Celebrating the diversity of Canadian Jewish identity

May 14, 2026 • Jewish Federation of Ottawa

Celebrating the diversity
of Jewish Canadian identity

Jewish Heritage Month reminds us that Jewish identity defies a single definition. From Gillian Koh's Malaysian Chinese-Jewish household blending challah with mooncakes, to Alexa Barett-Taller's Jewish upbringing in the Dominican Republic, Canadian Jewish life is richly multicultural. These stories challenge stereotypes and celebrate a community shaped by migration, blended traditions, and the fullness of lived experience.

Launching the Jewish Community Support Services unit at JFS Ottawa

Jewish Family Services of Ottawa has launched the Jewish Community Support Services Unit (JCSS), uniting two longstanding programs to better serve the community with expanded, flexible care. The initiative also introduces Miriam’s Well+, a dignified clothing and household goods program. A Shavuot event later this month with PJ Library and the Merry Dairy will celebrate community giving, connection, and support.

Ottawa Jewish Community Foundation continues to build a culture of giving

The Ottawa Jewish Community Foundation has launched Life & Legacy Plus, an initiative encouraging donors to formalize legacy gifts directly into their wills. Building on a 2020–2024 program that secured $20 million in commitments, six local organizations are participating. Foundation will reimburse up to $1,000 in legal costs for qualifying gifts, helping ensure Jewish institutions thrive for generations to come.

Galeet Dardashti on music, identity,

and Iranian Jewish heritage

Anthropologist and singer Galeet Dardashti blends music, storytelling, and cultural history to explore her Iranian Jewish heritage. Ahead of her upcoming performance at the Soloway JCC, she speaks with the Ottawa Jewish E-Bulletin about identity, immigration, Persian music, and preserving stories of coexistence between Jews and Muslims in Iran through her acclaimed production, The Nightingale of Iran.

From the Vault: Die Folkshpieler, Ottawa's Yiddish theatre troupe

For nearly 20 years, Die Folkshpieler brought Yiddish theatre to life in Ottawa through comedy, music, and storytelling. In this From the Vault feature, Teigan Goldsmith Hitsman explores the troupe’s history, from its beginnings as a place for Yiddish speakers to gather at the Chapel Street JCC led by Shelley Steinberg to its lasting cultural legacy. It is the passion of the community and their spirit that kept Yiddish language and culture thriving on Ottawa stages.

Voices: How Jewish languages carry our history and identity

Languages are time capsules, especially Jewish languages. From Yiddish and Ladino to Yevanic and Bukharian, they hold the stories of our people's survival, but also of joy and celebration; they contain stories of how Jewish identity has been shaped across the diaspora. After years of abandoning them to assimilate, reframing how we think of them to preserve them remains vital to safeguarding Jewish culture, history, and collective memory.

Marking life's milestones

The Board of Directors of the Ottawa Jewish Community Foundation acknowledges with thanks contributions to the following funds as of May 7, 2026.

Click here to view fund contributions