Name

Montague Raisman

Number

OH 64

Subject

Nonprofit organizations

Human rights

Antisemitism

World War, 1939-1945

Zionism

Interview Date

11 Jul. 1982

Quantity

1

Interviewer

Jack Lipinsky

Total Running Time

39:42 minutes

Conservation

Copied August 2003

Notes

Low sound volume

Use Restrictions

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

Biography

Montague Raisman came to Canada from England in 1926. He was actively involved in B'nai Brith Toronto Lodge and held positions of office. He served as the commanding officer for the B'nai Brith Air Cadet Squadron in Toronto during the Second World War. He was instrumental in the formation of the Joint Public Relations Committee, a united Jewish voice in response to pro-Nazi activity.

Material Format

sound recording

Language

English

Name Access

Raisman, Montague

B'nai Brith

Lipinsky, Jack

Canadian Jewish Congress

Geographic Access

Toronto

Calgary (Alta.)

Montréal (Québec)

Original Format

Audio cassette

Copy Format

Audio cassette

Digital file

Transcript

G:\Description\Oral Histories\OH 64 - Raisman\OH64_Log.pdf

Source

Oral Histories

In this clip, Montague describes the formation of the B'nai Brith Air Cadet Squadron during the Second World War. He discusses the recruitment and training of the officers and cadets. He explains how this squadron was instrumental in changing recruitment qualifications to allow entry of new immigrants and Black cadets.

In this clip, Montague Raisman discusses the events leading up to an association between B

Name

Alex Enchin

Number

OH 118

Subject

Businessmen

Synagogues

Interview Date

Jul. 1977

Quantity

1 cassette (1 copy)

1 WAV file

Interviewer

David Enchin

Total Running Time

31.20 minutes

Conservation

Copied August 2003

Digitized in June 2014

Use Restrictions

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

Biography

Alex Enchin emigrated from Russia to Guelph, Ontario, in 1912. Enchin was one of Guelph's earliest Jewish settlers and an active member of the Jewish community. His son, David, ran two businesses, the Arcade and the House of David, both located in downtown Guelph.

Material Format

sound recording

Language

English

Geographic Access

Guelph (Ont.)

Original Format

Audio cassette

Copy Format

Audio cassette

Digital file

Transcript

G:\Description\Oral Histories\OH 118 - Enchin\OH118_Log.pdf

Source

Oral Histories

Name

Rose Kaplan

Number

OH 211

Subject

Zionism

Communism

Reform Judaism

Interview Date

4 Aug. 1986

Quantity

2 (1copy)

2 WAV files

Total Running Time

53 min.

Conservation

Copied to cassette August 2003

Digitized January 2015

Notes

Participants in the discussion are not clearly identified.

Use Restrictions

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

Biography

Rose and Julius Kaplan were married in a Reform synagogue in 1924. They lived in Dundas, Ontario, where Julius ran a ladies' wear business. They were both members of a large extended family living in Dundas, Ontario; Hamilton, Ontario; and Guelph, Ontario. Rose passed away of a tumor.

Material Format

sound recording

Geographic Access

Hamilton (Ont.)

Guelph (Ont.)

Original Format

Audio cassette

Copy Format

Audio cassette

Digital file

Transcript

Side One: A – female main interviewee (Ida’s niece), B- female, secondary participant (Rose?, Ida’s granddaughter, Millie’s daughter), C – male, secondary participant 00:25: Discusses B?’s mother, Millie’s childhood. Born in 1912. Had two brothers, Julius and Oscar. The family lived above a furniture store on a main street in Dundas, Ontario. Store sold general merchandise and furniture. 1:05: Discussion about photos and their location. Mentions that Julius has photos. 3:29: A’s father moved to St. Catharines and later to London. 3:40: Lou and Jenny Levine lived in St. Catharines and later Niagara Falls. Families would get together for family occasions, not Jewish holidays. 4:32: A’s parents were Max and Sophie. Adele was born in 1934, after Harry’s death. 4:55: A reminisces about family get-togethers. 5:55: Harry had a successful ladies wear store. Julius joined the business. 6:14: Harry bought a large home in Dundas, Ontario. A describes the grandeur and mentions servants. A mentions that Rose has a picture of the mansion. 8:00: Rose and Julius were married in 1924. 8:33: B is Millie’s daughter. Millie liked “the good life.” A discusses Millie’s relationship with her brothers. 9:58: Both Oscar and Julius were musical. Oscar played piano and Julius played violin. 10:43: A reports that the family (Harry and Ida) was not involved with the synagogue and felt isolated from Jewish society. 12:06: Harry and Ida joined a Reform temple in Hamilton (with services held on Sunday). 13:20: Rose and Julius were married in the Reform synagogue. 13:56: Rose’s family (Stoller) was more traditional and later became involved in a Conservative synagogue in London. 14:33: Oscar was never involved in religion but was involved with Jewish Congress. 15:00: Reminisce about Millie. Millie married Dave at age twenty-four. She ran the household and raised two children. Millie’s daughter was born in 1943. 18:00: Millie was devoted to her mother. Her mother died from cancer. 18:34: A discusses Ida and Harry’s marriage. 19:18:Oscar was married to Eva. 20:33: Ida, Millie and Nathan – all family members with hearing loss. 24:00: Henry, Harry’s brother, lived in Guelph. Harry also had a sister who lived in the United States. 25:17: Henry had two daughters, Celia and ? 26:32: Max went to Guelph when he came from Europe. He worked with Henry. A’s brother was born in Guelph. 28:17: A lists members of the family: Ida, Max, Nathan, Molly and Gertrude. Gertrude, who had Communist leanings, moved to a commune in Petaluna, California. Later, Gertrude moved to Israel, where she died of a heart ailment. Side Two: Side 2 focuses on a discussion of the family tree involving three-to-four individuals. 00:06: The family was anti-Zionist, but after the Holocaust views changed. Gertrude moved to Israel in the late 1950s. 1:38: Ida’s (B’s grandmother) siblings were Nathan, Molly (Carson), Gertrude, Max, Rose (died from a tumor), Chana, another sister(?Motla remained in Poland whose last name was Frank List and discusses the offspring of the siblings: Nathan’s children, Molly’s children, Chana’s daughters (Jenny Levine and Genia and Genia’s children) and grandchildren who lived in Israel, Frank family children 9:50: The Frank brothers went to Palestine in the 1930s. The family that remained in Poland were exterminated during the war. 10:29: Genia’s son, Elisha, survived the war in Russia and Genia’s daughter, Raya escaped to Sweden. Elisha and Raya independently went to Israel after the war. 13:24: The participants discuss the family members in California. Nathan’s family. Eugene married with daughter, Leah, married with two children, Jackie and ?, Lou married to Edith with 2 children, Trudy (joined a cult), Greg married twice, David married with 2 daughters, Ellen Berg and Jamie 19:35: Chana’s daughter, Jenny, was the only family member who came to Canada. The rest of the family died during the war. Jenny had two children, Harold Levine and Adele (Berg). 20:21: Max had two children, Leo and A. Discuss Leo’s family. Leo was married to Molly with daughter, Susie (married with two children) and Dick (married with two children). 21:35: A is married with three sons, ?, Bob, and Dave.

Source

Oral Histories

Name

Mort Abramsky

Number

OH 322

Subject

Families

Rotary Club

retail business

Synagogues

B'nai Brith

Interview Date

17 Oct. 2007

Quantity

2 mini-DVs, 2 archival DVDs, 2 reference DVDs

Interviewer

Sharon Gubbay Helfer

Total Running Time

1 hr 45 mins

Notes

Part of Ontario Small Jewish Communities Project.

Use Restrictions

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

Biography

Mort Abramsky was born in Montreal but spent his life in Kingston. He inherited a family business empire started more than a century ago by his grandfather, Polish immigrant Joseph Abramsky, and his parents, Harry and Ethel.

Joseph Abramsky turned a door-to-door trade in clothes, sheets and towels into a business empire that at one time counted ten department stores spread across eastern Ontario. It was handed down through successive generations of family who gradually diversified into real estate and property management, as the margins in downtown general merchandise retailing shrank and then disappeared entirely. The flagship of that empire was Abramsky's general store, which closed in 1996, a victim of the poor economy of the time and increased competition from other retailers in the sector.

Abramsky also owned Mort Enterprises, which managed and developed properties and was responsible for initially bringing chains, including McDonald's Restaurant and Blockbuster Video, to downtown Kingston. He was a philanthropist and tireless booster of Kingston, active with local organizations including the Beth Israel Synagogue, the B'nai Brith and Jewish Council, the YMCA, the Rotary Club, St. John Ambulance, Kingston General Hospital, and the Masonic Order. The family's Abramsky Charitable Foundation has also helped hundreds of local organizations and families in causes large and small, ranging from Queen's campus construction to assisting local families who had been burned out of their homes.

Abramsky was married to Shirley, his wife of fifty-three years. The couple had three children, Jay, Karen and Leonard, and nine grandchildren. Abrahamsky died in November 2009, aged eighty-two.

Material Format

moving images

Geographic Access

Kingston (Ont.)

Montréal (Québec)

Original Format

Mini DV

Copy Format

DVD

Source

Oral Histories

Name

Dr. Vivian Rakoff

Number

OH 440

Subject

Canada--Emigration and immigration

Jews--South Africa

South Africa--Emigration and immigration

Interview Date

24 Nov. 2016

Interviewer

Naomi Raichyk

Total Running Time

OH 440 part 1: 31 min.

OH 440 part 2: 3 min.

OH 440 part 3: 2 min.

OH 440 part 4: 21 min.

Biography

Vivian Morris Rakoff was born on 28 April 1928 in Cape Town but was quickly whisked off to Port Nolloth, a small town on the northwest coast of South Africa, where he spent his earliest years. And while Port Nolloth was home to less than a dozen Jewish families, his mother would still braid challah every Friday night.

The family moved to Cape Town when Vivian was six. At age eleven, he had a bruising encounter with apartheid that left a strong impression on him. Having innocently boarded a bus set aside for Black South Africans, he was thrown off by the conductor who told him, “You can’t come here!” Afterwards, he told his aunt he was not going to live in South Africa.

After completing a degree at the University of Cape Town, Vivian set sail for England, where he was planning to study English at Oxford. Instead, he followed friends down to Marseilles where he met Yiddish-speaking Holocaust survivors waiting to set sail for Israel. The encounter was a pivotal one and led Vivian to journey to Israel, where he lived on kibbutz for a year.

After losing his passport, Vivian returned to South Africa, where he completed a master’s degree in psychology. He then travelled to England, this time staying for more than eight years. He studied medicine at University College London and enjoyed the city’s theatres and museums. After completing his degree, he decided it was time to see his parents so he returned once more to South Africa.

While in South Africa, Vivian met a friend who suggested he enroll in McGill University’s psychiatry program. Vivian thus set sail yet again, this time with wife and ten-month-old baby. After an eighteen-day journey, the family arrived in Montreal, where Vivian did his residency. Residency complete, he accepted a job offer in Toronto, where he stayed for the rest of his career, serving as chair of the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Toronto and as the namesake for the Rakoff Centre for Positron Emission Tomography. In 2015, the Government of Canada appointed him a member of the Order of Canada in recognition of his contributions to psychiatry as well as for his role in founding the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health.

Vivian died on 1 October 2020. He was survived by his wife Gina Shochat-Rakoff, son Simon, daughter Ruth, and grandchildren Micah, Amit, Sasaf, and Zoe.

Material Format

moving images

Language

English

Name Access

Rakoff, Vivian Morris, 1928-2020

Geographic Access

Cape Town (South Africa)

Montréal (Québec)

Port Nolloth (South Africa)

Toronto (Ont.)

Original Format

Digital file

Copy Format

Digital file

Transcript

Part 1:

00:29 Vivian discusses the immigration of his father's family to South Africa. His grandfather left Lithuania around the turn of the twentieth century. His grandmother and her children joined him in South Africa. Vivian lists the members of the family.

04:24 Vivian discusses the immigration of his mother's family. His mother, who was born in Chicago, came to South Africa in 1914.

05:00 Vivian's family settled in Port Nolloth. Vivian discusses the economy of the region. He discusses his father's businesses and marriage to his mother, Bertha. Vivian is one of four children.

06:48 Vivian was born on 28 April 1928 and lived in Port Nolloth for his first six years.

07:35 Vivian shares memories of growing up Jewish in Port Nolloth. He recounts anecdotes concerning his father's Zionist leanings.

09:40 Vivian describes his family's Jewish observance and shares memories from his youth.

12:30 Vivian discusses the impact of Zionism in his personal life. He describes his involvement with HaShomer HaTzair and travelling to Israel.

13:13 Vivian describes synagogues in Cape Town. He discusses his Jewish education after his family moved to Cape Town when he was six.

14:26 Vivian discusses the Jewish lives of his grandparents in Lithuania. He discusses the influence of the Haskalah (Jewish Enlightenment) and the rise of Zionism.

17:17 Vivian discusses the impact of South African politics on his life. He recalls a poem he wrote for his Zionist youth magazine. He recalls how an incident from his childhood that highlights the oppressive nature of the apartheid regime. The incident influenced his decision to leave South Africa.

21:04 Vivian describes the circumstances that triggered his decision to go to Palestine in 1947. His plan to study in England was interrupted when he decided to join a group of displaced persons in Marseilles who were travelling to Palestine. He remained there for a year.

24:26 Vivian describes his educational studies in South Africa and England.

25:27 Vivian expounds on living in London for eight years.

28:15 Vivian discusses his decision to come to Canada to study Psychiatry at McGill University.

29:18 Vivian describes his journey by steamship to Canada with his wife and ten-month-old baby.

30:13 Vivian discusses his impressions of South Africa when he returned from England.

Part 2:

00:13 Vivian discusses early memories of living in Montreal and how reality differed from expectations. He worked as a psychiatry resident at the Jewish General Hospital, but his wife, also a doctor, was unable to work. He describes a feeling of disappointment when they were not invited for High Holidays.

Part 3:

00:00 Vivian explains that he had decided to leave Montreal in 1967. He discusses Expo 67 and their many visitors.

Part 4:

00:00 Vivian discusses how his first job offer in Toronto at St. Michael's Hospital in 1967 was retracted due to antisemitism. He was then offered a position as director of postgraduate education in the psychiatry department.

01:00 Vivian describes some of the early challenges faced by his family when they arrived in Canada such as financial challenges and antisemitism.

02:28 Vivian and family move to a home on Ridgewood Road where they remain for twenty-three years.

03:00 Vivian contrasts his early experiences in Toronto with those in Montreal.

04:07 Vivian's children attended Bialik Hebrew Day School.

04:16 Vivian describes his family's Jewish observance.

04:52 Vivian explains that his primary connection to the South African Jewish community in Toronto is through relatives.

05:25 Vivian continues to discuss his Jewish observance.

06:25 Vivian discusses some of his family members who came to Toronto.

08:00 Vivian discusses his research concerning the challenges faced by children of Holocaust survivors. He continues to discuss his professional and literary writing.

09:5 Vivian outlines his professional positions: director of postgraduate education, chief of psychiatry at St. Michael's Hospital, chief of psychiatry and professor of psychiatry at the University of Toronto.

10:25 Vivian highlights a personal achievement concerning bringing a positron emission scanner to the Clark Institute (CAMH).

11:50 Vivian discusses his interest in art.

13:17 Vivian discusses some of the challenges encountered by new immigrants.

14:30 Vivian addresses his own decision to immigrate to Canada.

15:41 Vivian addresses his Canadian identity.

15:58 Vivian describes a trip with his grandchildren to Port Nolloth.

17:36 Vivian shares some of his lasting memories of Cape Town.

19:08 Vivian discusses the common destinations for South African Jewish immigration.

20:12 Vivian discusses his experience as an immigrant of Canada.

Source

Oral Histories

Braiding challah with my mother

Montreal was Hostile

On Survivors

Receiving the Order of Canada

Name

Colleen "Chips" Klein and Paul Klein

Number

OH 444

Subject

Canada--Emigration and immigration

Jews--South Africa

South Africa--Emigration and immigration

Interview Date

13 Mar. 2017

Interviewer

Lisa Newman

Total Running Time

OH 444 part 1: 7 min.

OH 444 part 2: 7 min.

OH 444 part 3: 37 min.

OH 444 part 4: 2 min.

Biography

Although they both grew up in Jewish neighbourhoods, Chips and Paul met for the first time at Margate, a decidedly non-Jewish seaside resort on South Africa’s southern coast. Chips’ grandmother, who was with Chips at the time, scouted the area for Jewish men, which is when she spotted Paul. Convinced the two were bashert, she indulged in a little matchmaking, with the result that Paul phoned Chips when he returned home. While they did break up at one point, Chips’ grandmother’s judgment was vindicated when the two married at Cyrildene Shul in Johannesburg a few years later.

When their children were three and five years old, the couple made the decision to immigrate to Canada. Paul, an engineer by training, was transferred to Guelph. There, the family joined the local synagogue and enrolled their children in public education. It was while living in Guelph that Chips and Paul became involved in work combating antisemitism. Growing up in Jewish communities, neither had encountered much antisemitism, but living in a small town they were forced to come to terms with being different.

Once their children were grown up, Chips and Paul moved to Toronto, purchasing a house in Thornhill in order to be close to the South African community. Both Chips and Paul are involved in Jewish education through their local synagogue and remain active in a variety of sports. In addition to their faith, sport is one of the ways they stay in touch with their grandchildren, which is why Chips says, “As long as we’re able, we’re going to keep doing it.”

Material Format

moving images

Language

English

Name Access

Klein, Colleen

Klein, Paul

Geographic Access

Guelph (Ont.)

Johannesburg (South Africa)

Thornhill (Ont.)

Toronto (Ont.)

Original Format

Digital file

Copy Format

Digital file

Transcript

Part 1:

00:00 Chips discusses the areas in Johannesburg where she was born and raised.

01:30 Chips discusses her education. She attended King David School. She notes that her parents may have been founding members of King David.

02:37 Chips discusses her career in dance as a dancer and as a teacher in her own dance school.

05:22 Chips describes growing up in South Africa. She discusses her family's warm relationship with their servants.

06:20 Chips mentions her own political involvement as a teenager in the late 1960s and early 1970s. She explains why and her husband decided to leave South Africa.

Part 2:

00:00 Paul discusses his parents' arrival to South Africa. His father fled from Berlin in 1937. His mother fled from Frankfurt, Germany in 1936. His father served in the British army during the war.

01:34 Paul explains why his father did not join a synagogue. Paul did not have a bar mitzvah. He recounts an incident that he attributes to his connection to Judaism.

02:55 Paul explains that having Jewish friends only became an issue for him when he started dating.

03:20 Paul explains that his father's fellow workers were secular German Jews.

03:40 Paul discusses his limited Jew upbringing. He discusses how and why he started to learn about and practice Judaism.

05:02 Paul has one sister living in Montreal. He discusses other relatives, some of whom survived the Holocaust.

06:30 Paul discusses how he met Chips.

Part 3:

00:00 Chips discusses how she met Paul.

00:48 Chips and Paul describe how they reconnected with Chips when Paul graduated from engineering.

03:49 Paul discusses their early marriage. He explains the factors that contributed to his decision to leave South Africa and immigrate to Canada. He expresses satisfaction with their decision to come to Canada.

05:25 Chips notes their children's positive comments about growing up and living in Canada.

05:56 Paul discusses his professional career.

07:30 Chips discusses their friends' and relatives' reactions to their decision to leave South Africa. They left in 1975. Chips' and Paul's parents immigrated to Canada around 1981.

09:18 Paul describes his parents' reaction to their decision to emigrate.

10:14 Chips discusses her parents' comments about leaving South Africa.

10:49 Chips and Paul discuss their return visits to South Africa. Chips describes her children's impressions of South Africa.

12:45 Chips discusses their early time in Canada. They first came to Guelph. She discusses establishing a Jewish home/environment for their children.

13:42 Paul recounts antisemitic incidents while living in Guelph.

15:20 Paul discusses their involvement with a program out of Lipa Green focused on assisting small Jewish communities. He comments on the program's success. Paul served as vice-chair.

16:50 Paul discusses the impact of the program on his children. He describes their strong connection to Israel.

17:37 Chips and Paul explain the program and how it was implemented.

18:46 Paul discusses his involvement with the synagogue in Guelph and in Toronto.

20:39 Paul explains why they decided to move to Thornhill in 1991. They belong to a synagogue on Green Lane.

21:33 Paul explains that the company he worked for in South Africa transferred him to Canada.

22:32 Chips discusses her community involvement including participation in Hadassah-WIZO and participation in the synagogue.

23:26 Chips discusses the creation of a business. She discusses her involvement in a women's inventors project. Chips mentions that she and Paul run a business together.

25:47 Chips describes her involvement in the development of a book to assist women with the patenting and marketing of products. She describes a federal government initiative that she was involved in to develop a book for the government to help women entrepreneurs. She also assisted with the development of a books for teachers and Girl Guides geared toward female inventions.

27:52 Paul discusses an acclaimed dance program that Chips was involved with South Africa.

30:22 Chips and Paul discuss their involvement in Jewish education. Chips spearheaded an adult education program for women and men. Paul discusses his involvement teaching Parshat HaShavuah.

35:45 Chips discusses her family's involvement in sport, including marathons and skiing.

36:47 Paul ponders the question of feeling Canadian.

Part 4:

00:34 Chips comments on when she first considered herself Canadian.

02:02 Paul mentions a National Film Board documentary about Jews in small communities and their inclusion in the film.

Source

Oral Histories

An Entrepreneurial Spirit

Always a Stranger

Antisemitism in Canada

Small Town Life