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Hi, everyone,
Community members, institutions and grassroots organizations grapple with a similar set of questions day in and day out: How do we cultivate and sustain a vibrant Jewish community in Ottawa? How do we ensure our Jewish community can thrive and remain safe within the broader City of Ottawa?
As a parent, I also focus on the experience I want for my children in Ottawa: Do my children know what it means to be Jewish? Do they find joy in being Jewish? Do they know what it means to be Jewish in public spaces? And are those spaces ready to welcome my proudly Jewish children in a way that ensures their safety?
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PJ Library, run locally through the Jewish Federation of Ottawa under the dynamic leadership of Eriel Ben-Gal, is helping Jewish families across Ottawa navigate these questions. The initiative cultivates Jewish joy and knowledge within our community while also working to reduce antisemitism in public spaces through educational resources about Jewish culture and history.
At its core, PJ Library does something beautifully simple: it spreads Jewish joy through books. Every Jewish child enrolled in PJ Library, from birth to age eight, receives a free, age-appropriate book each month, while children ages eight to 12 can continue their reading journey through PJ Our Way. Whether a child attends synagogue regularly, grows up in an interfaith family, or goes to a Jewish day school, supplementary school or public school, PJ Library helps nurture Jewish pride, identity and values through engaging stories. The program also offers a special collection of books for grandparents to share with their grandchildren, strengthening intergenerational connections and sparking meaningful conversations about Jewish life, traditions and what it means to be Jewish.
On their own, PJ Library's books are helping shape the next generation of Jewish leaders, strengthening their connection to Jewish history and culture. But PJ Library doesn't stop there.
Recognizing that Jewish identity is intricately linked to a sense of community, Federation's PJ Library connects and convenes families through Jewish activities and partnerships with community organizations. These include celebrations of Jewish holy days and holidays, such as the recent Family Sukkah Hop in partnership with Machzikei Hadas Synagogue. Other activities put Jewish values into action, such as assembling care packages filled with essential items and personal messages to uplift people in our community who are unhoused, in partnership with Jewish Family Services. These gatherings reinforce our sense of community and shared future. (To view upcoming events, including a special family forest walk this Sunday, visit here.)
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With increasing antisemitism in public schools and public spaces since October 7, PJ Library and Federation are also working to protect Jewish students by bringing greater education and awareness of Jewish culture and identity into classrooms. PJ Library partners with teachers in both the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board and the Ottawa Catholic School Board to provide educational kits containing books, teacher guides and supporting materials. The most recent book kit initiative, during Jewish Heritage Month in May, saw almost 200 kits delivered to the two school boards, reaching an estimated 7,000 children. Planning is underway for the next phase, timed for Hanukkah, with demand already growing to more than 245 kits, reaching 45 new educators and their students. If you know of an educator who might be interested, please share this link.
Through this work, we are helping change attitudes and behaviours within the school system, safeguarding our students and their cultural identity. Teachers have been very supportive of the book kits, with one stating that “all cultures and religions have the right to be represented in all publicly funded schools. Books are the best way to ensure this happens.” Students have also affirmed that the kits help them better understand Jewish traditions and culture.
When Jewish children are often the only Jewish students in their classrooms, these books and resources help foster understanding of what it means to be Jewish beyond stereotypes, building inclusion and connections through education. We are breaking down barriers with teachers and students, with the hope that these messages will also reach parents and the broader school system. All of this helps Jewish students in Ottawa be safer and feel safer in their classrooms and schools.
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Within our own homes, PJ Library is also helping us tackle the difficult subject of antisemitism with our children. In a recent email, PJ Library's Executive Director, Alex Zablotsky, noted that “incidents and talk of antisemitism seem impossible to avoid. If we don’t have a discussion in our home about antisemitism and what it means to be Jewish, our kids will encounter that information elsewhere.” To help families navigate these conversations, PJ Library worked with educators, psychologists, pediatricians, historians, rabbis and other experts to create a free toolkit designed to help adults talk about antisemitism with children while cultivating Jewish resilience, joy and pride. It is available to any PJ Library family who would like one: PJ Library's A Time to Talk toolkit.
PJ Library's advocacy and education about Jewish life and culture continue to evolve and expand through innovative partnerships, identifying where people across Ottawa gather and where greater understanding of Jewish life can have the most impact.
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Next on the horizon is a developing partnership with the Ottawa Public Library system. This initiative will bring PJ Library books and Jewish educational resources into library displays throughout the city, using an important public institution to share Jewish literature and culture beyond our classrooms and with the broader community. We look forward to sharing more as this project takes shape.
What began as sharing age-appropriate books about Jewish life and values with Jewish children has grown into a powerful way to cultivate Jewish joy and resilience, combat antisemitism through education, and help keep Jewish students safe in our public schools. It represents the best of our ambitions for Jewish Ottawa and the best of how we connect with one another and with the broader Ottawa community.
For families with young children who are not yet part of PJ Library, you can learn more here. And for anyone who would like to support Federation’s important work, including programs like PJ Library, please consider making a gift to our Annual Community Campaign here.
| | November is Holocaust Education Month | | |
In recognition of Holocaust Education Month, the Jewish Federation of Ottawa’s Shoah Committee invites you to a special screening of Memories of a Room on November 5 at 7 p.m., followed by a conversation and Q&A with Dr. Hartley Stern, Interim CEO of the Jewish Federation of Ottawa, and Alex Munter, chair of the Shoah Committee. This powerful documentary tells the remarkable story of a Jewish family of eight, including Dr. Stern’s mother, who survived the Holocaust together while in hiding in the Netherlands.
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