HA teens win $5000 for two non-profits

HA teens win $5000 for two non-profits

Montreal’s Diabetic Children’s Foundation and Leucan, an association for children with cancer, are $2,500 richer today thanks to seven Grade 10 Hebrew Academy students who won grants on the organizations’ behalf. This morning, four semi-finalist student groups...
Parashat Tazria-Metzora: Words can destroy

Parashat Tazria-Metzora: Words can destroy

Reading or sharing the latest titillating bit of news is a guilty pleasure that many indulge in. The celebrity gossip industry alone is a 3 billion dollar a year venture and does not include the online traffic of Twitter, Instagram and other social media networks...
Schools unite to commemorate Yom Hazikaron

Schools unite to commemorate Yom Hazikaron

Hebrew Academy and École Maïmonide united for a solemn Yom Hazikaron Zoom ceremony this morning that included introductory remarks and tefillot by School Rabbi Rabbi Eddie Shostak, Maïmonide Judaic Studies Principal Rabbi Yamin Benarroch, and Bnei Akiva Shaliach Eli...
Parashat Shemini: Knowing who we are and who we are not

Parashat Shemini: Knowing who we are and who we are not

Literature, old and new, is filled with fables and tales expounding on the merits and the virtue of humility. But no other personality ever embodied that virtue more than Moshe Rabbeinu himself. Despite all that he accomplished, he never saw himself as great, as...
Yom HaShoah 5781: We will never forget

Yom HaShoah 5781: We will never forget

HA students and faculty commemorated Yom HaShoah with outstanding programs in both Elementary and High School. Grades 4 to 6 held separate commemorations led by Elementary Director of Judaic Studies Jordana Levy and Bnei Akiva Shlicha Sivan Veresh. The classes learned...
Parashat Tzav: The value of empathy

Parashat Tzav: The value of empathy

Everyone can probably think of a person in their life whom they turn to in difficult times. What is it about these people that make us willing to open up to them, that lifts our mood and helps us move forward? Upon reflection, most of us would probably say that he or...
Parashat Vayikra: Listening to our inner wisdom

Parashat Vayikra: Listening to our inner wisdom

My mother would often call out to my sister and me to “turn off the stupid box”. For those of you who may be wondering, this is parent-speak of the eighties meaning “turn off the television”. I often wonder what she would say if I were a child of the 2020s. Today, our...
Parashat Vayakhel-Pekudei: We cannot compromise on education

Parashat Vayakhel-Pekudei: We cannot compromise on education

The word “cherub” conjures up the image of a pudgy little baby with wings and a bow and arrow; an image perpetuated by the greeting card industry to the point that it has become the iconic symbol for Valentine’s Day. In the Torah, cherubs, or kruvim, are first...
Parashat Ki Tisa: Taking ownership of our actions

Parashat Ki Tisa: Taking ownership of our actions

One of the most commonly heard phrases in a school principal’s office is, “I didn’t do it”, second only to, “It wasn’t me”. Teaching children to take ownership of their actions so that they can take the steps necessary to make amends is no easy feat. We are asking...