- Part Of
- Dora Till fonds
- Level
- Fonds
- ID
-
Fonds 52
- Source
- Archival Descriptions
- Part Of
- Dora Till fonds
- Level
- Fonds
- Fonds
- 52
- Material Format
- multiple media
- Date
- 1921-1986
- Physical Description
- 1.4 m of textual records and other material
- Admin History/Bio
- Dora Till (1896-1987) was a leading member of the Toronto Jewish community. She helped found and served on the executives and boards of many organizations, including the Federation of Jewish Philanthropies of Toronto, the United Jewish Welfare Fund (UJWF), the Candian Jewish Congress Central Region, and the Baycrest Hospital Women's Auxiliary. She was honoured numerous times in her life with awards and tributes for her contributions to the Jewish community.
- Till was born in New York City on 20 March 1896, one of six children of Max and Yeta Tobias. Her parents had emigrated from Poland prior to 1892. When Dora was four, the family moved to Toronto where Max Tobias worked as a tailor. In her teens, Till was an active member of two social clubs for girls, the Boot and Shoe Society (for mothers and children in need) and the Herzl Girls Club.
- Dora Tobias married Morris S. Till on 21 May 1916, in Toronto. They had two children, Sigmund and Cecile, both of whom she outlived. Sigmund died tragically at the age of 11 after a sudden illness. Cecile married Frank Goldhar and they had two children, Sheila Anne and Meyer Garson.
- In 1918, Till joined the Hebrew Maternity Aid Society and she served as its vice-president for the next fifteen years. This was the beginning of a lifetime career in family welfare, health care and services for the aged. Till helped found and was the first president of the Mothers' and Babes' Summer Rest Home located in Bronte and then Tollandale, which provided mothers and children in need with a two-week holiday in the country.
- From the 1920s until the 1940s, Till served on several boards including the Federation of Jewish Philanthropies of Toronto, and the United Jewish Welfare Fund, as well as the Welfare Fund's Women's Division and Women's Service Council. In 1950, she became the first woman to be named honourary vice-president of the UJWF. In 1955, after many years affiliation with the Jewish Home for the Aged, Dora Till organized the newly built Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care's Women's Auxiliary, becoming its first president. She also served for 40 years on the executive board of the Family and Child Service Bureau, the precursor to Jewish Family & Child Services. Till was an active member of many other Jewish organizations, including the Naomi Chapter of Hadassah and the National Council of Jewish Women, B'nai Brith Women, the Mount Sinai Women's Auxiliary, the Jewish Camp Council, and Toronto United Community Appeal - Community Chest. She was also a member of Goel Tzedec Congregation and its successor, Beth Tzedec Congregation.
- Dora Till was honoured with several awards and tributes in her lifetime for her contributions to Jewish life, health and welfare in Toronto. In 1956, the Dora and Morris Till Bungalow at the Mothers and Babes Summer Rest Home was dedicated. In 1969, she was the first woman to recieve UJWF's Ben Sadowski Award for Jewish Community Service. As well, in 1977, she received the Queen's Silver Jubilee medal for outstanding community service. In 1983 a Baycrest Centre tribute dinner was held in her honour and in 1984, the top floor of the Baycrest Centre was dedicated to her. This was the culmination of a lifetime devoted to social welfare and community service, and it came just a few years before Till's death, on 22 November 1987.
- Custodial History
- The records were in the possession of Dora Till's granddaughter, Mrs. Sheila Gottlieb, until they were donated to the OJA in 1987.
- Scope and Content
- This fonds consists of records documenting the personal and philanthropic activities of Dora Till, including her ongoing involvement with the Mothers' and Babes' Summer Rest Home, the Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care Women's Auxiliary, the United Jewish Welfare Fund, and to a lesser extent other organizations that she was involved or affiliated with. Till's records of the Mothers' and Babes' Rest Home are some of the few to have survived from this important social service organization.
- The organizational records in the fonds include minutes, correspondence, reports, speeches, financial records, newsclippings, pamphlets, brochures, invitations, architectural drawings, and photographs, primarily of the Mothers and Babes Rest Home and the Baycrest Centre. As well, there are two artifacts: a Baycrest Centre pin and a gold shovel from the groundbreaking ceremony. The personal records in the fonds include family photographs and portraits, writings, newsclippings and general correspondence.
- The fonds has been arranged into eight series: 1. Mothers' and Babes' Summer Rest Home Association. 2. Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care Women's Auxiliary. 3. Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care Heritage Museum Committee. 4. Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care Furnishings Committee. 5. Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care : other committees. 6. United Jewish Welfare Fund. 7. Other organizations. 8. Personal. The records have been described to the file level, while a selection of photographs have been scanned and described at the item level.
- Notes
- Physical description note: includes 197 photographs (54 negatives), 9 architectural drawings, and 2 objects
- Name Access
- Till, Dora, 1896-1987
- Access Restriction
- Partially closed. Researchers must receive permission from the OJA director prior to accessing some of the records.
- Related Material
- For related material on the Mothers' and Babes' Summer Rest Home, please see: Jewish Community Centre of Toronto fonds 61, Federation of Jewish Philanthropies fonds 66, United Jewish Welfare Fund fonds 67, Ida Lewis Siegel fonds 15, and the Rebecca Kamarner family fonds 11.
- For related material on the Baycrest Centre Women's Auxiliary, please see: Pat Joy Alpert fonds 77 and fonds 14.
- For related material on National Council of Jewish Women please see fonds 38.
- Arrangement
- This fonds had previously been arranged and described as MG6 H. The current arrangement was implemented by the archivist in 2010 and as a result, several files from the former MG were culled or merged. Therefore, the former MG finding aid is no longer accurate.
- Creator
- Till, Dora, 1896-1987
- Accession Number
- 1987-1-5
- Source
- Archival Descriptions
- Part Of
- Dora Till fonds
- Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care Women's Auxiliary series
- Level
- Series
- Fonds
- 52
- Series
- 2
- Material Format
- textual record
- graphic material
- object
- Date
- 1951-1986
- Physical Description
- 62 cm of textual records
- 10 photographs
- 2 objects
- Admin History/Bio
- The Women's Auxiliary of the Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care was established in 1955 as a fund-raising arm of the Baycrest Centre as well as a provider of services to the residents and patients. Some of its activities included running the volunteer service, the beauty salon, the gift shop, theatre nights, religious and festival programming and fundraising projects.
- Dora Till was the founding president of the Women's Auxiliary from 1955 to 1959. She remained active on the Executive Committee well into the 1980s. Dora was honoured several times by the Women's Auxiliary, including at a tribute dinner in 1983 and in 1984 when an entire floor of Baycrest was named in her honour.
- Scope and Content
- This series consists of records documenting the activities of the Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care Women's Auxiliary. The records include minutes, reports, speeches, correspondence, financial records, invitations, brochures and pamphlets, photographs and artifacts.
- The records have been arranged into six sub-series: Board of Directors and Executive Committee, Sub-Committees, Finance and Accounting, Programming and Services, Events, and Press and Publicity.The records have been described to the file level and a selection of photographs have been scanned and described at the item level.
- Source
- Archival Descriptions
- Part Of
- Dora Till fonds
- Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care Women's Auxiliary series
- Executive Committee and Board of Directors sub-series
- Level
- Sub-series
- Fonds
- 52
- Series
- 2-1
- Material Format
- textual record
- graphic material
- Date
- 1951-1985
- Physical Description
- 29 cm of textual records
- 2 photographs : b&w ; 13 x 9 cm
- Admin History/Bio
- The Women's Auxiliary's Execuitive Commitee and Board of Directors were installed in 1955 following the creation of the Auxiliary. The officers of the Executive Committee, including Dora Till as president, were first elected by the Baycrest Centre's Board of Directors to manage the tasks of the Auxiliary and to oversee and implement the decisions of the Board. The distinction between the two bodies is sometimes unclear in the records as the titles were often used interchangeably.
- Scope and Content
- This sub-series consists of the records of the Executive Committee and Board of Directors of the Women's Auxiliary. The records include minutes, agendas and noctices, reports and speeches, correspondence, lists and photographs.
- Source
- Archival Descriptions
- Part Of
- Dora Till fonds
- Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care Women's Auxiliary series
- Programming and services sub-series
- Level
- Sub-series
- Fonds
- 52
- Series
- 2-4
- Material Format
- textual record
- graphic material
- Date
- 1954-1986
- Physical Description
- 7 cm of textual records
- 2 photographs : b&w ; 21 x 26 cm
- Scope and Content
- This sub-series consists of records documenting the programmes and services offered by the Women's Auxiliary of the Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care. The records include correspondence, brochures and pamphlets, program manuals and photographs.
- Source
- Archival Descriptions
- Part Of
- Dora Till fonds
- Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care Women's Auxiliary series
- Events sub-series
- Level
- Sub-series
- Fonds
- 52
- Series
- 2-5
- Material Format
- textual record
- graphic material
- object
- Date
- 1954-1983
- Physical Description
- 9 cm of textual records
- 6 photographs : b&w ; 21 x 26 cm or smaller
- 1 object
- Scope and Content
- This sub-series consists of records documenting specific events held under the auspices of the Women's Auxiliary of the Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care. The records include correspondence, reports invitations, program booklets, photographs and one artifact.
- Source
- Archival Descriptions
- Part Of
- Dora Till fonds
- Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care Women's Auxiliary series
- Events sub-series
- New Baycrest Hospital groundbreaking file
- Level
- Item
- Fonds
- 52
- Series
- 2-5
- File
- 8
- Item
- 2
- Material Format
- graphic material
- Date
- 30 June 1983
- Physical Description
- 1 photograph : b&w ; 21 x 26 cm
- Scope and Content
- This item is a photograph of Dora Till with Abe Posluns and an unidentified woman at the groundbreaking for the New Baycrest Hospital. All three are holding gold ceremonial shovels in the ground. Pictured on the far left is Sid Cooper.
- Subjects
- Building
- Hospitals
- Repro Restriction
- Copyright is not held by the Ontario Jewish Archives. It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain permission prior to use.
- Source
- Archival Descriptions
- Part Of
- Dora Till fonds
- Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care Women's Auxiliary series
- Press and publicity sub-series
- Level
- Sub-series
- Fonds
- 52
- Series
- 2-6
- Material Format
- textual record
- Date
- 1953-1983
- Physical Description
- 3 cm of textual records
- Scope and Content
- This sub-series consists of documents created for purpose of publicizing the Women's Auxiliary and their activities. Included are various writings intended for publication in the Bacycrest newsletter as well as written histories of the Auxiliary. Also included are several newsclippings on Dora Till and her role with the Women's Auxiliary.
- Source
- Archival Descriptions
- Part Of
- Dora Till fonds
- Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care Heritage Museum Committee series
- Level
- Series
- Fonds
- 52
- Series
- 3
- Material Format
- textual record
- Date
- 1972-1983
- Physical Description
- 3 cm of textual records
- Admin History/Bio
- The Baycrest Centre for Geritaric Care's Heritage Museum Committee oversaw the operation of the Centre's museum, the acquisition of artifacts, as well as any accompanying programs and exhibitions. Dora Till sat on the committee during the 1970s and early 1980s.
- Scope and Content
- This series consists of records related to the Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care's Heritage Museum Committee. The records include minutes, correspondence, speeches and reports, financial records and exhibition materials. The records have been described to the file level.
- Source
- Archival Descriptions
- Part Of
- Dora Till fonds
- Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care : other committees series
- Level
- Series
- Fonds
- 52
- Series
- 5
- Material Format
- textual record
- Date
- 1953-1965, 1980
- Physical Description
- 1 folder of textual records
- Scope and Content
- This series consists of one file of records documenting the activites of other committees that Dora Till sat on such as the House Committee, the Hospital Sub-Committee and the Auxiliary and Volunteer Program Committee.
- Source
- Archival Descriptions