When I got involved Ometz was JIAS, and the origin of my interest probably goes back to 1948 when my late father Joseph Shapiro was its President. I was eight years old at the time and I remember my parents hosting a brunch on Sundays at different times of the year with all of these “strange” people coming into our home. I later learned that these were immigrants coming to Canada from Europe, post-World War II with nothing but the clothes on their backs and their courage and determination to succeed. This experience, as well as others, brought me up with the notion that it is important to help others.

I think I was the president in 1988-89, and at that time we hosted the Ethiopian immigration to Montreal. As I recall, I am proud that Canada was one of the few ports that enabled Ethiopian Jews to leave Ethiopia and come here. We received a delightful community of Ethiopians, many of whom I’m still friendly with today. These young people have celebrated bar mitzvahs and bat mizvahs of their own children. While the Ethiopian community in Montreal is small, relative to the one in Israel, they’re a wonderful addition to our Jewish community.

One of the projects was that I reached out to the senior partners at law and accounting firms to lend us some of their bright young professionals to join our board. By way of example, Herb Siblin, C.A. recommended Bobby Kleinman, C.A. to our Board. Of course the community has benefitted so significantly from:- 1) Bobby’s involvement as a professional, both at JIAS and at the Jewish Community Foundation; and 2) From many other young professionals who then became involved in other communal efforts. I was very pleased with that initiative.

I remember my involvement in JIAS impacted me significantly when my wife and I went to Russia just before Glasnost and Perestroika, when Jews were not allowed to leave Russia. We met these refuseniks in their cramped apartments. They were highly intelligent and skilled but, in many instances, were not allowed to practice their professions and, clearly, not their religion. I felt strongly that these vibrant people were entitled to exodus from Russia and world Jewry, Israel and the United States made this happen. Israel would not be the country that it is today without that exodus and the immigration of a million Jews from Russia. On a much smaller scale, Montreal also benefitted tremendously from the arrival of some of our Jewish Russian brothers and sisters.

I feel very strongly that since I was so privileged to have been born and brought up in Montreal and was exposed to the positive values of my parents that I have tried to give back to the community and elsewhere whenever I can. I believe that one person can make a huge difference in someone else’s life. Thus, while we are here on earth, it is our responsibility to help others less fortunate than ourselves.

Ometz, in my view, is critical to sustaining the Montreal Jewish community which is aging. We need new young blood and the primary source of renewal and revival is Jewish immigration from around the world. The time is opportune as there are many areas of the world where Jews feel threatened and underappreciated. The Government of Canada should use this opportunity to allow these people to immigrate and to add to our multi-cultural dynamic society. This would help us sustain the future of the Jewish community in Canada and in Montreal during the balance of the 21st Century and onward.

I was truly honored to serve JIAS. I got so much out of my relationship with the JIAS Board, its professionals and our immigrant clients, and learned so much from this experience. I met such wonderful people, both from the volunteering community, as well as the immigrants themselves. My tenure at JIAS stands out as a very significant part of my life and I am proud to have followed in my father’s footsteps.