Viyhi noam Yah eloheinu aleinu
Uma-aseh yadeinu konenah aleinu
Uma-aseh yadeinu koneneihu

May the pleasant spirit of the Eternal envelop us,
And bring the works of our hands to reflect your presence in us.



The Creator is certainly with us, and our own creations speak of that presence.  Look about you at Or Shalom and see the divine handiwork in wood, in cloth, in plants, in glass, in computer graphics, etc.  Many of the stories of these objects have been told elsewhere on this site by their donors or creators. But there are many more objects and stories, and I guess it's up to me (Avi Dolgin) to tell you what I know (or think I know) about them.  As always, I invite your additions or corrections - contact me with your information.


 

The Ner Tamid (Eternal Light) comes from Issaac Thau.  As a kid he sat in his father's shop and repaired broken lamps for his allowance.  As an adult he directed the repair and rennovation of this building.  After the installation of the new Aron Kodesh and the chandelier, he searched the junk shops of the city looking for a lamp to match the tree & leaf motif.  Then he....

The Magen David coloured glass in the window is the gift of David Mullard.  It was made by his brother in England, and then placed there "temporarily" for the bat mitzvah of Yael Mullard.  Who would take it down?

The Magen David glass mobile is the gift of Marianne Rev and Tom Ross.
The fabric art Torah cover was made by the Bnei mitzvah class, under the artistic direction of Claude Azoulai and Lorraine Fralin.

The fabric art piece on the eastern wall was made by our Or Shalom school children under the creative direction of Claude Azoulai.

"Haida Hamsa" is the name of the large graphic on the door of the sanctuary.  It was made by Michael Corber, and reflects Michael's computer skills, Jewish interests, and time spent working for Native peoples of BC.  For Michael's birthday party at the shul we decorated in the many creations he has blessed us with.  After the party he packed away his accordion and we took down all the artwork - except this piece.

The photo on the northern wall is of the Women of the Wall davvening for Rosh Hodesh in Yerushalayim.  It was taken by Naomi Ehren-Lis in 1999, purchased for Or Shalom by Myrna Rabinowitz and framed by David Mivasair.

The jewelry piece hanging inside the door of the portable ark was the gift of Hanna Chusid.  Hanna was an active member in our earlier years who has since moved to California.  The piece was a necklace of her late mother's, which Hanna gave to us as our first Torah decoration.  We outta use it that way sometimes.
 
The purple velvet shtender cover with the Magen David on it was found by Reb David. It was stuffed unceremoniously in a cardboard carton behind the bimah in the shul in State College, PA where he served as rabbi from 1991-95.  No one wanted it and, with congregation's permission, he gladly acquired it for future use in a shul that would appreciate it.

The bookshelf on the mezzanine level is the gift of Reva Malkin, in honour of her late father Dr. Saul Malkin, whose warm smile and curious mind will long be remembered by many of us.
 
In front of the building, up close to the concrete steps, are two small pine trees.  They came from the yard of Sabie Freedman. Sabie was an elderly woman who lived accross the street from our rented premesis on W. 28th Ave. She loved to come for services, on the arm of "that nice young man" (who was usually Len Ryant, though several of us did this mitzvah, and Sabie couldn't tell us apart). These trees had been planted by her son, Wayne. Just before Sabie moved to the Louis Brier Home and her house was sold, she told me she wanted these trees to go to Or Shalom. I dug them up, tended them in my backyard for two years, and transplanted them to our new site when I could. Sabie and Wayne are both gone now - these trees are their memorial.

RETURN TO THE TREASURES & STORIES PAGE

[ Home] [ Asiyah] [ Yetzirah] [ Briyah] [ Atzilut ] [ Calendar]
( Doing ) ( Feeling ) ( Knowing ) ( Being )