Kiever Synagogue (Toronto, Ont.)

Mount Sinai Cemetery Association (Toronto, Ont.)

Mount Sinai Memorial Park (Toronto, Ont.)

Dawes Road Cemetery (Toronto, Ont.)

Amalgamated Dawes Road Trustees (Toronto, Ont.)

Subjects

Families

Synagogues

Genealogy

Cemeteries

Access Restriction

Partially closed. Researchers must receive permission from the OJA director prior to accessing some of the records.

Repro Restriction

Copyright may not be held by the Ontario Jewish Archives. It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain permission prior to use.

Related Material

See accessions 2004-1-5, 2004-1-6, 2004-2-1, 2008-11-9, 2016-3-48, and 2021-10-1 for additional information on the Kiever Shul; and OH 413 for more information on David Pinkus and the Pinkus family.

Arrangement

Records came into the OJA with no discernible order. Arrangement has been imposed by the archivist.

Creator

Pinkus, David, 1924-2021

Places

Toronto (Ont.)

Kensington Market (Toronto, Ont.)

Accession Number

2021-7-3

Source

Archival Descriptions