Avrum Rosensweig
Rosensweig was born in Kitchener, Ontario in 1960, the only son of Rabbi Phyvle (Philip) Rosensweig (1928–1989) and Gitel Rosensweig (née Flicht) (1930–2016)
Rabbi Phillip Rosensweig came from a family of Orthodox Rabbis, that emigrated to Canada during the turn of the last century. Some of his mother's family were Polish Jews from Wierzbnik (after 1952 called Starachowice), Poland, who were murdered in the Holocaust. In his younger years, Rabbi Rosensweig was active in helping Jewish refugees from Europe flee persecution to come to Canada. Rosensweig received an Orthodox Jewish education at Ner Israel Yeshiva in Toronto and later on in Jerusalem, Israel, followed by the study of journalism at Ryerson University. From 1990 to 1996, he worked for Toronto's United Jewish Appeal (UJA) campaign. During the Rwandan genocide in 1994, he convinced UJA to launch efforts help the fleeing refugees from the crisis torn region. From 2005 to 2015, he served as associate Religious Leader at Congregation Habonim Toronto. In 1996, he founded Ve'ahavta, Canada's only Jewish humanitarian and relief organization, which launched numerous initiatives in Canada and around the world. In its first 15 years of operations Ve'ahavta operated around the world assisting locals through medical care. Ve'ahavta medical teams set up clinics in the rain forests of Guyana, in rural Zimbabwe, Guyana and responded to natural disasters in Turkey, Srii Lanka following the tsunami, Haiti, Honduras and other such places. Similarly, Ve'ahavta launched a local program for those experiencing homelessness and poverty. Avrum helped establish programs such as: The Mobile Jewish Response to the Homeless, a nightly van program whereby volunteers travels the streets of Toronto, with outreach workers, to assist those living on the street through food, drinks, clothing, blankets, books etc.; The Ve'ahavta Street Academy, a school for the homeless or near homeless and the Creative Writing Contest for the Homeless. Some of the judges for their program included: Michael Ondaatje and former prime minister of the UK, Tony Blair. Ve'ahavta has operated homework clubs and photography contests. Other areas of operation included South America, the Caribbean, in Asia (during the tsunami in Thailand and the Hurricane in the Philippines), and communities in rural Africa (affected by AIDS), and advocating awareness about the genocide in Darfur. Locally, he has initiated many programs for the disadvantaged in Toronto (Passover Seder for the Homeless (co-sponsored by Toronto's Congregation Habonim), Creative Writing Contest for the Homeless, Homework Partnership Program for Somalian Children etc.), as well as forming alliances with the Jewish and First Nations communities. Ve'ahavta hosts a gala fundraising event each year, honouring Canadians of all backgrounds for their work in social, humanitarian, medical and educational fields. Honourees have included:
Moshe Hammer, Dr. Naomi Azrieli, Dr. Michael Dan, Irwin Cotler, Karen Levine, Adam Hummel and others. Hosts, Guest speakers/performers have included:
Bob Geldof, Mia Farrow, Mariane Pearl, Steven Page, Emmanuel Jal, Jaffa Road, Michael Enright, Shad (Shadrach Kabango), Evan Solomon and others. Rosensweig's work has appeared in various print, TV and Radio Media including:
Ve'ahavta
Avrum Rosensweig is the founding director of Ve'ahavta: The Canadian Jewish Humanitarian & Relief Committee. He decided then, it was paramount the Canadian Jewish community had a humanitarian organization dedicated to living up the Jewish promise of 'never again', that the community would respond when an injustice or disaster occurred.