Weekly Newsletter- October 21, 2022

October 21, 2022 / Tishri 26, 5783

Shabbat Begins: 5:52 p.m.  Shabbat Ends: 6:56 p.m.  

Parsha: Bereishit: Genesis 1:1 – 6:8

At King David we love to celebrate the holidays! And what better way to celebrate Simchat Torah than with Simcha (joy)? We really brought the Torah scene to life this year. Each TAG group was assigned the name of one of the 12 Tribes and then sat in their specific place around the “Mishkan” in our own desert (the Atrium). As the 12 tribes sat, they listened to their own Grade 12 leaders: Moshe (Jesse Millman), Tzipporah (Ella Ankenmann), Miriam (Nikki Wiseman) and Aaron (Max Kimel). These leaders spoke to the children of Israel from up above and advised them how to make the most of their time at King David. 

Then, as we do each year, the school stood for the reading of the Torah and the dancing of course! To get us all in the mood for dancing with the Torah, each Tribe of Israel competed in making their own TikTokTorah by creating moves and dancing to Jewish music. Our winning TikTokTorah was from Shevet Ephraim and our teacher extraordinaire, Matt Dichter!

On Thursday evening, an atrium full of prospective families attended our annual Open House to discover the King David difference. Through a video (click here), presentations, and interactive tours, our guests experienced how King David is filled with students who love to learn, imagine, challenge themselves, and create community, how the school nurtures the qualities that make them individuals, and how we help them find opportunities for excellence in the classroom, on sports fields, in the kitchen, in the art studio, and as mensches. 

This year, in addition to the Jewish life offered at King David, we focused on the way King David helps students to balance values, wellness, and academic success. The evening was kicked off by our student speakers, Grade 12 student Emma Silber and her Grade 8 sibling, Ash Silber. Emma spoke from the Grade 12 perspective and highlighted her experiences over the past five years and Ash, who shared that most of his high school career so far had been spent at home because of the chaggim, spoke about the ease of settling into King David and the feeling of community.

A large part of what we instill in our students is a strong Jewish identity, and Rabbi Berger took some time to talk about our Judaic Studies curriculum and the ways in which Jewish values are at the core of what we do.

A driving force for staff at King David is our belief that our students are on the path to becoming conscientious, empathetic, and adaptable leaders for change. Our Head of School, Russ Klein, talked about how this is a better measure of success than grades – though we also have a robust academic program and our students consistently do well in our classes and on post-secondary campuses. King David takes a holistic approach to teaching our students, weighing values and student wellness as equal to academic success.

Our thanks to alumni, Erica Forman (Class of 2022), Casey (Class of 2021) and Georgia (Class of 2019) Krombein for joining us and sharing their King David experience with prospective families. We also were joined by Marissa Jampolsky (Class of 2015) and her sister Elise (Class of 2018). 

On October 20, Ms. Wiesenthal’s Holocaust Studies 12 class heard from guest speaker Jack Micner, a second generation Holocaust survivor, who shared the story of his family’s experience in the Holocaust. Hannah Kertesz reflects on the conversation: “One compelling piece of the story that stuck out to me was Jack’s father, Chaim’s, journey to Canada. He came to Canada after saying he was a tailor, going through a simple test of sewing a button onto a scrap of fabric, and began life here starting a scrap metal company. Soon after, he married his wife Susy, also a holocaust survivor, and had three children, Fay, Jack and Sam. After the trauma he endured, Chaim found peace and stability in Canada. Having Jack come in to speak about his story was a great opportunity for the class, and I think we all took a lot away from it.”

Pictured above (left to right): Yoav Sheffer, Tessa Wasel, Andrew Bakonyi, Harlow Holmes, Zev Rootman, Sharon Dorfman, Maayan Daniel, Maytal Daniel, Arlo Foxman, Ash Silber

In Mr. Mymko’s Science 8 classes, students are learning about the characteristics of living things and how they are composed of cells. Learners demonstrated their understanding of the similarities and differences of plant and animal cells by presenting edible cell models. 

Congratulations to the Senior Boys Soccer Team for coming in second place in the Sea to Sky Zone Championships. They beat Pemberton Secondary School and West Point Grey Academy. Good luck as they play in the GVISAA championships next week!

COMMUNITY OPPORTUNITIES AND EVENTS

 2023 JCC Maccabi in

 Israel or Florida!

Next summer, 3,000 Jewish teen athletes, representing communities from across the globe, will come together to experience the magic of JCC Maccabi, the world’s largest Jewish youth sports event.

Join Team Vancouver for your choice of 3 weeks in Israel or 1 week in Ft. Lauderdale

Click image for more information

Tikva Housing Project Applications Open

Tikva provides affordable homes primarily for Jewish low to moderate income singles, couples, and families. Applications open for Dogwood Gardens (Cambie and 59th).

Click image for more information

Emotional Regulation Skills Workshop for Parents

Project L’Chaim

Tuesday, November 1,

8:00-9:30 p.m

Zoom

Click image for more information

Israel Consular Visit

October 30-

November 1

Click image for more information

Celebrate Women’s Philanthropy at Choices

November 3 at 5:00 p.m.

Click image for more information

King David High School acknowledges we teach, learn and live on the traditional and

ancestral lands of the Coast Salish nations of Musqueam (xʷməθkʷəy̓əm), the

Squamish (Sḵwx̱wú7mesh), and the Tsleil-Waututh (səl̀ilwətaʔ),