ABOUT THE CANADIAN SOCIETY FOR YAD VASHEM
Established in 1986, the Canadian Society for Yad Vashem’s (CSYV) mission is to disseminate the universal lessons of the Holocaust across Canada through commemorative and educational activities.
IMPACT OF CSYV’S WORK
During the Covid-19 pandemic, CSYV has enhanced its online resources and outreach and continues to work closely with leaders and educators across Canada.
CSYV collaborated with the Azrieli Foundation, March of the Living Canada, the Sarah and Chaim Neuberger Holocaust Education Centre, and dozens of Jewish organizations across Canada to present the 2019 National Holocaust Remembrance Ceremony that was viewed by 19,000 Households.
In collaboration with the Government of Ontario, CSYV produced the 2020 Ontario Tribute to Holocaust Survivors, which honoured ten Holocaust survivors, and was viewed by 450 households.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, CSYV has produced a weekly online newsletter that features local events, courses and webinars from Yad Vashem Jerusalem, and news of interest to our community.
CSYV continues to work closely with educators across Canada to book speakers and implement Holocaust education.
VALUE OF CSYV’S WORK
Prior to the pandemic, CSYV disseminated the universal and timely lessons of the Holocaust through impactful programs such as:
Since 1991, thousands of individuals and families have visited the CSYV Holocaust Memorial Site at Earl Bales Park, Toronto, which commemorates the victims of the Shoah, pays tribute to Survivors, honours Righteous Among the Nations and showcases the shattering toll of the Holocaust on humanity. Additional walls, elements, and an educational component for the site, are now being developed.
CSYV has funded four new Ready2Print exhibitions: Art in the Holocaust, Stars Without Heaven, Rescue by Jews during the Holocaust, and They Say There is a Land. These bilingual exhibitions were displayed in nine different venues across Canada. The first two exhibitions were very popular and displayed in 14 countries at 68 different venues.
Numerous projects at Yad Vashem, Jerusalem have been supported through the generous donations of Canadians in each of Yad Vashem’s four pillars of activity - commemoration, documentation, education, and research - thus enhancing the remembrance and study of the Holocaust with depth and meaning.
Two hundred and eighty Canadian educators have participated in CSYV’s Summer Scholarship Program, primarily at the Educator’s Seminar at the International School for Holocaust Studies at Yad Vashem, which has empowered teachers and school administrators to implement Holocaust education in their classrooms and educational institutions.
More than 1,200 Canadian high school students have participated in the Ambassadors of Change program, which brings students to Ottawa to hear first-hand accounts of Holocaust survivors and participate in discussions about the Holocaust and its relevance today. CSYV is laying the framework for expanding this important program across the country.
More than 27,000 individuals and families from 51 countries have been recognized as Righteous Among the Nations. In conjunction with the Israeli Embassy and Consulate, CSYV has honoured the descendants of those families now residing in Canada.
In the last five years, over 110 B’nai Mitzvah have twinned with a child who did not survive the Holocaust through CSYV’s Bar/Bat Mitzvah Twinning program.
Over 12,700 individuals, including our county’s highest government leaders, participated in CSYV’s Holocaust Commemoration events: the annual National Holocaust Remembrance Day Ceremony in Ottawa and the annual Tribute to Holocaust Survivors at Queen’s Park, Toronto.