Tomorrow Campaign

Fifty years ago, the “North Y” was inaugurated at Bathurst, north of Sheppard, on what was then an empty ravine. Nearly 25 years later, the Lipa Green Building for Jewish Community Services was erected on the same site.

Now at the heart of Jewish Toronto, these two landmark establishments are being rebuilt and refurbished, as part of the creation of Sherman Campus– a brand new “Jewish city” on the 27 acre site.

A bustling junction of humanity, theatre, music, art, health and wellness, Sherman Campus will represent the intersection of hope, opportunity, services and concern for all members of the Jewish community.

Anchoring the campus’ north end will be the renovated and enhanced Lipa Green Centre, featuring a new, state-of-the-art Conference Centre. At the south end will be the beautifully rebuilt Koffler Centre of the Arts and Leah Posluns Theatre.

Also included in the family of buildings and services will be the new Jewish Museum of Canada housing the Sarah & Chaim Neuberger Holocaust Education Centre and the Prosserman JCC which will include the Cynamon/Sokolowski Sports Complex and the Donald Gales Family Pavilion.

And uniting Sherman Campus will be the Jewish Walk of Fame, a series of indoor paths and bridges connecting these remarkable facilities to one another - and to the community they serve.

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CAMPUS UPDATES & EVENTS

A Decade Of Dreams Realized At Official Opening

Years of planning, building and dreaming came to fruition on Wednesday afternoon with the opening celebration of the first phase of Sherman Campus. The highly-anticipated event marked the official opening of the Prosserman JCC at the new Donald Gales Family Pavilion and the expansion of the Lipa Green Centre for Jewish Community Services.

Before a capacity crowd in the Lipa Green Centre’s new Tamari Family Hall, donors to Sherman Campus were honoured for playing a pivotal role in bringing the beautiful 27-acre site (on Bathurst north of Sheppard) to life. Among the more than 200 attendees were Toronto Mayor David Miller and Vaughan MPP, Greg Sorbara.

“For the past 10 years, through the vision of Jewish Toronto Tomorrow and ultimately, the Tomorrow Campaign, we have followed proudly in the footsteps of our ancestors,” said Peter Cohen, chair of the Sherman Campus Development Committee. “Like the visionaries and leaders who built for us, we are recognizing and boldly addressing the need for infrastructure and accessible services to support and nurture present and future generations of Jewish Toronto.”

“This is truly a great day for our community,” said Barry Sherman. “Looking back ten years ago when we launched this initiative, it was a daunting task, but the response from our community was tremendous as they, too, wanted to ensure a strong and vibrant Jewish community for their children. What we have accomplished is mind-boggling; downtown, here, and at the Lebovic Campus in Vaughan. And now we are about to start phase two. It is so gratifying to see this progression.”

Renovations and enhancements to the Lipa Green Centre include the creation of a vast, state-of-the-art Conference Centre on the building’s main level. The new Prosserman JCC features programs for seniors, the David & Esther Freiman Early Childhood Education Centre, the Koffler Centre of the Arts, a culinary arts studio, the Goldie Fitness Centre, family programming and a host of cultural and social activities.

"Today's opening of the Donald Gales Family Pavilion is just the latest chapter in a long standing commitment of the Jewish community and the Prosserman JCC to serving the needs of our city,” said Mayor Miller. “I wish to congratulate everyone for their tremendous and ongoing accomplishments and for their work on behalf of all Torontonians."

“The vision behind having the Gales Pavilion as the first building to open on Sherman Campus was so that we could continue to serve all members of the community who have made the JCC such an integral part of their lives for so many years”, said David Koschitzky, chair, UJA Federation of Greater Toronto.

A slideshow of archival photos of the initial “Northern Branch” of the YM-YWHA and later, the Koffler Centre of the Arts and Leah Posluns Theatre, brought smiles to the faces of nostalgic guests, while photographs and a time-lapse video of the more recent construction illustrated the enormity of what had been accomplished since the campus groundbreaking in October, 2007.

“It’s truly remarkable to see just how far our Jewish community has come in the last decade,” said UJA Federation president & CEO, Ted Sokolsky. “When the Tomorrow Campaign was launched – as Jewish Toronto Tomorrow – in 2000 at the Kiever Shul, nobody could have anticipated just how much our city’s Jewish infrastructure would change; improving lives of not only Jews, but the community at large, all of whom benefit from our new campuses downtown, midtown, and in Vaughan. Today’s official opening is the culmination of countless dreams, and continues the tradition of Jews building, not only for today, but for future generations.”

The next phases of Sherman Campus will include a 64,000 sq. Sports Complex, The National Centre for Jewish Heritage, the Sarah and Chaim Neuberger Holocaust Education Centre; and a new Koffler Centre for the Arts and Leah Posluns Theatre.

By Barbra Green

SHERMAN CAMPUS