Montreal - January 31, 2022 - For the fourth year in a row, Federation CJA has taken the lead as a key convener to unite the Montreal Jewish community under the umbrella of JDAIM (Jewish Disability Awareness, Acceptance and Inclusion Month). Turning 13 this year, JDAIM has been embraced by Jewish communities across North America as a month-long celebration to raise awareness and foster acceptance of community members living with disabilities and mental health conditions, and those who love them.

For JDAIM 2022, several local organizations will participate in this important community awareness initiative that shifts minds and opens hearts. Despite the ongoing pandemic, this year’s offerings will highlight local community films and gems in our own background, featuring the stories that need to be shared—for all of us to benefit. Now more than ever, members of all ages and abilities can access and participate in meaningful and engaging events to celebrate our commitment to disability inclusion.

Local events are organized by community partners, and many are open to the public. One special private initiative will help bring the newly released documentary Just as I am: the Shira Choir, featuring the Montreal Shira Choir, to future generations and students via the Jewish Day Schools, also available for free, public viewing on CBC Gem.

“There are some very creative, out-of-the-box, and impactful initiatives being planned even in the current context,” said Carly Goodman, Senior Manager, Community Belonging & Disability Inclusion, Federation CJA. “It is a testament to the power of community, that there is a strong desire to do and think differently and in challenging circumstances to ensure the ripples of this initiative are far-reaching. From a drive-by sugar shack to a Shabbaton, and childrens’ story time on Zoom, Montreal continues to lead by example.”

Federation CJA’s West Island division and Beth Tikvah Congregation are presenting an Armchair Interview with Stars and Creator of Becoming Big. This inter-generational discussion will feature a coming-of-age story about an exceptional 12-year-old young-adult named Maya and her bat mitzvah experience in overcoming challenges to celebrate life’s blessings.  Hosted by radio personality Mark Bergman, Maya will be joined by her mom and Rabbi Mark Fishman. The four-part documentary series, which this interview is based on, is available for free public viewing on YouTube.

“This is an uplifting community inclusion story that will resonate with many families, showing how we can all lift others around us to achieve great things,” Goodman said.  

“Federation CJA is proud to support children and adults living with disabilities and their families in meeting their unique challenges and ensuring their participation in Montreal Jewish communal life,” said Yair Szlak, CEO of Federation CJA. “Inclusion funded programs include school-based academic intervention, therapy, camp experiences, supported employment, and recreation.”

There are approximately 16,000 people aged 15 and over living with disabilities in the Montreal Jewish community. Federation CJA is committed to delivering community care with compassion and fostering spaces where everyone in our community feels like they belong. Our 2022 JDAIM partnerships strongly support our mission to improving access to Jewish life by removing barriers and creating more opportunities for all members of our community.

“The Jewish core value of Klal Yisrael (unity of the Jewish people) calls us to recognize that we need to constantly strive to create a more unified Jewish community. JDAIM is a call to actionto unite Jewish communities worldwide and for each of us to act in accordance with our Jewish values to remove the barriers to participation in Jewish life. Our community is not whole until all of us belong,” Szlak said. 

For a complete listing of Montreal’s JDAIM 2022 Community Calendar of events please visit: FederationCJA.org/Inclusion.

For over one hundred years, Federation CJA has been at the heart of the organized Jewish community in Montreal. In partnership with a vast network of agencies and organizations locally, nationally, and internationally, Federation CJA builds and sustains this community by providing leadership and by supporting the delivery of services and programs to care for the vulnerable and those in need, to ensure a bright Jewish future, to represent communal interests, and to positively affect issues in the wider society.

Media Contact:
Glenn J. Nashen
Associate Director (Interim) | Directeur Associé (par interim)
Strategic Marketing and Communications | Marketing Stratégique et communications
FEDERATION CJA
[email protected]