PRINCIPAL'S MESSAGE  

It seemed impossible, but every year our talented faculty and students (not to mention a slew of dedicated parents) manage to raise the bar even higher to produce a musical of unparalleled quality for an elementary school. Fiddler on the Roof dazzled and delighted sold out crowds two nights in a row! Our students maturely rose to the pressure and challenge and wowed parents, grandparents, peers and community members with a show that even newcomers to the musical and our school's youngest students could enjoy. Although two days have passed since the closing, the tunes are still being hummed in the school corridors (and not just by the performers)!  

Preparing for a show like Fiddler involved much dedication and sacrifice. Our students spent two months worth of lunch hours in rehearsals as well as Sundays and Pro-D days. And many of the performers had upwards of 1000 lines to memorize! In addition to the spirit such an endeavour fosters, one unforeseen benefit of participation are the cross-grade friendships that develop within the group. It is so nice to see students of differing grades enjoying each other's company.  

Kol Ha'Kavod to everyone involved, with special thanks to Joe Ritchie, Drama Specialist, Elana Jacobson, Music Specialist, Astrid Visscher, Costumer, Susan Quig, Assistant Costumer, our pit orchestra members: Sandi Millman, David Newman and Roberto Schwartz, and the many, many parents and community donors and volunteers who gave so much to make the show a success. Of course, a big yasher ko'ach to our Grade 5, 6, & 7 students for a remarkable accomplishment!

To order a copy of the Fiddler DVD (until Friday, April 1st), click the PayPal link below.

To see the photos, click this link

To see photos taken by Neal Nep, father to Elana Jacobson, click this link.

Shabbat Shalom,

Cathy Lowenstein, M.Ed.

Principal   

Parashat Ha'Shavuah/Weekly Torah Portion with Rabbi Matthew Bellas 

Shabbat Parashat Sh'mini - Shabbat Parah

Ritual Purity and Impurity

This week, we celebrate another of the four special Shabbatot that come before Pesah, "Shabbat Parah." We will read a special maftir from the Torah which details the purpose, sacrifice and ceremonies of the red heifer (parah adumah, in Hebrew).  This ceremony served to purify an individual from the impurity caused by coming into contact with or being in the same enclosed area as a human corpse.  We read this portion from the Torah this week because in Temple times, before one brought a sacrifice to the Temple, he had to become ritually cleansed by going to the mikvah (ritual bath).  This reading reminded pilgrims about to leave for Jerusalem to offer their Passover sacrifices that it was time to begin preparations for this journey and ritual.

In the modern world, the concept of ritual purity and impurity sounds archaic.  It has been several generations since there has been the known existence of a parah adumah/red heifer.  So, even if we had a Temple, these rituals would be impossible to complete.Furthermore, because so many of the customs related to purity and impurity have fallen into disuse, they are now mostly misunderstood and, in many cases, considered prejudiced against women as a result of the relationship between ritual impurity and blood or bleeding.  Nevertheless, the concepts of tum'ah/ritual impurity and taharah/ritual purity can carry a tremendous amount of meaning for us, while the ritual of mikvah/immersing in the ritual bath can be very powerful and spiritual, for both men and women.

MAZAL TOV to the following winners of our Strathcona Raffle

1st prize - Vancouver Canucks Jersey signed by all the players (value priceless)

Winner- Kevin Marks

2nd prize - Camp Hatikvah Session Two (5 day, 2 week or 3 weeks - winners choice based on age)    (value $2500)

Winner- Lee Barney

3rd prize - Camp Solomon Schechter "Echad Session" coupon (value $525)

Winner - Judy Wolfe

4th prize - Cabello Salon ½ Day Mediterranean Spa Package   (value $365)

Winner- Diane Friedman

5th prize - Sweet Beginnings - Wedding Consulting and Event Planners (value $350)

Winner- Gerald Tritt

6th prize - Bodi Tree Pilates Package  (value $320)

Winner- David Bakonyi

7th prize - Ed's Linens Bedding package  (value $200)

Winner- Sherold Fishman

Vancouver Talmud Torah Alumni -  

"Still to Find" - '75 - '79

 Have a lead? We'd love to reach out to ALL of our alumni!

Contact Audrey Moss if you can help 

Are you an alum?  Need PPP hours?  The Alumni Committee needs your help with activities you can do from home.  Please contact Audrey Moss for more details.

Aaron, Nancy '77

Aharoni, Chaim '77

Allen, Steve '79

Bak, David '79

Beecher,

Nathan '77

Bololski, Michael '78

Boxer, Aaron '79

Boxer, Naomi '76

Burstin, Zion '79

Burstin, Zypora '78

Diamond, Steven '77

Dirnfeld, Elana '75

Doduck, Alana '77

Eidelshtein, Regina '76

Elkaim, Danny '78

Elkaim, Ilana '79

Epstein, Mark '76

Feldman, Shari '78

Fisher, Bradley '76

Flader, Rachel '77

Fouks, Jodie '77

Fox, Alison '76

Goldstein, Iris '78

Guincher, Dana '79

Hadar, Etay '78

Halperin, Tommy '77

Hammer, Abbi '76

Hier, Avi '77

Hirshfeld, Eedie '75

Karasz, Adrian '78

Keren, Dolly '75

Kline, Sandy '75

Korf, Boris '78

Laniado, David '79

Lecovin, Geoffrey '78

Lederman, Sally '79

Levin, Irwin '75

Lichtmann, Amnon '76

Lubinizki, Meira '76

Mandelman, Elana '77

Morgan, Sammy '76

Nitikman, Sara '78

Oreg, Yoav '78

Packer, Evalyn '77

Pinkhasik, Regina '78

Policar, David '76

Promislow, Daniel '77

Ram, Anat '79

Sachar, Carla '77

Schachter, David '74

Shulman, Jonathan '79

Shuster, Traci '75

Spiro, Andrea '77

Swartz, Randall '78

Switzer, Sharon '75

Tenby, Henry '77

Tischler, Esther '75

Toban, Kari '77

Weiss, Benjamin '76

Weyman, Jaqueline '78

Weyman, Karen '76

Weyman, Michael '79

Wolfin, Samra '76

Wolllner, Kathy '77

Wosk, Randy '75

Young, Mark '75

Zimerman, Daniel '78

Star Wars, Superheroes, & Princesses dominated costume choices for K1 students for Purim. 

Grade 1 students enjoy the dry weather at Granville Island before seeing "Munschia Mia" at Waterfront Theatre. 

Nathan & Natanya Ketler would like to thank everyone in the VTT community for their kindness and well wishes in welcoming baby Nyanna Vivienne into the world.  She's now 10lbs, smiling and happy.

In the spirit of Michelangelo...

P4 students try their hand at painting "on a ceiling" in the tradition of Michelangelo. Their experiments was short-lived!

3C students proudly display their structure project.

TWENTY PARENT VOLUNTEERS NEEDED ON MONDAY, APRIL 4 AT 11:20 A.M. 

On Monday, April 4 at lunch (11:20am - which coincides with preschool dismissal) all the faculty and staff will gather for the staff photo that takes approximately 15 minutes (but will count for one PPP hour). We need approximately 20 parent volunteers to cover Noshniks, Kindergarten, lunchroom and outside supervision for 10-15 minutes to ensure all staff can be in the photo. If you can assist us, please contact Tammy Kalvari: tkalvari@talmudtorah.com.

Thank you in advance for your help!

LOOKING FOR THE FOLLOWING ITEMS:

VTT's Art Specialist, Colette Leisen, is in need of

-old books (particularly paperback novels of any size..the more pages the better!)

-vintage books

-fashion magazines

-large wooden or ceramic beads

-old globes  

Email Ms. Leisen if you have any of these items to donate.