Cohort 7 – Our First Meeting! by Theo Cape

Last Sunday, our cohort had our first official meeting! After getting to know each other two Sundays prior, we all convened to discuss our individual and group goals during the Diller program.

First, we played “name bingo,” where we were each partnered up and got to talk to one of our new friends about the history of our name, i.e. where it comes from, were we named after anyone, what it means, etc. We also watched a video about people’s names and how they can reflect our personalities.

Afterwards, we all got back into a circle and decided on our group values. Although it took a while for us to come to a consensus, we finally decided upon these values: unity, diversity, perseverance, discovery and respect.

Then, we were given time to think of our own personal goals for Diller. Each of us received a piece of white fabric, and on it we wrote our goal and decorated it. The list ranged from independence to family, but one thing was clear: they all centred around community.

Finally, we put together our flag! The centre logo was designed with different patterns, and we all taped our pieces of fabric to the big blue flag! We can’t wait for the next workshop, and we hope it’s as good as the last!

by Theo Cape

Cohort 6 Talks About Making an Impact

Last Sunday, Montreal's Diller cohort 6 started to work on our Impact projects, which is a big part of what we do relating to the “Tikun Olam” (fixing the world) pillar of Diller. We started by organizing our interests visually in "mad libs" and then as a group began discussing the issues that we felt were important to us, and how we wanted to help. We examined what we thought the difficulties in achieving these goals could be and looked at how we can overcome them.

When we each had a general idea of what we wanted to do in place, we did a quick round of “Speed-Dating”, so that we could figure out whose ideas matched up the best with our own. Now we are left with the task of, within groups of 3-8, planning these Impact Projects out and making them a reality.

On the subject of the Impact Projects, Sarah told us about a charity project happening on an international scale so that we could analyze the pros and cons of certain charitable techniques. We looked at TOMS, a company that gives a free pair of shoes to those in need in third world countries for every single pair of shoes bought in stores. At first glance, this seems brilliant, but a major flaw we noticed is that they are not attacking the root of the problem. Ultimately, they cannot give everyone shoes, so this act only helps the lucky few who get shoes. We saw that the best approach is to attack the actual problem. Instead of giving some people shoes, make it safer to go barefoot such that everyone can benefit from the intervention.

Afterwards, we started planning our self-management overnight. While it is still in its early stages, our Tikun Olam themed night is taking shape to be a lot of fun. While there is still a lot of work to do, I am looking forward to the results, and to enjoying something that we put together ourselves, entirely from scratch. 
With only 3 months to Israel, all these big projects are really exciting and I am looking forward to seeing how they come out!

By Jon Boretsky

Cohort 6 Gives Back in Montreal

Just in time for the high holidays, the Montreal Diller Teen Fellows took on 3 volunteer opportunities in less than 2 weeks...

Cohort 6 Fellows at the YM-YWHA High Holiday Blood Drive - Sept. 8, 2014

On Monday September 8th 2014, a group of the fellows met up at the YM-YWHA to volunteer at the High Holiday Blood drive. We provided the blood donors with snacks and juice as they recovered. Every 80 seconds, someone in Québec needs blood, and even though we were too young to donate, Diller did our part to help out. In the end, the YM-YWHA's High Holiday Blood Drive brought in over 100 donations!

Call Me Maybe? Diller Fellows at FCJA's Super Sunday - Sept. 14, 2014

Then on Sunday September 14th, there was Super Sunday. Most of the Fellows showed up to raise money for Federation CJA's “Forward Together” 2014 Campaign. Super Sunday is their largest annual telethon, which brings in close to 600 volunteers every year, to help make calls to new and existing donors. Some even learned to do it in French, although some were hesitant. Funds raised at Super Sunday and during the rest of the Campaign go to supporting local, national, Israeli, and advocacy causes, as well as social services and continuity programming in the Montreal Jewish community. The Diller Teen Fellows are lucky to be one of the recipient programs so we couldn't be happier to give back!

Purple Ribbons and cards assembled by Diller Fellows - Sept. 18, 2014

Finally, on Thursday September 18th, a group of Fellows did some volunteer work for Auberge Shalom, assembling Purple Ribbons. Auberge Shalom pour femmes, a centre for women and children who are the victims of conjugal violence, has offered shelter and counselling services to the Jewish community for 25 years. On their 25th anniversary, Montreal synagogues and organizations are asked to tie a purple ribbon to their sukkah in honour of the women and children who have suffered conjugal violence, and individuals can show their support by wearing the purple ribbons on their lapels. We bonded, made ribbons, and discovered family we never knew we had.

In this week between Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur, we reflect on the year that has passed, and we feel lucky to have been able to contribute our time and effort for our community.

What's pumping us up for Israel!? By Ben Rehany

Top ten most ratchet stuff we're looking forward to this summer!

1) a crazy flight 2) home hospitality, goo Neryia!!! 3) Touring the land of our 3 fathers 4) CONGRESS £) <- I invented a new number, but choumous! 6) Having fun with the best JCs and Sarah! 7) Army day! 8) All other days! Sorry my day deserved it's own number. 9) Learning new cultures! 10) Learning something new everyday!

Thank you ladies and gentlemen.

Ben Rehany

NAS Shabbaton!!!

Fun in the snow on our shabbaton at Camp Papillon!

Thursday April 3^rd 2014

As months went on, the Montrealers were eager for this day to come, the time when our Israeli pen pals were officially arriving in Canada.  We left the YM-YWHA and went to the airport at 9pm. As we waited patiently for our new friends to walk through the gates, our faces went from smiling with no teeth to smiling with teeth; the excitement was huge. From the airport, we started our North American Seminar journey with a shabbaton at Camp Papillon.

Friday April 4^th 2014

Morning came; the sun rose and we all ate breakfast. We started off by playing some icebreakers so we could get to know one another and start the friendships that we know will last a lifetime. The programs on this day varied from indoor to outdoor activities. In between activities we had 10-15 minute breaks which gave us time to talk to our friends and EAT!! The weather was great, although the ground was a tad slippery.  The Jewish programming led to many discussion topics about the differences and similarities between Be'er Sheva-B'nei Shimon and Montreal.

As Shabbat came, we had a meaningful service. We started off praying altogether, and shortly after all the girls lit the candles and shared the moment together. Then we sat down at the Shabbat table and we did a wonderful Kiddush and had a fantastic meal. 

Saturday April 5^th 2014

It’s the next morning...BEEP BEEP BEEP (the alarm goes off) it's 8 am and we all wake up to get breakfast.  We start the day with a leadership activity that got us working together in our different groups to trust one another.  Shortly afterwards we had our lunch, and a long break for those who needed their “Shabbat rest”. Following our break, we had two programs: one that started to get us thinking about what are goals were for this summer as a group, Is friendship more important than respect? Is Jewish programming better than just fun programs? Our discussion really varied depending on the person in the group and their explanation. Our second program was made by our wonderful JC’s, which was the most fun Disney race ever! As Shabbat ended, we did Havdallah followed by our separate Maagals which led to a super fun evening dance party DJ-ed by one of our fellow Diller members - Matthew Steinberg.

Sunday April 6^th 2014

The last day of our shabbaton ended with an excellent program with Tal Gale from Diller North America.  She spoke about things that made us think and question, we were all really happy she came because we got to meet and have fun with someone just as important as our coordinators. Followed by that we had our last program which was the feedback, it was great we were all honest. When we arrived back in Montreal, we did some community service at MADA, peeling vegetables for Passover baskets. From there we each went our respective houses and started our hosting!

By Jamie Wajcman