When the first German Jews began to arriving in the cities along the American Eastern Seaboard, it quickly became apparent that there was an ongoing need for an organization to service the needs of the disadvantaged among them. Thus was born the first Jewish Service Organization called B’nai Brith. Over the next 100 years, the expansion of service coast to coast and north and south meant an international organization with regions in order to manage all the centres where B’nai Brith found itself. It also meant an expansion into areas not dealing with poverty, but discrimination of the Jewish people even in the enlightened countries of Canada and the United States led to the Anti-Defamation League. The burgeoning presence of young Jewish students on university campuses also meant the growth of Hillel.
As Jewish communities grew, so too did B’nai Brith lodges for men and women. In St. Catharines, one woman in particular became very involved in the growth of B’nai Brith in Canada. Adelle Slepkov Tomarin rose through the ranks internationally and forcefully. In the late ’60s, through her efforts, the Canadian lodges became part of a region on its own, separate and apart from the American regions. B’nai Brith in St. Catharines showed its support for the community by sponsoring the Scouting program in the synagogue. It sponsored a picnic for the community every year. It hosted an annual mens’ stag which raised funds for local community projects like equipment for the hospitals. It must be said that B’nai Brith managed to bring into the fold of the community many who were not interested in the synagogue but the Jewish communal affairs that were often held in the Jewish Community Centre.
Adelle Tomarin
Men’s Lodge Executive of B’nai Brith in 1974 /75
Women’s Chapter Executive of B’nai Brith in 1974 /75