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Starting today, once a month we will be bringing you a joint Shabbat message from the Federation board chair and CEO. This message will include the usual highlights of weekly events and activities, but will also touch on the ongoing strategic visioning process that we have embarked upon.

This week, tragedy struck both our Canadian and Israeli communities. The deaths of Canadian soldiers Warrant Officer Patrice Vincent, deliberately run down by a vehicle just south of Montreal, and Cpl. Nathan Cirillo, killed in the shooting at the National War Memorial in Ottawa, were followed in Jerusalem by a driver ramming a car into a group of Israelis waiting for the train, killing a five-month-old baby. These tragic events break our hearts. Over this Shabbat, as members of our community participate in the Shabbos Project, let us keep these victims in our thoughts and prayers.

Moving our Federation Forward
Federation has embarked on a strategic visioning process with our board and partners at Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA). We are thrilled to kick off this exercise that will help our institution move from strength to excellence.

Over the coming months, the visioning process will explore and seek to inform all aspects of our work moving forward. Venues will be provided for different segments of our diverse community to engage in conversations around the things we care about. We will meet with small groups and individuals to hear what they think the challenges and opportunities are for our growing community and how we at Federation can incorporate their ideas in our new strategic plan. This learning process will be spearheaded by JFNA consultant Becky Sobelman-Stern along with our board and leadership team. Stay tuned.

Federation Annual Campaign
The Federation Annual Campaign is your opportunity to help seniors and other vulnerable groups in our community. Your gift supports our partner agencies who work with Jewish seniors and their families facing the challenges of loneliness and isolation, and the issues of depression, Alzheimer’s and other types of dementia. Make your gift online today.

Jewish Seniors Alliance Symposium
The Jewish Seniors Alliance (JSA) represents the interests of over 5,000 Jewish seniors living in the Lower Mainland, providing information, education, advocacy and research for seniors by seniors. They will host their Annual Fall Symposium on Sunday, October 26, 2014 at the Peretz Centre. Admission is free.

Parshat Noach

We continue to share reflections on the week’s parsha by young professionals from across North America. This week's Shabbat Message was written by Jewish Federations of North America National Young Leadership Joint Distribution Committee co-chair Emma Samuels, from Boston.

Shabbat Shalom,

Diane Switzer Board Chair, Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver	Ezra S. Shanken CEO, Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver