By: Mo Ali Winner: The Rashi Prize Being sexually abused as a child is hard to deal with as a young adult. Growing up, living in poverty was embarrassing. Having to admit to my friends that I have four mental illnesses was terrifying. But you know, coming clean about the abuse, poverty, and mental illness [...]

Some touching things happened this week that reminded me that our program and my participation in it have a real impact on the people we serve. I now stop at a rent geared to income residence, where there live a few people I have known since they lived on the street. This week, there ware [...]

By: Vaclovas Verikaitis Winner: The Maimonides Prize The sky was lifeless and without colour. It hung over the city like a low ceiling in a dark, damp cellar. The rain that came with it dripped down in hard droplets that seemed to pierce the skin. It was an acid wash for the sins of a [...]

Are you interested in becoming an Ve’ahavta Site Coordinator for one of our International Projects? Ve’ahavta is always looking for exceptional individuals with volunteer management skills and field experience working with community based development programs in the Caribbean and/or East and Southern Africa to commit to managing our overseas volunteers in the field. Contracts are [...]

By: Tom Hogarth Winner: The Book of Life Prize Long ago, when the world was yet young, mankind was but a new creature upon it. In this time the powers that be still walked the earth with man, and they were new to their powers. In this beginning time winter came to the land… and [...]

Be part of our overseas Kinder Kits project in East Africa Ve’ahavta will be recruiting up to 4 volunteers and 1 site coordinator for a two week placement in East Africa in September/October as part of our Kinder Kit distribution project. Volunteers will be assisting in receiving the Kinder Kits shipment and distributing supplies throughout [...]

Ve’ahavta would like to express our gratitude to all the schools and groups for their enthusiasm and support in the Kinder Kit Project. In May and June new and gently used supplies were collected in locker dumps in six schools across Toronto. These supplies will be used provide underprivileged children will the educational materials they [...]

I volunteered on the Ve’ahavta van with my two children and I it was such an incredible experience I felt the need to write to you. I asked Perry, who was the gentleman who took us all out, to provide me with your email addresses since I really wanted to tell you about our experience. [...]

It is a very meaningful program. Many of us take advantage of the fact that we don’t struggle at school. However, with certain kids at the program, the prospect of failure is always at the back of their minds. It is imperative we help students avoid that negative mindset, providing them with the help to [...]

Our June 2010 Guyana team returned home this weekend. Over the past two weeks Ve’ahavta volunteers, Bekkie Vineberg (Site Coordinator), Dr. Sandy Buchman (physician), Seth Buchman (support) , Victoria Siu (pharmacy), Sarah Wilson (paramedic), and Sue Rebick (nurse) have been in Guyana on a medical mission. You can read more about their journey in our [...]

Things are shaping up nicely for the official launch of the Ve’ahavta Street Academy (VSA). This has been an amazing journey for me as the Founder/Director. I am very honored and proud to be part of the Ve’ahavta team and look forward to an action packed summer with the students of VSA. Thank you to [...]

On Sunday June 20th, 2010 Ve’ahavta’s Outreach Team lead by Perry Howell, Outreach Worker, handed out gifts to our fathers’ on the street. It was understood that challenges were to be expected during the presentation of these gifts as for some men on the street being a father in the position they are in may [...]

Hi Everyone, Today I handed out three baskets to fathers I knew, and then drove the rest to two drop ins where Nir and I handed them out. One was the good neighbors club, a drop in for men over 50. The other was the Salvation Army on Jarvis south of Richmond. In the latter [...]

By: Lorren Stewart Winner: The Chaim Potok Prize This is my story. When my parents had me, I was addicted to heroin. I had to fight to stay alive. When I was six years old, my parents both died from heroin overdoses. I was put into foster homes until I started to run away at [...]

Are you interested in learning more about social justice issues? Visit www.on1foot.com, an online database of Jewish social justice texts designed to support and promote the teaching of social justice.

Hi everyone, The team got up super early this morning in order to be at clinic by 7 am so that they could ensure that they would see all remaining patients in Friendship before departing.  They just called from the bus which is on its way to Supenaam, the boat stelling. Before arriving in Supenaam [...]

Good evening everyone, Just a little note to let you know that the team ran their second last clinic today in Friendship, seeing about 60 people. Friendship is fairly remote and it took quite some time to travel there. Getting there including traveling for a few hours overland and then a boat ride down a [...]

By: Liz The Gilad Shalit Prize What has become of my life? I no longer have a life I did not have a death I had an eviction So I simply became a ghost I wander the streets, day and night Invisible to the unknowing Untouchable to the uncaring Incomprehensible to myself Inconsolable in my [...]

Hello again, Just a short note to let you know that I did finally get to connect with Bekkie this afternoon. The team ran a very busy clinic all day in St Deny. It took about an hour to get there from Mainstay because of a very rough road, but they made it and will [...]

Hello everyone, The team has been running a clinic in St. Deny today. This will be a short email because there is limited cell phone access in that community and I haven’t been able to speak directly to Bekkie yet. She did leave me a message saying that everything and everyone is fine. Looking forward [...]

Good Morning, The team is doing well – they had a very busy day yesterday, seeing a total of 85 patients at clinic in Lima Sands and doing a significant amount of health promotion throughout the day. Bekkie noted that she has seen quite a few cases of infertility, which taken in context in a [...]

By: Anonymous Winner: The Albert Einstein Prize I can’t say where I am from For I am a drifter of space and spaces I can’t say where I am going For the future is nothing but a perspective But I can tell you where I am I am here And I am changing. * * [...]

Good morning everyone, I hope you had a great weekend. The team found their Thursday clinic in Capoey to be so busy that they decided to extend their work their by another day. The clinic was quite busy, and they saw approximately 130 patients. A few of the more significant health issues they observed included [...]

Good morning everyone, I just got off the phone with Bekkie. Everyone is doing great and they are just waiting for the boat to pull up to take them across Lake Mainstay and over to Lake Capoey. Capoey is the next village and is a magical place. Bekkie and I visited the community and met [...]

By: Anonymous Winner: The Joseph, Coat of Many Colours Prize I am me. I am me no fake outs, no excuses no I will not, I will not let you control me. Only respect me and my space I will not sit by and let you degrade me. No I will not forgive you for [...]

Ve’ahavta is proud to support Israel during this difficult time by sending 3,000 Kinder Kits to underprivileged children in Israel. This will ensure that they not only receive the proper nutrition but also the education supplies necessary for them to succeed academically. The value of education and freedom has sustained us as a people regardless [...]

Good Afternoon! Our team has now arrived in Mashabo, another Seventh Day Adventist Amerindian community located along the end of Lake Mashabo.  It is a beautiful village.  The local health post (see attached photo) services a population of about 400 people.  There is a large population of children in this particular community.  The team got [...]

Good morning, Just a little note to let you know that our team is running its first clinic today in Bethany.  The turnout has been steady so far with a larger number of elderly patients.  The team has been joined by a volunteer from the Lions Club of Bartica, Beverley, as well as by Melissa [...]

By: Ruben Delgada Winner: The Chai Prize In the place I grew up in there were always troubles that I never knew about until my age got doubled. I grew up in a corrupt home, kept my feelings deep inside, that’s why I felt alone, criminal behaviour was seared into my dome, because that’s all [...]

Hello everyone, Good morning! This is a short note to let you know that our team, our bags, and all of our supplies have arrived safely in Guyana and were cleared through customs without a hitch.  Bekkie called at about 8:30 this morning to let me know hat everyone was great and that the team [...]

By: J.L. Marlowe Winner: The Aggadada Prize It is mid-November. I am sitting beside the reflecting pool in Nathan Philips Square in downtown Toronto wondering where I can find some cardboard for a bed tonight. Skaters are doing turns around the pool, which at this time of year is an ice rink. The sounds of [...]

By: Nicole Luongo Winner: The Shalom Alechem Prize The following is an introduction to a book that is not yet written: It’s freezing. The basement window is wide open, and the wind has blown the bedcovers off of my body and onto the floor. It’s mid-December, and all I’m wearing is unbalanced it feels, having [...]

Thanks again for the prize and the opportunity to show off my writing. I felt that I’ve been slacking in the writing department, but this has been truely inspiring, It has once again proven that my sobriety is paying off. I’m excited to get to work with my new computer and to get some screenwriting [...]