Avrum Rosensweig

Rosensweig Leading Community Passover Seder at Habonim (2014)

Avrum Rosensweig was the Founding Director and CEO of Ve'ahavta, a Canadian Jewish non-profit humanitarian and relief organization for twenty years. Rosensweig co-founded Ve'ahavta (Hebrew for 'and you should love') with Stephen Epstein, with a mission to encourage all Jews, and all peoples, to play a role in tikkun olam, 'repairing the world'. In 2016, Rosensweig stepped down as CEO and took on the position of founder and ambassador, speaking and fundraising in support of Ve'ahavta. Rosensweig served as Associate Religious Leader at Congregation Habonim Toronto, from 2005 to 2015.

Early life

Rosensweig was born Avram Isaac Rosensweig in Kitchener, Ontario, April 27, 1960, the only son of Rabbi Phyvle (Philip) Rosensweig (1928–1989) and Gitel Rosensweig (née Flicht) (1930–2016). Rabbi Phillip Rosensweig came from a family of Orthodox Rabbis that emigrated to Canada during the turn of the last century. In his younger years, Rabbi Rosensweig was active in helping Jewish refugees from Europe flee persecution to come to Canada. Some of Gitel Rosensweig's family were Polish Jews from Wierzbnik (after 1952 called Starachowice), Poland, who were murdered in the Holocaust.

Rosensweig's grandparents from his mother's side were Moshe Chaim Flicht and Hilda Flicht , who both lost brothers and sisters who were murdered by the Nazis during the Holocaust. Moshe Chaim Flicht's father was Avraham Yitzchak Flicht, whom Rosensweig was named after. Avraham Yitzchak Flicht, his wife, and many of his children and grandchildren were taken out of their homes by the Nazis at the start of the war, and were shot and killed.

Avrum Rosensweig received an Orthodox Jewish education at Ner Israel Yeshiva in Toronto and later on in Jerusalem, Israel, followed by the study of journalism at Ryerson University.

Rosensweig with children at Community Passover Seder at Habonim (2014)

Ve'ahavta

Rosensweig co-founded Ve'ahavta with Stephen Epstein in 1996. The NGO is a Canadian Jewish humanitarian and relief organization. Ve'ahavta has launched initiatives in Canada and around the world. Paid internship programs consisting of "Recipe for Success," for people interesting in working in the food service industry; "Upper Shelf," to help individuals enter warehouse management opportunities, the Outreach Van Program, helping to serve needs in the community, and the "Building Foundations for Women" program. a nine-week intensive course load for people who identify as women.

Rosensweig at a Hurricane Katrina Benefit

In its first 15 years of operations, Ve'ahavta operated around the world assisting locals through medical care. Ve'ahavta medical teams set up clinics in Guyana and in Zimbabwe and responded to natural disasters in Turkey, Sri Lanka, Haiti, Honduras and other places. Ve'ahavta also launched local programs in Toronto for those experiencing homelessness and poverty, including the Mobile Jewish Response to the Homeless, a nightly van program whereby volunteers travel the streets of Toronto to assist those living on the street; the Ve'ahavta Street Academy, a school for the homeless or near homeless; and the Creative Writing Contest for the Homeless. Ve'ahavta has also operated homework clubs and photography contests.

Rosensweig recruited healthcare professionals for a trip to Guyana in 1997 to provide medical relief. Guyana was chosen due to its close ties to Canada, the medical needs of the rural population, and Guyana's extreme poverty. Rosensweig and Ve'ahavta were able to bring $12,000 in donated medicine from Apotex and Novopharm, as well as well as emergency shipments when Dr. Michael Seth Silverman and is team encountered malaria and typhoid in children.Rosensweig stated they were able to help heal 1000 men, women, and children with these pharmaceuticals.

In his introduction to a commemorative photo book on the Guyana mission, he wrote, "We enhanced many lives in Guyana, South America. It was an honor to do so and discover our Jewishness in this process, in the rural villages of Guyana. As you leaf through the pages of this book, please notice the goodness, gratitude and love so evident on the vibrant faces of our volunteers and the wonderful people of Guyana - and let it also inspire you to deeds of loving kindness."

Other areas of operation have included the Caribbean, in Thailand (after a tsunami) and the Philippines (after a hurricane), and advocating awareness about the genocide in Darfur.

Rosensweig Presenting Plaque to Chief Rodney Monague, of Christian Island, Survivor of Residential Schools (2009)

Ve'ahavta hosts a yearly gala, honoring Canadians of all backgrounds for their work in social, humanitarian, medical and educational fields. Honorees and keynote speakers have included, Mia Farrow, CBC's Ron Mclean, Moshe Hammer, Dr. Naomi Azrieli, Dr. Michael Dan, Irwin Cotler, Karen Levine, and Adam Hummel. Rosensweig, at the ceremony in 2009 said, "at the very essence of what it means to be a Jew, is the concept of Ve'ahavta - hat one should love their brother and their sister as they love themselves."

Rosensweig helped create Ve'ahavta Street Academy (VSA), a school that opened in 2011 for at-risk or vulnerable individuals in the Greater Toronto Area. The VSA is a three-month course held at George Brown College in Toronto. The Academy's goal is to provide participants with knowledge, resources and support in the creation of goals leading to healthy living.

The VSA was an idea originally thought up by a recovering addict and sex worker who won a Ve'ahavta creative writing contest. Rosensweig, serving as co-founder of Ve'ahavta, was approached by this individual, Theresa Schrader, looking for a summer job. Schrader and Rosensweig were planning the Ve'ahavta Street Academy with Schrader's idea of creating a scholastic institute, and George Brown College became a partner in the endeavor. At the time of the article Schrader was credited for bringing together the team of teachers, including the VP of Academics for GBC.

On the 20th anniversary of Ve'ahavta, National Director of March of the Living Canada, Eli Rubenstein said, "The vision and leadership of Avrum Rosensweig has not only helped countless people in all corners of the globe, it has also generated great honor for the world’s Jewish people. He has quite literally changed the landscape of Jewish communal responsibility.'

Contributions

Rosensweig has contributed and wrote columns with The National Post, Huffington Post, Haaretz, Canadian Jewish News, and Congregation Habonim Toronto's bulletin, where he contributed sermons and articles. In an article written about Eli Rubenstein's film titled "Blind Love: A Holocaust Journey to Poland with Man's Best Friend," Rosensweig interviewed Rubenstein, the National Director of March of the Living Canada since 1989, about the film. Rosensweig has written about hate speech, antisemitism, Canadian boarding schools, and Holocaust remembrance. Rosensweig was interviewed on CBC Radio in 2015 about his and Ve'ahavta's involvement, collaborating with First Nation peoples in Ontario.

Rosensweig was cited in an essay/article at York University by David S. Koffman in 2017. The essay/article, titled, "Canadian Jewish Studies Vol.25" looks at how Canadian Jews have been involved with Indigenous people's issues since the year 2000. It argues that Jewish interest in Indigenous matters grew after the Ahenakew incident in 2002, and became even stronger and more widespread after the launch of Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission in 2008.

In the Zen Judaism book, "The Case Against Contemporary American Phenomenon," author, Christopher L. Schilling cites Rosensweig's Canadian Jewish News article, "Isolated by Loneliness." The chapter, titled, "The Case Against Jewish Mindfulness Meditation," Schilling writes, "loneliness is perhaps one of the most urgent problems contemporary Jewish communities face" Schilling explores the rise in Jewish loneliness, and explains many situations in the course of life when the phenomenon of comes about.

Broadcasting

Rosensweig spent ten years on commercial radio in Toronto as the co-host and producer of a show about food and restaurants called Marty & Avrum: The Food Guys. Rosensweig and chef Marty Galin, spent five years at Talk 640 radio and the subsequent five years at CFRB 1010.

The two also appeared briefly on television in the early 2000s as co-hosts of a series which followed the pair as they toured the kitchens of chefs and sampled their dishes.

The Avrum Rosensweig Show

The Show was launched as conversational platform hosted by Rosensweig. The show features discussions with individuals from diverse backgrounds and their life experiences. A number of shows focus on Israel, specifically the reactions and feelings of its citizens to the events of October 7, 2023 and life afterwards.

One of its early shows featured the art of storytelling with Holocaust educator and senor religious leader, Eli Rubenstein. In 2024, Rosensweig and Rubenstein co-hosted the show, interviewing Holocaust survivor and educator, Nate Leipciger. The show was specifically about the response to antisemitism rising worldwide since October 7, 2023.

Over the course of the show to date, Rosensweig has had a number of notable guests such as Israeli reporter, Susie Stern, long-time Israeli musician, David Broza, Canada's Ambassador to the United Nations, Bob Rae, and Dr. Michael Silverman.

External Links

• Congregation Habonim Toronto
• Ve'ahavta website
• Avrum Rosensweig website