North Star with Ellin Bessner

[Greatest Hits] After escaping the Jasper forest fires, this tourist couple found safety in the Jewish community

This episode originally aired Aug. 7, 2024. Sharon Chodirker and Chaim Bell consider themselves lucky: they were among the tens of thousands of tourists and residents in Jasper who were evacuated from the forest fires that devoured a third of the buildings in the iconic Rocky Mountain resort town on July 24. The Toronto couple, who were on a hiking trip, managed to escape Jasper while smoke and ash rained down on their rental car. When they reached a safe spot across the border in British Columbia, they slept in their vehicle and dined on kosher snacks they'd stored in their portable cooler. Two days after their frightening journey, flames up to 100 metres high swept right through where their hotel stood, destroying several buildings. Now they're sharing their survival story from the safety of their Toronto home, while the town of Jasper remains off-limits except for emergency crews—and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who visited on Aug. 5. On today's episode of The CJN Daily, we hear from the Toronto couple personally, as well as Rabbi Dovid Pinson of Canmore who runs the new Chabad community centre outside Banff and hosted the evacuees. We'll also hear from Heidi Coleman, the head of the Jewish community in Kamloops, B.C., who felt like she was starring in the musical Come From Away when she helped a busload of stranded Jasperites in her city. What we talked about * When Rabbi Dovid Pinson ran the annual Hanukkah car menorah parade in Edmonton during COVID in 2021, in The CJN [https://thecjn.ca/news/zach-hyman-dreidel-parachutes-and-a-car-menorah-parade-mark-the-30th-anniversary-of-edmontons-hanukkah-ceremony/] * Learn more about Chabad in the Rockies [https://www.chabadrockies.org/]   * Hear how Heidi Coleman came from Montreal to Kamloops and became their Jewish leader, on the podcast Yehupetzville [https://thecjn.ca/podcasts/how-heidi-coleman-tapped-into-kamloops-jewish-community-and-quickly-became-their-leader/] Credits * Host and writer: Ellin Bessner ( @ebessner [https://twitter.com/ebessner] ) * Production team: Zachary Kauffman (senior producer), Andrea Varsany (producer), Michael Fraiman (executive producer), Alicia Richler (editorial director) * Music: Bret Higgins [https://www.brethiggins.com/] Support our show * Subscribe to The CJN newsletter [https://thecjn.ca/newsletters/] * Donate to The CJN [https://thecjn.ca/donate/] (+ get a charitable tax receipt) * Subscribe to North Star [https://thecjn.ca/north] (Not sure how? Click here [https://thecjn.ca/arts/podcast-how-to/] ) * Watch our podcasts on YouTube. [https://www.youtube.com/@TheCJN] * https://www.youtube.com/@TheCJN [https://www.youtube.com/@TheCJN] Help others find this podcast by leaving us a review for “North Star” on Apple Podcasts [https://support.apple.com/en-ca/guide/podcasts/pod5facd9d70/1.1.0/mac/26] via your iPhone or iPad device, or with your Android. [https://podcasters.apple.com/support/852-ratings-and-reviews] (Spotify allows only starred ratings but you can do that, too!)

[Greatest Hits] The best country for Jews to live in is... Canada?

Ellin Bessner is off on a well-deserved summer vacation, so we're bringing back some favourite episodes from the archives. This episode originally ran on May 31, 2021. Has there ever been a better home for Jews than Canada? That's the bold question being asked in a new collection of essays, No Better Home?: Jews, Canada, and the Sense of Belonging. The book's editor, David S. Koffman, joins to discuss the merits behind the argument: how Canada might be the most inviting, safe and tolerant country for Jews in the world. Credits * Host and writer: Ellin Bessner ( @ebessner [https://twitter.com/ebessner] ) * Production team: Zachary Kauffman (senior producer), Andrea Varsany (producer), Michael Fraiman (executive producer), Alicia Richler (editorial director) * Music: Bret Higgins [https://www.brethiggins.com/] Support our show * Subscribe to The CJN newsletter [https://thecjn.ca/newsletters/] * Donate to The CJN [https://thecjn.ca/donate/] (+ get a charitable tax receipt) * Subscribe to North Star [https://thecjn.ca/north] (Not sure how? Click here [https://thecjn.ca/arts/podcast-how-to/] ) * Watch our podcasts on YouTube. [https://www.youtube.com/@TheCJN] * https://www.youtube.com/@TheCJN [https://www.youtube.com/@TheCJN] Help others find this podcast by leaving us a review for “North Star” on Apple Podcasts [https://support.apple.com/en-ca/guide/podcasts/pod5facd9d70/1.1.0/mac/26] via your iPhone or iPad device, or with your Android. [https://podcasters.apple.com/support/852-ratings-and-reviews] (Spotify allows only starred ratings but you can do that, too!)

Inside Canada's Human Rights museum's Palestinian Nakba exhibit: What we saw

---------------------------------------- There’s been a major new development in the controversy surrounding the Canadian Museum for Human Rights’ new Nakba exhibit. Canada’s Minister of Canadian Identity and Culture, Mark Miller, toured the exhibit before the show opened last weekend, and has now publicly criticized some of what he saw. In an interview published Monday June 29 by The Canadian Press, [https://thecjn.ca/news/heritage-minister-says-winnipeg-museums-naqba-exhibit-should-be-rectified/] Miller said some wording “should be rectified”, and suggested that the museum’s board should have been shown the exhibit before it opened. He also said it was a “failure” that curators chose not to describe Hamas as a terrorist organization, or state that Jewish Israelis were targeted during the Oct. 7 attacks. The museum told The CJN it stands by its word choices, but has sent Miller’s concerns to its curation team, which has a content revision process. Before the minister’s comments became public, The CJN’s Izzie Helenchilde travelled to Winnipeg as one of the journalists invited inside the exhibit Friday,June 26 for a media preview. On this episode of “North Star”, she joins host Ellin Bessner to describe exactly what she saw and whether the exhibit matched the controversy that’s been surrounding it. You’ll also hear from some of the people she interviewed: the Museum’s CEO Isha Khan; Fouad Sahyoun, a Palestinian Canadian whose experience is one of the few video testimonials in the exhibit; Gail Asper, whose family founded the museum; and Rabbi Yosef Benarroch, just retired as spiritual leader of Winnipeg’s Adas Yeshurun Herzlia synagogue. Related stories * Minister responsible for Canada’s museums says Nakba exhibit “should be rectified”, in The CJN. [https://thecjn.ca/news/heritage-minister-says-winnipeg-museums-naqba-exhibit-should-be-rectified/] * Nakba exhibit opens amidst protests and controversy, in The CJN. [https://thecjn.ca/news/nakba-past-and-present-exhibit-opens-at-the-canadian-museum-for-human-rights-amid-protests-and-controversy/] * The Canadian Museum for Human Rights’ only Jewish trustee explained why he quit, on The CJN’s North Star podcast. [https://thecjn.ca/news/human-rights-museums-only-jewish-trustee-wanted-the-nakba-exhibit-why-he-quit/] **** Credits * Host and writer: Ellin Bessner ( @ebessner [https://twitter.com/ebessner] ) * Production team: Zachary Kauffman (senior producer), Izzie Helenchilde (producer), Michael Fraiman (executive producer), Alicia Richler (editorial director) * Music: Bret Higgins [https://www.brethiggins.com/] Support our show * Subscribe to The CJN newsletter [https://thecjn.ca/newsletters/] * Donate to The CJN [https://thecjn.ca/donate/] (+ get a charitable tax receipt) * Subscribe to North Star [https://thecjn.ca/north] (Not sure how? Click here [https://thecjn.ca/arts/podcast-how-to/] ) * Watch our podcasts on YouTube. [https://www.youtube.com/@TheCJN] * https://www.youtube.com/@TheCJN Help others find this podcast by leaving us a review for “North Star” on Apple Podcasts [https://support.apple.com/en-ca/guide/podcasts/pod5facd9d70/1.1.0/mac/26] via your iPhone or iPad device, or with your Android. [https://podcasters.apple.com/support/852-ratings-and-reviews] (Spotify allows only starred ratings but you can do that, too!)

From homesteaders to high tech: How Jewish Calgary celebrates Stampede

When people think of the Calgary Stampede, they probably picture rodeos, chuckwagon races, the famous parade, or perhaps deep-fried Mars bars on the midway. But how about kosher pancake breakfasts, Israeli tech entrepreneurs, and the Jewish businessman who created Calgary’s iconic white cowboy hat [https://smithbilthats.com/product-category/the-white-hat/] in 1949? For more than a century, Calgary’s Jewish community has woven its own traditions into Alberta’s “Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth.” What began with Jewish homesteaders, ranchers and merchants has evolved into one of the busiest weeks on the Jewish community’s calendar. Even before the 114th Calgary Stampede officially begins on July 3, the Jewish community has already hosted two kosher pancake breakfasts: the Calgary Jewish Academy’s Mishpacha & Maple Syrup [https://albertajewishnews.com/cja-mishpacha-enjoy-maple-syrup-and-more-at-the-june-breakfast-event/] celebration June 14, while the House of Jacob-Mikveh Israel’s annual community pancake breakfast held on June 27 attracted hundreds for flapjacks and pony rides. It’s co sponsored by the Calgary Jewish Federation and the city’s Paperny Family JCC. Still to come later this week are the annual “Spuds & Suds” gathering, co-hosted by the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) and Canadian Jewish Political Affairs Committee (CJPAC), where Jewish leaders and elected officials mingle over kosher latkes; and the Israeli Embassy’s ShukTech showcase at the Stampede is also set to highlight Israeli innovation and entrepreneurship. On today’s episode of The CJN’s North Star podcast, host Ellin Bessner is joined by historian Saundra Lipton, president of the Jewish Historical Society of Southern Alberta, and by David Silver, president of the House of Jacob-Mikveh Israel synagogue, who moved to Calgary from Toronto nine years ago, to discuss how Jewish Calgarians have been part of one of Alberta’s defining civic traditions for over a century. elated stories: * Putting the “Oy” in cowboy: [https://thecjn.ca/podcasts/the-future-of-alberta-judaism/] former CJN podcaster David Sklar investigated the Jewish roots of Alberta in 2022, on “Bonjour Chai”. * Read more and buy the new book “Building Community: Historical Traces of Jewish Calgary”, [https://jhssa.org/building-community-book-order-form/] by the Jewish Historical Society of Southern Alberta. * Why the separation referendum question is dividing Alberta’s Jews, in The CJN [https://thecjn.ca/news/canada/west/albertan-jews-are-divided-on-their-provinces-separatist-movement/] . * See photos of previous years’ House of Jacob-Mikveh Israel [https://hojmi.org/events/] synagogue’s Kosher Pancake Breakfast. Credits * Host and writer: Ellin Bessner ( @ebessner [https://twitter.com/ebessner] ) * Production team: Zachary Kauffman (senior producer), Izzie Helenchilde (producer), Michael Fraiman (executive producer), Alicia Richler (editorial director) * Music: Bret Higgins [https://www.brethiggins.com/] Support our show * Subscribe to The CJN newsletter [https://thecjn.ca/newsletters/] * Donate to The CJN [https://thecjn.ca/donate/] (+ get a charitable tax receipt) * Subscribe to North Star [https://thecjn.ca/north] (Not sure how? Click here [https://thecjn.ca/arts/podcast-how-to/] ) * Watch our podcasts on YouTube. [https://www.youtube.com/@TheCJN] * https://www.youtube.com/@TheCJN Help others find this podcast by leaving us a review for “North Star” on Apple Podcasts [https://support.apple.com/en-ca/guide/podcasts/pod5facd9d70/1.1.0/mac/26] via your iPhone or iPad device, or with your Android. [https://podcasters.apple.com/support/852-ratings-and-reviews] (Spotify allows only starred ratings but you can do that, too!)

Canada's next generation of Jewish leaders is already making a difference

Over the past school year, The Canadian Jewish News' Local Journalism Initiative reporter, Mitch Consky, who covers education, has introduced readers to some exceptional students through his "Chai Achievers" series. He has profiled young Jewish Canadians making a difference on their post-secondary campuses or high schools, with leadership and community service. As exams come to an end this week, Consky brought six such leaders together for a roundtable conversation about their actions and inspirations. They discuss how young Jews are responding to challenges on campus and at home, and why building connections, volunteering and creating opportunities for others is crucial to ensure a strong future for Jewish Canadians. On today's episode of The CJN's North Star podcast, reporter Mitch Consky takes over the hosting duties, to interview: * Maya Fuerstenberg, a TanenbaumCHAT graduate, who founded the Dalhousie Jewish Society in Halifax * Anastasia Zorchinsky, founder of the StartUp Nation club at Concordia, in Montreal * Levi Moskovitz of Vancouver's King David High School, who recently completed his term as BBYO's international treasurer * Toronto twins Ava and Ezra Freiheit, and their friend Emma Rovner, who also attend TanenbaumCHAT, who founded "Chains for Change" to raise funds for Special Olympics athletes in Ontario Related stories * Read more about the students selected as The CJN Chai Achievers including: a trio who fundraises for Special Olympics [https://thecjn.ca/news/chai-achievers-making-change-one-link-in-a-paper-chain-at-a-time/] ,  a CHAT graduate who built a Jewish club at Dalhousie University [https://thecjn.ca/news/campus/chai-achiever-how-maya-fuerstenberg-brought-a-jewish-student-society-to-dalhousie-university/] , a Vancouver leadership official with BBYO Internationa [https://thecjn.ca/news/chai-achiever-levi-moskovitz-helps-lead-global-jewish-youth-philanthropy-as-bbyos-international-treasurer/] l, and the founder of the pro-Israel StartUp Nation club at Concordia University. * Hear our interview with Levi Moskovitz on The CJN’s “North Star” [https://thecjn.ca/arts-culture/this-vancouver-student-just-led-a-1-6-million-fundraising-campaign-for-bbyo/] podcast from Dec. 2025 on how he raised nearly $1 million for BBYO. * Meet Yair Shpiler, who built Jewnity Sports, a 2025 CJN Chai Achiever [https://thecjn.ca/news/campus/chai-achiever-why-yair-shpiler-built-a-jewish-sports-league/] . Credits * Host and writer: Ellin Bessner ( @ebessner [https://twitter.com/ebessner] ) * Production team: Zachary Kauffman (senior producer), Izzie Helenchilde (producer), Michael Fraiman (executive producer), Alicia Richler (editorial director) * Music: Bret Higgins [https://www.brethiggins.com/] Support our show * Subscribe to The CJN newsletter [https://thecjn.ca/newsletters/] * Donate to The CJN [https://thecjn.ca/donate/] (+ get a charitable tax receipt) * Subscribe to North Star [https://thecjn.ca/north] (Not sure how? Click here [https://thecjn.ca/arts/podcast-how-to/] ) * Watch our podcasts on YouTube. [https://www.youtube.com/@TheCJN] * https://www.youtube.com/@TheCJN https://www.youtube.com/@TheCJN Help others find this podcast by leaving us a review for “North Star” on Apple Podcasts [https://support.apple.com/en-ca/guide/podcasts/pod5facd9d70/1.1.0/mac/26] via your iPhone or iPad device, or with your Android. [https://podcasters.apple.com/support/852-ratings-and-reviews] (Spotify allows only starred ratings but you can do that, too!)