When my parents David and Clara Mintz moved to Edmonton in 1949, I was almost three years old. Our first home was in an apartment around 116 Street and Jasper Avenue. Then they moved to 133 Street and 105th Avenue. I started kindergarten at the Talmud Torah school located in the Driscoll Building on 103 street and south of Jasper Avenue. I remember the school yard in front of the school was tiny. I remember being transported to school in a taxicab from our home with a few other students. This was well before the days of a school-bus that picked up my own children.
Then the school was moved to 133 Street and 106 Avenue. I lived a block away. Before it was built, I remember the land which it occupied was like a bog with lots of water. Groat Road was still a ravine.
Our class was comprised of twenty-seven or so students. I recall Frank Phillet, Jeff Dvorkin and I were the smallest kids in the class. In Kindergarten we had Mrs. Goelman as our kindergarten teacher. Mr. Goelman was the principal. Mike and Lisa did the cooking of the kosher lunches. Even though my home was less than a block from the school, I usually ate my lunch at school.
My other classmates included Wayne Shur, Milton Bogoch, Benny Landa, Sheldon Schloss, Brian Sussman, Jeff Dvorkin, Frank Phillet, later Mel Tussman, Jody Bell, Gail Pakes, Leona Katzin, Ruth Ellen Silverman, Carol Kettner, Shirley Deitch, Julie Levine, Laurie Fefferman, Serena Rolingher, Gene Greenstein, Barry Slawsky, Gary Woodrow, Larry Sheckter, Rick Brezer, Ralph Shapiro, Avis Zalmanovitz and a few others whose names I cannot remember. A few students in the class were badly behaved and got on the nerves of the teachers. I would rather not provide their names.
In about 1954 Jack Chetner, who was from New York, was hired as a teacher at the school. Mr. Moshe Yedlin was also there. They were Hebrew teachers who had an impact on my development as a Jewish person. I had wonderful English program teachers who are listed.
My father David Mintz, in the later years of life, put together a binder of my young life and included all my reports I received from the Talmud. This has refreshed my memory about the teacher who had a significant impact on my growth as a person.
The playground at the school was interesting. The baseball diamond was reserved only for the grade 6 students so before that we were consigned to playing in other areas of it.
One of my fondest memories of Talmud Torah was the Junior Congregation program run by Mr. Chetner and Mr. Yedlin. We, the students, ran the services. This is how we got ready for our Bar Mitzvahs. Every student who went to it got a part or parts of the services to perform. Then afterwards we had cookies and ice cream. I attended over 90% of the Shabbos’ over the years.
After finishing grade 6, I went to Westminster Junior High School. On Mondays to Thursdays, I attended Talmud Torah night school from 4:30 to 6:00 PM for grades 7, 8 and 9. Mr.Yedlin, Mr. Chetner and Mr. Ben Ron were the main teachers. Subjects we were taught were Jewish Customs, History, Prophets, “Bible,” reading prayers, and of course Hebrew language, writing and grammar. One crazy incident I remember was in grade 8, when Mr. Yedlin told Benny Landa to leave the classroom. So, he complied by jumping out of the second story window.
In grade 9 I never missed a class. However, Wayne Shur and some others wanted to make sure my attendance was not 100% so they grabbed me, tied me up, and put me in a closet in classroom that was not being utilized that day. I was able to escape my bonds and made it back into class with about an hour to go that day.
In 1961 we celebrated our graduation. The graduating class was comprised of Milton Bogoch, Ralph Shapiro, Ruth Ellen Silverman (now Shafir), Brian Sussman, Melvin Tussman, Avis Zalmanovitz, and me. This graduation program was a big deal, since it also included the grade 6 graduating class comprised of forty-seven students. Lots of people were in attendance in the lower auditorium of the school. We graduates put on a program discussing our subjects. I spoke about the Bible.
After I went to Westminster for Junior High, I went to Ross Sheppard Composite High School from 1961-1964. I was an active member of the Aleph Zadik Aleph (AZA – BBYO) and served as President of Mandel Bloomfield Chapter 121 and the Regional President for Northwest Canada Region. I attended Kallah and the International Leadership Training Convention in Starlight Pennsylvania.
My Jewish identity, thanks to Talmud Torah and reinforcement of Judaism by my parents, was further enhanced by my participation in BBYO.
After graduating from Grade 12, I entered the University of Alberta for my 3 year undergraduate program majoring in psychology. In my first year, I was elected and served as President of Northwest Canada AZA region and became active in the Jewish Fraternity on campus called Sigma Alpha Mu. I was accepted to the University of Toronto Law School in 1967 and graduated in 1970.
Throughout my high school and university educations I felt a keen sense of Jewish identity, which I always related to, in large part, my 9 year education at Talmud Torah.
I married Susan (Yalowsky) from Toronto in 1970. In September 1971 (or the year after) she was employed at TT for one year as a kindergarten teacher. That was the positive start of her teaching career. She really enjoyed the children.
My daughters, Alisa, Rachel, and Lezlie all enrolled for 6 years at TT followed by Alisa’s children Asher, Lylah and Solly. Currently Rachel’s children Neve (grade 5) and Joni (2) are students at TT. All the children went to the current TT school.
I am proud to say three generations of Mintz children attended or currently attend the school. I must not forget my brother, Jack Mintz, who followed the same path as I at the Talmud Torah except he was younger.
While our children were growing up, I continued my connection to the Talmud Torah. In the mid-eighties I was a member of the Board and served as a Vice-President.
My highlight of involvement was being a chairperson, along with Wayne Shur and Ruth Ellen Shafir (nee Silverman), to organize the 75th Anniversary of Talmud Torah held in 1987. We organized many programs. Ron Pascoe, a former student of the school, authored a book about the school’s 75-year history. I organized a Junior Congregation service at the school. At first, we thought only 30 or 40 would attend but over two hundred showed up to relive this beautiful program. We had a school tour and a special dinner for the Jewish community. We asked people to bring in artifacts celebrating their past participation at Talmud Torah. They were displayed at the school. The program was massively successful.
Susan and I have continuously lived in Edmonton. Her teaching career involved teaching French as a second language, sub-teaching, and 22 years of teaching kindergarten at Menorah Academy.
My career as a lawyer has continued unabated. To date, I have practiced for almost 54 years. Susan has maintained a connection to Talmud Torah by volunteering time in the library.
Through the years I have been active in road racing, track and field and soccer. Another person and I established the Victoria Masters Soccer League in Edmonton 10 years ago and I function as the Discipline Chair of the league. In the track and field community I have been the President of the Edmonton Masters Athletics Association for 25 years and travelled Internationally and to the United States to compete in national championships.
Susan and I have travelled internationally, but most importantly in 2013 we visited and toured Israel which I treat as a life highlight.
Susan and I have received nachas from the accomplishments of our grandchildren who have attended or who currently attend Talmud Torah.
What was Talmud Torah’s impact on me? It was a major contributor to my identity as a Jewish person, religiously and educationally. It has equipped me with those tools needed to understand my Judaism and the value system needed to participate in the Jewish and general community.
The Edmonton Talmud Torah is an essential Jewish institution that deserves complete support from the Edmonton Jewish Community. Without it, we do not have a meaningful Jewish community. It is an important vehicle that bridges the generations by ensuring our Jewish heritage is handed down from the parents to their children. I salute all the parents who have sent and do send their children to Talmud Torah. Having been established in 1912 it holds the distinction of being the oldest Jewish day school in Canada. Let us support this best institution.
