December 31, 2020: It’s been an honour to serve as editor of the Ottawa Jewish Bulletin

By Michael Regenstreif

Well, here we are, it’s the last day of 2020 and this column, my 235th “From the Editor” column since 2008, is my swan song as editor of the Ottawa Jewish Bulletin. Sadly, it is also the swan song of the Bulletin after 83 years of publication.

The Ottawa Jewish Bulletin was founded in 1937 by the Ottawa Jewish Community Council/Vaad Ha’Ir (now the Jewish Federation of Ottawa), which stated the Bulletin was to be “a force for constructive communal consciousness.”

In 2013, when the Bulletin received it’s most recent design makeover, that goal from 1937 was placed in our masthead along with the mission statement to communicate “the messages of the Jewish Federation of Ottawa and its agencies” and our aim “as the city’s only Jewish newspaper” to “inform, inspire and enrich the lives of all members of this diverse community.”

“Ours is a community newspaper, owned by the community, and maintained (we hope) by the community,” wrote editor Myer K. Epstein in his welcoming statement in the first 1937 issue, and Epstein and the 11 editors – including myself – who followed him have strived to fulfil the mandate through changing times, changing technologies and an Ottawa Jewish community that has constantly evolved. Over the decades, the Bulletin has strived to tell the story – the stories – of our community’s evolution.

When the Bulletin began publishing in 1937, Ottawa’s Jewish community was very different than it is today. Back then, the community was much smaller than it is now. It was geographically concentrated downtown in the adjacent Lowertown and Sandy Hill neighbourhoods, and its synagogues were exclusively Orthodox. There were not yet any Jewish day schools in the city and the network of Jewish social service agencies we know today had yet to develop.

In contrast, the Ottawa Jewish community of today is about four times the size it was in 1937 and it spreads out across the city and suburbs. Ottawa now has congregations reflecting all of the major Jewish denominations, two Jewish day schools, several supplementary schools, and a variety of social service agencies taking care of the vulnerable among us.

I moved to Ottawa in the summer of 2007 to work at the Ottawa Jewish Bulletin – as assistant editor for the first six months and as editor since February 2008. Last February, I became the Bulletin’s longest serving editor in the paper’s 83-year history.

And there has been much evolution in the community just in the 13-and-a-half years I’ve been here. We’ve reported on so much – including the amalgamation of schools and congregations; changing leadership at both the lay and professional levels; the emergence of an emphasis on services and programming for the emerging generation and young families; and, most recently, how the community has risen to meet the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.

One of the most interesting developments I’ve written about in the Bulletin has been how the face of the clergy in the city has changed as non-Orthodox congregations have embraced egalitarianism and diversity. In 2013, it was a major story when Ottawa’s first female and LGBTQ rabbi arrived in the city. Now, there are others, and it is no longer an issue.

As mentioned, I had 11 predecessors as editor of the Ottawa Jewish Bulletin and I stood on the shoulders of all who came before me. I will mention two of them in particular: Cynthia (Cindy) Engel and Barry Fishman.

Cindy was editor of the Bulletin for 12 years beginning in 1980 and during her tenure the paper truly evolved into the big-tent journal it has been over the past 40 years. Cindy has been incredibly supportive over the years as I’ve faced the challenges of editing the newspaper and telling the stories of the community.

Barry was the Bulletin’s editor for about seven years beginning in 2001. His vision of community was intelligent, informed and open-minded and he further broadened the Bulletin’s scope, including subscribing to the wire service serving Jewish newspapers around the world, the Jewish Telegraphic Association (JTA), to provide stories about Israel and Jewish communities around the world. Barry’s editor’s columns were often political and sometimes controversial, also something never before seen in the Bulletin.

When I was hired to fill the newly-created and temporary position of assistant editor, it was following Barry’s diagnosis with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, a terrible disease in which the muscles of the body too-quickly break down. People with ALS ultimately lose their ability to walk, to talk, to eat on their own, and then even to swallow and breathe. While the body breaks down, the mind remains intact.

The goal in my hiring was to work with Barry as long as possible and then, hopefully, take over as editor. I worked with Barry for six months – learning much from him, becoming a friend, and sadly, watching the fast progression of his disease. Barry stepped down in February 2008 and I became the Bulletin’s editor. Sadly, Barry passed away on October 22, 2009 at just 58.

As editor, I attempted to remain faithful to Barry’s vision for the Bulletin and to expand on it. I’ve tried to expand the range of voices in the paper to be reflective of the community’s diversity of thought. In fact, what I’ve most appreciated in the Bulletin are the opinion columns in which people have come forward to have a say on issues important to the Jewish world, or important to them as members of the Jewish community. In addition to the regularly scheduled columns, I have always encouraged members of the community to submit guest columns and letters-to-the-editor on issues of concern to the Jewish community.

The internet-social-media era of the past decade has been hard on almost all newspapers and magazines at almost every level, almost everywhere – and this has been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Even before the pandemic, many newspapers and magazines shifted to online-only models, and many others ceased operations entirely.

In March, the Bulletin suspended the print edition and pivoted to website-only publishing of articles and columns for what we thought would be a short, temporary period. The plan was to return to publishing the print edition as soon as possible. Unfortunately, in October, the board of our parent organization, the Jewish Federation of Ottawa, came to the hard decision that the Ottawa Jewish Bulletin was no longer financially viable and that our operations would close at the end of the year. I’ve no doubt that it was a hard decision to make.

I turned 65 in 2019 and decided then that I wasn’t yet ready to retire. I recovered from open-heart surgery to replace my aortic valve in 2018 and was then, as now, feeling healthier and stronger than I had in decades. I thought I would stay on the job for another few years before handing off the Bulletin to its next editor.

I regret that that’s not now the case. More than that, though, I’m sorry that the Jewish community of Ottawa is losing its newspaper, an institution that has helped bind the community together, and build community, for 83 years.

As a people, Jews have always valued literacy and Jewish community newspapers have had an important role to play since the 1800s – if not before. Sadly, many Jewish community newspapers around the world have disappeared in recent years. Almost all remaining Jewish newspapers are struggling at some level and I fear more will disappear in the coming years.

There are so many people who have contributed to the Bulletin during my tenure as editor and although I can’t possibly mention them all by name, I do want to say thank you to all of them, and mention a few.

The Bulletin has had several business managers during my years taking care of advertising and subscriptions: Rhoda Saslove-Miller, Cindy Manor, Barry Silverman, Toby Roodman and, from 2016 until now, Eddie Peltzman.

When I started at the Bulletin, I quickly learned what a great resource production manager Brenda Van Vliet was. Until she retired in 2017, Brenda worked at the Bulletin for 22 years and, in addition to her layout skills, she was a great source of institutional memory. After Brenda retired, our layout was in the skilled hands of production consultant Patti Moran.

We’ve had a number of terrific young journalists serve as our summer interns over the years – some of whom became reliable freelance reporters for periods of time. They include Liana Schlien, Jacqueline Shabsove, Ilana Belfer, Alex Baker, Monique Elliot, Hannah Berdowski, Michael Aareneau, Norah Mor, and Matthew Horwood.

Other freelance reporters whose work has enhanced the Bulletin over these past 13 years have included Benita Baker, former editor Cynthia Engel, Diane Koven, Louise Rachlis and Dana Simpson.

There are many photographers whose work has graced our pages over the years but among the most prolific and reliable have been Howard Sandler and Peter Waiser.

I mentioned earlier that my favourite part of the Bulletin has been the opinion columns. Among the regular opinion columnists over the years have been Jason Moscovitz, Barbara Crook, Alan Echenberg, Mira Sucharov, Oliver Javanpour, Stephanie Shefrin, Sarah Waisvisz, and Rabbi Steven Garten. Other long-time columnists have included Rubin Friedman on humour, Cindy Feingold on food, Gloria Schwartz on fitness, as well as all the pulpit rabbis, all the Federation chairs, and many other committee and agency representatives.

There are also many community members who have contributed book reviews to the Bulletin. Some of them include columnists who have already been mentioned, but one other I must single out is Murray Citron, whose visits to the Bulletin office I’ve missed since we started working at home during the pandemic.

I’ve also appreciated working closely with the staff of the Jewish Federation of Ottawa, the Bulletin’s parent organization. There are too many people over the years to mention, but I will single out the two Federation CEOs I’ve worked with – first Mitchell Bellman, and since 2013, Andrea Freedman – who have also filled the role of the Bulletin publisher. I will also single out the two Federation communications managers – at first Francie Greenspoon, and since 2013, Pauline Colwin – whose portfolios included the day-to-day affairs of the Bulletin.

I’m sure there are many other names who could have been mentioned – who should have been mentioned. My apologies to those I missed.

All of our lives have been tremendously difficult in 2020. So much has been on hold during the pandemic and there have been so many lives lost to COVID. Hopefully, with vaccines now beginning to roll out, 2021 will eventually return us to some sort of normalcy.

Truth be told, the past couple of months since the announcement of the Bulletin’s end have been emotional and difficult. It’s not easy to see something one has invested so much time and effort into over so many years come to an end. However, I have taken much comfort in the supportive emails, Facebook messages and phone calls I’ve received from so many readers – many of them Bulletin readers for much longer than I’ve been the editor. I thank everyone who has reached out.

Despite always limited resources, the Ottawa Jewish Bulletin has done some very good work over more than eight decades. It’s been an honour to serve as editor these last 13 years.

April 24, 2020: Observations from these strange days

By Michael Regenstreif

 Just over six weeks ago, on Thursday, March 12, I left the Ottawa Jewish Bulletin office at the Soloway Jewish Community Centre (SJCC), knowing I’d be working from home the next day but hoping I’d be back on my desk at the beginning of the following week.

The SJCC was closing temporarily because of suspicion that a member who had been at the centre had been exposed to COVID-19. The person was being tested and we expected to return to the office quickly if the person did not have the virus. And while that person’s test was negative, by that Monday, March 16, everything had changed – virtually everywhere.

Schools, most businesses, libraries, community centres and houses of worship – any place where people normally gather – all closed their doors that week. All cultural and sporting events were postponed or cancelled and everyone was asked to remain at home as much as possible and to observe physical distancing from other people in an attempt to “flatten the curve” of the spread of this novel coronavirus.

I expect it will still be some time before life begins to return to normal – or to whatever will be the “new normal.”

And while it has been inspiring to see our community come together in solidarity to take care of each other while remaining physically distant (documented in numerous Bulletin stories and columns), the loss of our way of life – even if temporary – has been difficult.

For me, it has been hard not being able to zip into Montreal for regular visits with my mother (who turns 92 next month) – although we talk daily on the phone. This Passover was the first time that we weren’t together as a family on seder nights.

But much more difficult has been witnessing the staggering loss of life to COVID-19 – here in Ottawa, across the country and around the world. It became personal when three people I knew in the U.S. died from it. Much closer to home, Norma Moscovitz, the mother of my friend and fellow Bulletin columnist Jason Moscovitz, was one of numerous residents of the Maimonides Geriatric Centre, the largest historically-Jewish long-term care home in Montreal, who died from COVID-19 this week. To Jason and his family, and to all families who have lost loved ones to this pandemic, I send my deepest condolences – and know that I speak for virtually all Bulletin readers in doing so.

Long-term homes have been particularly hard-hit by COVID-19 with more than half the deaths in Ontario and Quebec, and in may other locations, occurring in such centres. Thankfully, there have not been cases at Hillel Lodge, the Jewish community’s long-term care home in Ottawa. Strict measures, introduced early on at the Lodge, seem to have kept the disease at bay there.

The COVID-19 crisis and the economic uncertainty that came with it has taken a heavy toll on so many enterprises and Jewish community newspapers – struggling to remain viable in the digital age – have not been immune. As I announced in my previous column, the Ottawa Jewish Bulletin has had to temporarily suspend our print edition until we can return to some semblance of normal activity. We continue, though, to use our website as a forum for columns and news reports. Please visit the site regularly for new content or follow us on Facebook or Twitter for updates and links when new content is posted.

Although we are maintaining our online presence and plan to return in print as soon as possible, the Canadian Jewish News (CJN), which had editions serving Toronto and Montreal, Canada’s two largest Jewish communities, was not so lucky.Elizabeth Wolfe,

“Unfortunately, we too have become a victim of COVID-19,” wrote Elizabeth Wolfe, president of the CJN board,” in an announcement online on April 2 (and published in its final edition, April 9). “Already struggling, we are not able to sustain the enterprise in an environment of almost complete economic shut down. It is with deep sadness that we announce the closure of our beloved CJN, both in print and online.”

This was actually the second time the CJN has announced it was shutting down. The paper previously announced its closure in 2013, but found a way to restructure and move forward following an outcry from the community. But while the paper was able to hang on for almost seven more years, “The CJN suffered from a pre-existing condition and has been felled by COVID-19,” wrote Wolfe.

While I started in journalism as a music critic at the Montreal Gazette, my career in Jewish community journalism began as a freelance CJN reporter and feature writer in Montreal about 30 years ago. Even after moving to Ottawa to work at the Bulletin, I remained a weekly reader of the Montreal edition – and an occasional reader of the Toronto edition as well. So, my connection to the paper runs deep and as both a reader and a Jewish community journalist, it pains me greatly to see Canada’s two largest Jewish communities be without a newspaper.

I’ve seen some speculation from several writers connected to the CJN that “a new CJN” may be launched in the months ahead – perhaps as an online publication. I hope that’s the case. Jewish community newspapers have a long and rich tradition – the Ottawa Jewish Bulletin, for example has been serving our community for almost 83 years – and are vital to our communities.

As we continue to navigate through this pandemic and these strange days, please stay safe and stay well.

Shabbat Shalom.

November 11, 2013: The new Ottawa Jewish Bulletin is about to be revealed

By Michael Regenstreif

This is it. The final issue of the Ottawa Jewish Bulletin to be published with the “old” design we’ve had for many years. Next issue – the November 25 community-wide Chanukah edition – will mark the debut of our new, fresh print design.

Virtually all newspapers go through a redesign process from time to time. Having read through back issues going back to 1937, I’ve been able to see how our look has been modernized and refreshed from era to era – both in look and content. The design we’re retiring with this issue was itself once new and fresh and was a big step forward from how the Bulletin looked 15 or so years ago.

But we’re ready for change, and we think you’re going to like the new look when you see it in a couple of weeks.

In addition to the new look, we’re also looking at more in-depth coverage and analysis of some of the important issues facing our community. One story we’re working on, for example, is a look at the issues and challenges currently being faced by Ottawa’s various synagogues.

We’re also completely redoing our website at ottawajewishbulletin.com. Until now, our site has typically included just a couple of articles and a long list of the headlines from the edition’s stories and columns.

The new ottawajewishbulletin.com will be a dynamic site that will include – for the first time – an online version of the complete print edition of the Bulletin. With an Internet connection, you’ll be able to read the paper on your computer or tablet, and we’ll feature additional content like important breaking news and regularly updated news stories and features from Israel and around the Jewish world – much more content than we’ve ever had room for in the print edition. You’ll want to check the site regularly for new stories.

The Bulletin will remain a forum for our Jewish community to engage on issues of interest and concern. As always, we’ll continue to welcome your letters and guest columns. This is your community newspaper, so let your voice be heard.

It’s been a long process. It all started about two years ago with discussions at the Jewish Federation of Ottawa’s Communications and Community Relations Committee. That led to the creation of the Ottawa Jewish Bulletin Review Committee, which undertook a thorough review of the paper – including an extensive readers’ survey. It was the committee’s report and recommendation to the Federation Board, more than a year ago, which led to the award-winning team at David Berman Communications being commissioned to redesign the print edition and create our new website.

And, we’ve created new Facebook and Twitter accounts. Like us at facebook.com/ Ottawajewishbulletin or follow us at twitter. com/@JBulletin to stay up to date with the print and web editions of the Bulletin.

So, we’re ready to celebrate this milestone in Ottawa Jewish Bulletin history. Please join us on Tuesday, November 26, 7 pm, at the Soloway Jewish Community Centre for our launch event at the Federation’s members’ meeting. The team from David Berman Communications will give us a guided tour through the redesign and new website and you’ll hear some brief remarks and comments from columnists Jason Moscovitz, Barbara Crook, Mira Sucharov – and me.

Something else that hasn’t changed in many years at the Bulletin are our subscription rates despite constantly rising printing and mailing costs over the past decade or more. They will have to go up in 2014, but we are offering an opportunity to subscribe or extend your current subscription for up to two years at the old rate. Act soon, though, because the offer expires at the end of 2013.

See the ad on page 22.

Kashrut in Quebec

There is a JTA story on page 8 that asks whether resurging nationalism will lead to another exodus of Jews from Quebec. Tensions have risen recently in the wake of the minority Parti Québécois (PQ) provincial government’s proposing its Charter of Quebec Values.

Now, we’ve received a report that François Gendron, Quebec’s agriculture minister, is planning to introduce new regulations governing kosher and halal meat production. This would be over and above the regulations already enforced across Canada by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.

This is worrisome because the PQ said in 2012 that the slaughter of animals for halal meat production “slams directly against Québécois values.”

Lawrence Bergman, the only Jewish member of Quebec’s National Assembly, pointed out that the PQ statement was ethnic bashing and that it was “odious, unacceptable and reeks of intolerance.”