Holy Blossom Temple has a long history of helping those who want to settle in Canada. We are proud of the partnership we have with the Jewish Immigrant Aid Society (JIAS) to help newcomer Israelis find employment.
After October 7, JIAS has been leading a coordinated, community-wide response to meet the urgent and ongoing needs of individuals coming to Canada from Israel. They are currently supporting over 1,600 Israeli clients.
One of their most pressing needs is finding their first employment opportunity in Canada. Building a new professional network is essential for securing work in a new country.
If you have any job openings for experienced staff or would like to help individuals expand their networking, please email [email protected].
This week, we feature two clients – Adva, a solo-entrepreneur and senior product manager, and Konstantin, a business development and marketing specialist. Below is a brief description of their careers.
Adva is a solo-entrepreneur and a senior product manager with a background in backend development and UX design, giving me a well-rounded perspective on challenges. She has led the launch of 3 products and helped grow revenue by 200% over 3 years. She is now exploring AI tools to boost efficiency and pursuing Adlerian coach certification- bringing fresh perspectives to team collaboration.
Konstantin has over 5 years of experience as a results-driven professional in business development and marketing, specializing in B2B and B2C strategies for small and medium-sized enterprises. Strong expertise in CRM, email marketing, lead databases, and cadence tools. Proven track record in international startups, implementing innovative cadence tools to drive growth and enhance customer engagement. In his most recent position as a Marketing Assistant at ARS Repair and Installation Services Inc., he further developed his skills and gained a deeper understanding of the Canadian market. Currently, he is seeking opportunities in the GTA.
By Les Rothschild and Nina Rubinovich, Volunteer Coordinator (JIAS Toronto)
Thousands of Israelis have arrived in Toronto over the past year, looking to settle here, some temporarily and some permanently.
On May 26, Holy Blossom welcomed eleven JIAS clients – all recent arrivals from Israel – for a special speed mentoring event. This was the second such event that we hosted at Holy Blossom Temple. The last event resulted in four people being employed directly because of the contacts that they made. In addition, there were countless recommendations made to further their network
Holy Blossom mentors offered valuable insights, practical advice, and job search recommendations. They also shared their own professional experiences and contacts to help expand the newcomers’ networks. Following a round of speed mentoring, a panel discussion featured seasoned professionals who answered questions about effective networking strategies, addressing some of the challenges that newcomers face and highlighting the many benefits of mentorship.
The mentees left feeling encouraged, inspired, better connected, and more confident in their job search journey. Thank you to JIAS and our dedicated volunteers for hosting such a meaningful event.
If you are an employer, please consider our Israeli neighbours for your job opening. There are candidates available in many professions at various levels.
For more information, please contact Les Rothschild [email protected]a
Continuing a Holy Blossom Tradition
Holy Blossom Temple has a long history of helping those who want to settle in Canada. Inspired by our previous commitment to newcomers from all over the world, a new group has been formed at HBT to address the resettlement of Israelis. About 1000 Israelis have arrived in Toronto during the past year and it is estimated that this number may triple over the next 6-8 months.
Our partner in all these efforts continues to be the Jewish Immigrant Aid Society (JIAS)
This week we feature two Israelis who have recently arrived and are looking for employment. If you or anyone you know can provide any advice or network for these individuals, please contact Dana Fishman at [email protected].
Aerospace Engineer
Over 10 years of extensive experience in the field of Thermal engineering – designing, modelling and proving of Aerospace and defence systems and sub-systems. Expert in aerodynamic heating, CFD modelling, and ablation. Proficient in several heat transfer, CFD and radiation codes. Has a deep knowledge of Aerospace/Defense Product life cycle from idea to scrapping. I’m seeking opportunities in Aerospace and thermal engineering in Canada.
Software Engineer
Over 10 years of extensive experience in developing and designing high-performance computing frameworks, drivers and multi-sensor intelligence systems. Proficient in C++, C, C# with strong debugging and troubleshooting skills. Strong background in multithreaded distributed systems, data structures, algorithms and object-oriented programming. I’m seeking opportunities in software development in Canada.
By Jonathan Nyquist
The resilience of the Israeli people is inspiring, but like any community, their ability to withstand pressure and stress has its limits, especially for a young country still finding its way. Help from abroad, especially at a time like now seems more important than ever. In this vein, my team and I who help young adults from around the world travel to Canada to engage in meaningful, community-based work and travel experience at camps across Canada felt inspired to step in to see how we can shed a small amount of light on the sad and troubling issues unfolding in Israel.
We reached out to a friend in Toronto who is well-connected with communities in Israel who were displaced due to the war. We were able to connect with a number of skilled and talented 16 to 18-year-olds who were closely tied to the youth movement in Israel and who were eager to take a break from their disrupted lives in these displaced communities. They were ready to let their wings sore and come to Canada for a break to recharge, explore the world and feel free again.
We amended our program to reduce the financial hurdles involved and we linked up with the UJA to set up a fund to pay for the flights for these inspiring young leaders of the future. We also teamed up with a number of dedicated Jewish camps who are now eagerly awaiting the arrival of the staff and are excited to introduce them to their new summer homes.
It is a blessing to have an opportunity to play a very small role in making things better. The hope is to make this experience as enjoyable and as smooth as possible for the Israelis that participate this year and to build on this momentum and help many more for next summer. There is so much goodness in this world and it will always find its way through.
Thank you to Holy Blossom and Rabbi Splansky for being an inspiration on this journey. Praying for peace. If you would like to donate and support our community efforts, please click here: https://www.jewishtoronto.com/camp-canada
The Walk with Israel has been an annual Toronto Jewish community event for more than five decades. I’m sure that many of you have participated in the Walk at various times in your lives – perhaps when you were young, perhaps with your own kids or grandkids, perhaps simply when the weather was nice – always showing your proud support for Israel. Some years it’s been easy to be supportive, some years it’s been more difficult. This year, visibly showing your love for our Jewish homeland on Sunday, June 9, couldn’t be more important. This year, having feet on the ground – pun intended – really matters.
We have all witnessed the horrors in Israel at the hands of Hamas and have seen first-hand the rise of antisemitism in communities across the diaspora – sadly, our own Toronto community has not been exempt. By participating in this year’s Walk with Israel, you can not only demonstrate your support for the people of Israel, including the hostages held in Gaza for now more than six months, but you can also show the broader Toronto community that the Jewish people are resilient and cannot be stopped by those who despise Israel or hate Jews.
Here’s another idea: to amplify the impact of this year’s event, rather than simply participating in this year’s Walk with Israel with your own family and Jewish friends, please also invite your non-Jewish friends, colleagues and neighbours to join you. We simply cannot fight hatred alone and visible allyship is critical to our community’s future.
So, whatever your age (and whatever the weather forecast), please sign up at the link below, show up on the day and proudly wave your flags in support of Israel! Of course, Holy Blossom clergy and lay leadership will be walking alongside you – stay tuned for how to meet us on the day of the event.
Michael Davis
Chair, Holy Blossom Temple Advocacy Committee
Learn more & register for the 2024 UJA Walk with Israel here
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(416) 789-3291
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Founded in 1856, Holy Blossom Temple is Toronto’s first synagogue with a rich history of tradition and modernity in our religious and spiritual expression.