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Testimonials
Margot Montgomery
“I believe deeply in giving back. When I appreciate something, I want to make it stronger.”
Margot Montgomery, Current President, Temple Israel, who has signed a Letter of Intent for Temple’s Life and Legacy Program.
Sustain ‘something wonderful’ for Temple Israel through Life & Legacy
Supporting the Life & Legacy program came naturally to Temple president Margot Montgomery.
“I had already put Temple in my will because of its importance in my life,” she says. “And so it was not a big deal when the legacy program came along to file the proper pledge to designate part of what’s in my will. The Life & Legacy program is wonderful.”
Margot and her then husband Peter joined Temple in the early 1990s because their daughter was school age. “My husband was Jewish and secular, and not keen on ritual,” she says. “But Peter’s mom, a Holocaust survivor, was invited back by Aachen, the German city she came from for a week of reconciliation activities. Peter went with his mother to visit the small mediaeval city where she spoke in the school and at other events. When he came back, he wanted to give our daughter more exposure to Judaism in a formal way. What was pretty surprising as that evolved, was that I liked the Judaism and Temple more than he did.”
Margot appreciated the sharing and the ritual, took several Introduction to Judaism courses and “lapped it all up.” In 2005, she went through a conversion even though she and her husband were separated.
At Temple, she loved celebrating life cycle events with her Temple friends, and appreciated “the variety of people, old, young, all lifestyles, always stimulating.”
“What’s very important to me is my wonderful Jewish mother-in-law who is 96, and my other Jewish relatives, and I cherish them. They came to Israel with Rabbi Garten and my family.”
A trained librarian, she has worked everywhere from the National Research Council to Parliament and Algonquin College.
She does school visits weekly with Marty, her little Therapy Dog, helping school children practice their reading.
Margot originally joined the Temple board in 2010, took a break and then came back in 2017. “I could see that Temple faced challenges, and I could help…I wasn’t ever going to be president, and here I am.”
Whether it’s leading the Temple board or pledging to Life & Legacy, Margot says she believes “deeply in giving back.”
“When I appreciate something, I want to make it stronger.”
Temple Israel is already committed to the world of legacy giving because of the Temple Israel Foundation, she said, “and with this four-year Life & Legacy initiative we’re going to learn so much and it will lead to support for Temple. You don’t have to be a millionaire; just to have a vision that and your contribution will help sustain something wonderful.”
Lisa Rosenkrantz
Something tangible to leave for grandchildren to support their Jewish journey should they choose to embark on it
Lisa Rosenkrantz and her husband Michael Walsh joined Temple Israel when they first moved to Ottawa, in July 1981.
“We knew no one,” says Lisa, who grew up in the Reform tradition in Hamilton. “However, within a few weeks, we had a phone call from Debbie and Gary Viner, asking us to Shabbat dinner as new Temple members, and so the adventure with Temple family began.”
Over 40 years, she has appreciated how the Temple community has “lived up to the Jewish commitment to the covenant.”
“‘We will do and we will understand’,” she quotes Parashat Mishpatim. “Through the birth of our children, their education, supporting Michael in becoming a Jew by choice, Jewish wedding, bar mitzvahs, support while learning about being a mohelet… Through it all I have met some amazing people and opened the door to my spiritual life.”
Lisa Rosenkrantz became involved with Temple life “because I was asked – and then I got excited and kept saying yes.” “I was the ritual chair, chair of the music committee, and the prayer book committee. I have sat on the board and taught specific topics in the religious school. Michael and I participated in the Temple trip to Israel.”
Dr. Rosenkrantz is among the Temple members who have signed a Letter of Intent for Temple’s Life and Legacy program. She says she did so because a number of years ago, “there was a conference asking the question ‘will our grandchildren be Jewish?’ With that in mind, knowing that we have no control over our children’s choices, we wanted something tangible to leave for our grandchildren, that would support their Jewish journey, should they choose to embark on it.”
“This is a program that is simply asking for a commitment, no money at the moment,” she explains. “There is money involved of course. This program has been leveraged by a well-established philanthropic organization, that is putting action into the words. They are giving money to organizations who are able to reach out and secure commitments, as Temple meets certain thresholds. And they are giving money, now. So generous, and so I feel that we can be generous with our commitments.
Fran Klodawsky and Aron Spector
“There is a real effort to be welcoming and inclusive. It’s precious and something we shouldn’t take for granted.”
Helping Temple Israel thrive for the next generation
Fran Klodawsky and Aron Spector joined Temple Israel in the early 1980s, after they moved to Ottawa from Kingston, Ontario.
They were leaning towards Reform when they arrived, says Aron. “We were part of a small Reform chavurah in Kingston, Congregation Iyr Ha’Melech, and it was very participatory. We had to do a lot.”
“Because we’d been introduced to Reform in Kingston, that felt more comfortable than any of the alternatives,” says Fran. “When we arrived in Ottawa, I asked around a bit. I remember a conversation with Margaret Delicate, and what she described sounded good. On that basis, we came to Temple and were immediately welcomed by Irving Singer.”
At Temple Israel, the family often went to Friday night dinner services and their children went through the religious school. Noah Spector graduated and attended Camp George, the Reform summer camp. They particularly appreciate “the warm feeling of community and the social justice orientation of Temple.”
Fran and Aron are among the Temple members who have signed a Letter of Intent for Temple’s Life & Legacy program.
The couple decided to support Life & Legacy because “Temple Israel is a very important part of our lives in Ottawa,” says Fran.
“It’s an important community for us, and we’ve taken advantage of many different opportunities to become involved – choir, Torah study, adult education, social action. It makes sense to contribute to Temple’s long term viability, with the hope that our kids will also stay connected.
“Temple Israel is really a very special congregation and community. There is a real effort to be welcoming and inclusive. It’s precious and something we shouldn’t take for granted.”
Team
Staff 1 Staff 1
Aliquam faucibus turpis at libero consectetur euismod. Nam nunc lectus, congue non egestas quis, condimentum ut arcu. Nulla placerat, tortor non egestas rutrum, mi turpis adipiscing dui, et mollis turpis tortor vel orci. Cras a fringilla nunc. Suspendisse volutpat, eros congue scelerisque.Staff 2 Staff 2
Aliquam faucibus turpis at libero consectetur euismod. Nam nunc lectus, congue non egestas quis, condimentum ut arcu. Nulla placerat, tortor non egestas rutrum, mi turpis adipiscing dui, et mollis turpis tortor vel orci. Cras a fringilla nunc. Suspendisse volutpat, eros congue scelerisque.Staff 3 Staff 3
Aliquam faucibus turpis at libero consectetur euismod. Nam nunc lectus, congue non egestas quis, condimentum ut arcu. Nulla placerat, tortor non egestas rutrum, mi turpis adipiscing dui, et mollis turpis tortor vel orci. Cras a fringilla nunc. Suspendisse volutpat, eros congue scelerisque.Staff 4 Staff 4
Aliquam faucibus turpis at libero consectetur euismod. Nam nunc lectus, congue non egestas quis, condimentum ut arcu. Nulla placerat, tortor non egestas rutrum, mi turpis adipiscing dui, et mollis turpis tortor vel orci. Cras a fringilla nunc. Suspendisse volutpat, eros congue scelerisque.