Avrum Rosensweig
Avrum Rosensweig | |
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.jpg) Rosensweig leading a community Passover seder at Congregation Habonim in 2014 | |
| Born | Avram Isaac Rosensweig April 27, 1960 Kitchener, Ontario, Canada |
| Education |
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| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1996–present |
| Known for |
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| Notable work | The Avrum Rosensweig Show |
| Website | avrumrosensweig |
Avrum Rosensweig (born April 27, 1960) is a Canadian Jewish community leader, broadcaster and writer. He co-founded the humanitarian organization Ve'ahavta in 1996 and served as its founding executive director and chief executive officer for twenty years. He has also worked as a religious leader, radio and television host, and newspaper columnist.
Early life and education
Rosensweig was born Avram Isaac Rosensweig in Kitchener, Ontario, to Rabbi Phyvle (Philip) Rosensweig and Gitel Rosensweig (née Flicht).[1][2] Members of his mother's family, who came from Wierzbnik, Poland, were murdered during the Holocaust.[3]
He received an Orthodox Jewish education at Ner Israel Yeshiva in Toronto and later studied in Jerusalem. He subsequently studied journalism at Ryerson University.[4]
Ve'ahavta
Rosensweig and Stephen Epstein co-founded Ve'ahavta in 1996. The Toronto-based Jewish humanitarian organization takes its name from the Hebrew phrase meaning "and you shall love" and promotes the principle of tikkun olam, or repairing the world.[5] Rosensweig served as its executive director and chief executive officer until 2016, when he moved into the position of founder and ambassador.[6][7]
Under Rosensweig's leadership, Ve'ahavta organized international medical and disaster-relief missions and developed programs addressing homelessness and poverty in Toronto. Its medical teams worked in countries including Guyana and Zimbabwe and responded to natural disasters in Turkey, Sri Lanka, Haiti and Honduras.[6][5] The organization also advocated greater awareness of the Darfur genocide.[5]
Its Toronto initiatives included a mobile outreach van, educational and employment programs, a creative-writing contest for people experiencing homelessness, and the Ve'ahavta Street Academy.[8][9]
Rosensweig recruited medical professionals for Ve'ahavta's first mission to Guyana in 1997. The organization brought donated medicines and established temporary clinics serving rural communities.[10]
Ve'ahavta Street Academy
Rosensweig helped establish the Ve'ahavta Street Academy, which opened at George Brown College in 2011. The program was designed to provide education, personal support and employment preparation to people experiencing or at risk of homelessness.[6]
The academy developed from an idea proposed by Theresa Schrader, a winner of Ve'ahavta's creative-writing contest. Schrader and Rosensweig worked with George Brown College to develop the program and recruit instructors.[11]
Religious and community work
Rosensweig served as associate religious leader at Congregation Habonim Toronto from 2005 to 2015.[12][13]
He has also participated in initiatives involving Jewish and Indigenous communities. In 2015, CBC Radio interviewed him about Ve'ahavta's work with First Nations communities in Ontario.[14] Historian David S. Koffman later discussed Rosensweig's work in an examination of Canadian Jewish engagement with Indigenous issues.[15]
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Writing
Rosensweig has contributed commentary to the National Post, HuffPost, Haaretz, The Canadian Jewish News and Congregation Habonim's bulletin. His writing has addressed antisemitism, Holocaust remembrance, Indigenous–Jewish relations and social isolation.[16][17][18]
Broadcasting
Rosensweig co-hosted a food and restaurant program with Marty Galin on Toronto radio. The pair began on Talk 640, where their program was initially known as the Marty & Avrum Restaurant Show.[19]
In 1999, Galin and Rosensweig moved to CFRB, where they hosted a Saturday evening program,[20] Marty & Avrum: The Food Guys that featured discussions about food and restaurants.[21]
Galin and Rosensweig also hosted the television series Marty & Avrum: The Moveable Feast. Produced by Generator Films, the series followed them as they travelled across Canada in a motorhome and explored regional food and culture. Leader Media offered the series to international buyers at MIPTV in 2002.[22]
The Avrum Rosensweig Show
Rosensweig later launched The Avrum Rosensweig Show, an online interview podcast dealing with personal experiences, Jewish community affairs, Holocaust remembrance and Israel. Episodes have featured guests including Holocaust educator Eli Rubenstein, survivor Nate Leipciger, musician David Broza and Canadian ambassador to the United Nations Bob Rae.[23][24][25]
References
- ↑ Rosensweig, Avrum (November 3, 2011). "I haven't seen my father in 22 years. How do we?". Archived from the original on February 24, 2016. Retrieved February 17, 2016.
- ↑ Rosensweig, Avrum (May 6, 2010). "Happy Birthday Mom". Archived from the original on February 24, 2016. Retrieved February 17, 2016.
- ↑ "Congregation Habonim Toronto Bulletin" (PDF). Congregation Habonim Toronto. June 2012. Retrieved November 8, 2024.
- ↑ Rosensweig, Avrum (February 12, 2009). "A Rabbi, Rebbetzin, a Boy & a Biker". Archived from the original on February 24, 2016. Retrieved February 17, 2016.
- 1 2 3 Gordon, Sheldon (December 18, 2007). "Spurred by Rwanda Genocide, Activist Makes 'Love Thy Neighbor' a Mission". The Forward. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
- 1 2 3 "Ve'ahavta gala event marks 20 years of tikkun olam". The Canadian Jewish News. November 16, 2016. Retrieved November 7, 2024.
- ↑ "Ve'ahavta Announces Transition of Leadership". Ve'ahavta. May 2017. Retrieved November 7, 2024.
- ↑ "About Ve'ahavta". Ve'ahavta. Retrieved November 2, 2024.
- ↑ "Our Programs". Ve'ahavta. Retrieved November 8, 2024.
- ↑ Frei, Rosemary (May 26, 1998). "Lending a hand to Guyana's poor". Medical Post. 34 (20): 28. ProQuest 228886531.
- ↑ "Ron MacLean's Secret Life as a Mentor to the Homeless". HuffPost. April 15, 2012. Retrieved November 7, 2024.
- ↑ "Habonim Bulletin" (PDF). Congregation Habonim Toronto. June 2006. Retrieved November 8, 2024.
- ↑ Rosensweig, Avrum (May 2012). "Congregation Habonim Toronto Bulletin" (PDF). Congregation Habonim Toronto. p. 5. Retrieved November 9, 2024.
- ↑ "Ve'ahavta – "And You Shall Love"". CBC. 2015. Retrieved November 14, 2024.
- ↑ Koffman, David S. (2017). "Suffering & Sovereignty: Recent Canadian Jewish Interest in Indigenous People and Issues". Canadian Jewish Studies. 25. doi:10.25071/1916-0925.40013. ISSN 1916-0925.
- ↑ Rosensweig, Avrum (March 16, 2009). "A Plea to Jews Everywhere, Unprepared to Fight anti-Semitism". Haaretz. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
- ↑ Rosensweig, Avrum (April 4, 2012). "With Glowing Hearts? Coming to Terms with Our Dark Past". HuffPost. Retrieved November 7, 2024.
- ↑ Rosensweig, Avrum (May 9, 2016). "Yom HaShoah, the Visually Impaired and a Return to Auschwitz". HuffPost. Retrieved November 7, 2024.
- ↑ "CFMJ-AM, Global News Radio 640 Toronto, North York". The History of Canadian Broadcasting. Canadian Communications Foundation. Retrieved July 17, 2026.
- ↑ "CFRB-AM". The History of Canadian Broadcasting. Canadian Communications Foundation. Retrieved November 7, 2024.
- ↑ Gladstone, Bill (September 7, 2004). "Jewish group develops HIV treatment". Jewish Telegraphic Agency. Retrieved November 7, 2024.
- ↑ Kuzmyk, Jenn (April 5, 2002). "Leader picks up Paparazzi". C21Media. Retrieved July 17, 2026.
- ↑ "Avrum Rosensweig". The Avrum Rosensweig Show. Retrieved November 5, 2024.
- ↑ How to Be a Storyteller with Special Guest Eli Rubenstein. The Avrum Rosensweig Show. December 15, 2023. Retrieved November 5, 2024 – via YouTube.
- ↑ Ladies & Gentlemen: Canada's Ambassador to the UN, Bob Rae. The Avrum Rosensweig Show. October 30, 2024. Retrieved November 8, 2024 – via YouTube.