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I came to Toronto from Leeds, England when I was 10 years
old. Ours was a traditional Jewish home, and my father had
a tzedakah box that we contributed to for a variety of Jewish
charities.
I first became aware of the importance of being actively
involved with the Jewish community when the 6-Day war broke
out, and my late husband Max took time away from his business,
as did many other people, to solicit and collect donations
to support Israel in her hour of need.
Max urged me to become a volunteer working on behalf of Israel.
I started in UJA when Marvelle Koffler was chair of Women’s
campaign. We adopted the idea of the $365 box, where women
agreed to donate a $1 a day for a year. I was in charge of
dropping off and collecting the boxes. I also initiated the
Lion of Judah category in Toronto, already popular in the
U.S. Women who make an annual campaign gift of $5,000 are
given a very special pin to commemorate this distinction.
I introduced the first pin in Toronto when I became Chair
of the Women’s Campaign in 1986. Today there are over
500 women in Toronto who proudly wear the pin.
My children grew up seeing how important it was for Max and
me to contribute to the ongoing needs of the Jewish community.
The Handelman family is affiliated with Zareinu, Jewish National
Fund, Baycrest Centre, and Shaare Tzedek Hospital. However,
UJA Federation still remains most important to me, because
as the umbrella organization for our community, it supports
so many agencies and worthwhile causes.
I believe what’s most significant is passing on from
generation to generation the connection and responsibility
we feel for Jews everywhere in the world. When I asked my
grandson, who was on a tour in Israel this past summer, what
the most memorable part of the trip was, he said it was the
emotion he experienced when his plane touched down. Hearing
him say that makes me realize that Max and I have managed
to pass our values and traditions on through our children
to our grandchildren.
I am proud that I have endowed my Lion of Judah gift. I think
of it is a very small piece of the big picture, but if everyone
left something small, our collective future would be in terrific
shape.
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