You’ve invited them to dinner, allowed them to teach your children, and shared your culture with them, all while they’re reckoning with the biggest stressor of their lives. We sat down with Montreal’s Shinshinim to learn how they’ve thrived with your support, as well as how they’re dealing with the heaviness of war and what accomplishments they’ve made as volunteers thus far.

Liron Gandelman – Hebrew Foundation School, Beth Tikvah and Or Shalom

A day after the Hamas attack, Liron Gandelman steeled herself to inspire Montreal’s Jewish community. She gave a speech to her synagogue explaining that she’s staying strong and that she intends to persevere despite the stress she’s under. Synagogue attendees approached her afterwards to share how her words comforted them.

“They came up to me and they said, ‘Hearing this from an Israeli – that you haven’t lost your hope, that you’re staying strong – makes me feel safe and powerful,’” she said. “I never thought that, from a small speech, someone would take it so personally. It made me understand how important my job is here.”

Gandelman says this is the perfect time for her to be in the Shinshinim program: Israelis like herself need to stay abroad to explain what’s really happening in the war, as well as how they’re managing as individuals.

Shira Sheffer – Talmud Torah, Spanish and Portuguese Synagogue, and the YMYWHA

Some of Shira Sheffer’s programming has addressed the difficulties of the war on the families in Israel. In one activity, she asked a group of teenagers to reflect on the last three months of their lives, then explained the conditions Hamas’s hostages have been in for that time. Seeing the teenagers’ reactions made her realize that some of the things she finds normal are scary to others.

“A girl from the program came to me and started crying,” Sheffer says. “No one teaches you how to deal with this situation, but I’ve (learned) how to understand other people’s emotions better and help them.”

Sheffer is currently working with the YMYWHA to organize a marathon in honour of Israeli soldiers who have died in war. The Ratzim Lezichram – “running in their memory” in Hebrew – will take place in May.

Roey Torati – Akiva School and Shaar Hashomayim

Roey Torati is bringing his passion for the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) to teens in Montreal. He’s planning an April project with the B'nai B'rith Youth Organization (BBYO) to show students the military’s enrolment process. This includes pre-exam exercises, physical training activities, and a potential paintballing session.

“The IDF is the biggest reason Israel exists,” he says.

Unnerved by Montreal’s many protests following the Hamas attack, Torati has also learned the importance of combatting antisemitism. Showing Canadian youth his Israeli perspective has made him feel like he’s fighting for his country on another level.

“I’m representing it to the diaspora Jews, exposing students to the experience of a teenager in Israel who’s supposed to join the army,” Torati says. “It means the world to me.”

Ronel Clain – École Maïmonide and Adath Israel

Ronel Clain is doing everything he can to bring the Israeli experience to Montreal on a broader scale. In an activity that took months of preparation, Clain and a group of École Maïmonide high school students recreated Jerusalem’s Shuk marketplace, complete with yelling vendors and Israeli snacks like Bissli. They raised over $3,000 for Israeli soldiers.

“I was proud of the high schoolers. They were passionate about bringing Israel to the kids,” he says. “I was also really proud to see the kids loving Israel. They were really connected even though they’re living in Canada.”

In return, Clain says Montreal’s Jewish community has been amazingly considerate and supportive following the Oct. 7 attack. École Maïmonide’s staff and high school students have been routinely asking if he needs help or if he’s doing okay. Many families have since checked in on him and invited him to dinner.

Tal Maayan – Solomon Schechter Academy, Congregation Dorshei Emet, Temple Emanu-El-Beth Sholom

Tal Maayan takes pride in the strong connections she’s made in Montreal. She says she found a lot of common ground with her host family despite being far in age from the 30-year-olds and their four- and six-year-old children.

“When I got there, they were listening to Justin Bieber and Taylor Swift in the car, and now they’re listening to Idan Amedi and Omer Adam,” Maayan says. “I feel like they’re related to me. We always joke about how we might be cousins.”

Amid news of injured Israeli friends, Maayan says these connections have been crucial. Looking after the students at Solomon Schechter Academy has also helped her take care of herself.

“Being at work, sometimes you have hard days. But when I have kids come in – when I see Jewish people succeed, love Israel, and express their love to me – it makes me understand that we have a future.”