Hello Rady Friends,
It’s Rosh Hashanah again, which means it is time for my annual attempt to write something meaningful about reflection and renewal without sounding like every other Rosh Hashanah email you have received this week.
I’m going to give it a shot.
When I think about the past year at the Rady, I keep coming back to one word: connection.
I could write forever about the hundreds of programs, classes, and events that brought people together over the past year. Our goal has always been simple: to make sure that anyone who walks through our doors has an experience that makes them feel a little more connected, supported, inspired, or joyful when they leave.
There have been countless moments like that this year. And right now, I want to share with you just a few.
Our Asper Community Shabbat dinners grew into something really special. Once a month, Jewish and non-Jewish community leaders sat around tables together, shared a meal, and had conversations that often continued long after dinner was over.
It was a pretty simple idea. Get good people around a table and see what happens. Turns out, quite a lot can happen.
Our young people also had an incredible year and connected.
After years away, we brought a Winnipeg delegation back to the JCC Maccabi Games in Toronto. Nine young athletes competed in volleyball, soccer, and 3x3 basketball, proudly representing our city and the Rady JCC.
They came home with new friendships, new confidence, and a bronze medal in 3x3 basketball. But the medal was only part of the story.
They experienced Jewish Community on a remarkable scale. They met young people from across Canada, the United States, Israel, and beyond. They supported one another and came home with memories that will stay with them for years to come.
That is what investing in our young people looks like.
And then there was our Sports Dinner.
Nearly 1,200 people came together to celebrate and relive an unforgettable baseball moment and, most importantly, raise nearly $450,000 that will continue making a difference throughout our community and beyond long after the lights came down.
Part of that generosity helped us create one of the most successful day camp seasons in our history, with more than 2,100 children of all backgrounds coming through our doors this summer. Many received partial or full subsidies, and we did not have to turn anyone away because of financial barriers.
That is what community looks like.
We also announced an exciting new partnership with the Saul & Claribel Simkin Centre and the approval of the Faye Vickar Lazer Early Learning Centre, a new licensed early learning and childcare centre that will open on the grounds of the Simkin Centre in Spring 2028.
It is an extraordinary opportunity to bring two organizations with deep roots in Winnipeg together around something that will serve families for generations.
And these are just a few of the countless moments of connection that made this past year special.
There were seniors who found friendship here. Children who discovered something they loved. Families who celebrated together. Newcomers who found a place to belong. People who came through our doors for the first time and quickly began to feel like they had always been part of the Rady.
Many of these moments happened quietly, without much fanfare. But they matter. Because when I think about the Rady, I am reminded that we are not really about buildings or programs, or even memberships. We are about people.
That is what makes me most proud as we begin a new year.
Don’t get me wrong; there is still plenty of work ahead of us. There always is. But I am incredibly optimistic about where we are going, and deeply grateful to have so many of you along for the journey.
On behalf of Rady JCC President Murray Gilfix, our Board of Directors, and my fellow Rady staff, thank you for helping make this place what it is.
Whether you celebrate Rosh Hashanah or not, may the year ahead bring you and your families good health, happiness, and of course, more meaningful connections.
Shanah Tovah.
Rob Berkowits
CEO
Rady JCC
