Alumni News & Notes

In August, in a private presentation held at the Reena–Toby and Henry Battle Developmental Centre, Fred Winegust ’77 received the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Medal, an award instituted to honour the Queen’s 70th anniversary on the throne. Fred was recognized for Community Service and the role he has played at Reena, writing grant applications and implementing programs, in particular with relation to the Reena Community Farm. Fred says his ”commitment to community was developed during my years at CHAT,” and carried into many areas of Jewish community life subsequently. Fred is the father of alumni Tamara ’05, Adira ’07, Yardena ’09, Marc ’11 and Zev ’17.

Dr. David Kaplan ’92 was appointed Vice-President, Quality at Ontario Health, the organization that coordinates the Ontario health system to help make it more efficient and to support the delivery of the best possible patient-centred care. David is an Associate Professor of Family & Community Medicine at the University of Toronto Temerty Faculty of Medicine, and also continues his family practice affiliated with the North York Family Health Team. David Hebert ’00, Associate Professor at the University of Manitoba, was the 2022 recipient of the prestigious Strem Award for Pure or Applied Inorganic Chemistry, given by the Chemical Institute of Canada. The award is presented to an individual who has made significant contributions to the field of chemistry, showing exceptional promise. David has also been the recipient of the Royal Society of Chemistry’s Outstanding Reviewer award as well as the University of Toronto’s F.E. Beamish Prize for Inorganic Chemistry. He is the founder of the Hebert Research Group whose primary research focus is on using synthetic inorganic chemistry to tackle atmospheric and environmental problems.

In the wake of the incredibly popular word game, Wordle, Abe Train ’13 launched Globle, a geography-based mystery game that challenges users to guess the correct country every day. When asked about how his time at TanenbaumCHAT helped to contribute to his current career trajectory as a computer programmer and entrepreneur, Abe admitted that he “actually never took a programming class in high school but I definitely got a fantastic STEM education that helped me get to where I am today.” He notes that “the first program I ever wrote was on my TI-83 graphing calculator in Neil Epstein’s Grade 10 Enriched Math class.”

Seth Kerzner ’15 recently graduated with honours from Reichman University in Herzliya, Israel with a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree as the program’s youngest graduate. As a part of this program, Seth partnered with Bricks Innovation, a Tel Aviv-based start-up in the prop-tech sector, where he helped the company build its data analytics and marketing efforts.

➤ Melissa Lantsman, Member of Parliament, Thornhill, presents Fred with the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Medal

By the book

In the depths of the pandemic, Alyssa (Waks) Catzman ’01, certified teacher and child psychotherapist, combined two of her passions: children’s mental health and writing, with the publication of Just As You Are, (Tellwell Talent, 2021), a children’s book that explores the important topics of body image, intuitive eating and self-love. The story is intended to act as a springboard for conversations between adults and children at home and in the classroom. Equipped with personal experience and professional knowledge, after graduating high school, Alyssa embarked on a journey to share messages of body positivity and self-love with children everywhere.

Expanding Potential: Journeying Beyond Who We Think We Are (Mosaica Press, 2022) a new book by Jonah Simcha Chaim Muskat-Brown ’07 takes readers on a deep-dive into the topic of human potential, exploring themes such as empowerment, vulnerability, courage and growth. Set against the backdrop of the Jewish calendar, the book is “a chance to rebel against the identities others confine us to, in favour of the ones we create for ourselves as we develop across the year.” Dentist and new mother, Jessica Gold ’08 spent the last year working on a children’s book. Get Outside (Library and Archives Canada, 2022) is “an ABC-style book that is intended to introduce children to the outdoors and encourage parents to get kids outside from an early age.” There is also an accompanying colouring book. Proceeds are being donated to an Ontario charity called Project Canoe, which offers educational outdoor programming to underprivileged youth and those with mental health and financial barriers. Jessica notes that “TanenbaumCHAT instilled in me a strong sense of tzedakah and those values have stuck with me to this day.”

Conquer Yourself to Change the World: A Commentary on Pirkei Avos (Shikey Press, 2022), is a new book co-authored by Alden Tabac ’18. A commentary on the Ethics of the Fathers, it guides readers to apply the ancient lessons of the Sages to contemporary life. The commentary places an emphasis on the importance of overcoming your nature to become the best version of yourself and to lead a more ethical life. Alden notes that the project was informed by “many of the skills… acquired in the Jewish Studies program at TanenbaumCHAT.”

That’s entertainment

Orlee-Rose Strauss ’05 is a film and TV producer based in New York City. After receiving her MFA from the University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts in 2013, she joined co-directors Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman at their production company, Supermarché. Orlee-Rose’s latest feature, Secret Headquarters (2022), stars Owen Wilson and broke records on Paramount+ as the platform’s most streamed original film to date. Prior to that, Orlee-Rose produced Project Power (2020), a Netflix action film starring Jamie Foxx and Joseph Gordon Levitt, which debuted at #1 in over 90 countries and remains one of Netflix’s top ten original features of all time. Orlee-Rose also produced the Lionsgate teen thriller Nerve, starring Emma Roberts and Dave Franco, as well as the Sundance hit, White Girl. In addition, she has also produced a number of awardwinning short films starring Margot Robbie, Taylor Swift, Elle Fanning, and Kendall Jenner, as well as commercial and branded content for clients such as Vogue, Google, Facebook and the New York Knicks. Co-written and directed by Noam Tomaschoff ‘09, the feature length film Tankhouse follows two hopelessly pretentious thespians who relocate to Fargo, North Dakota to start a theatrical revolution. Noam credits his alma mater with planting the seeds of his professional career and serving as part of the inspiration for the film’s story. “I simply wouldn’t have discovered theatre without the encouragement of Mr. Mittelman and Mr. Sable ’90.” said Noam. He, along with Class of 2009 friends Jeremy Chad, Ben Deverett and (current teacher) Ryan Peters “wrote our original musical Just a Regular Day.” That process served in part as inspiration for the story of Noam’s new film.

Becca Willow Moss ‘13, starred in It’s What Each Person Needs, a short that was screened multiple times as part of the TIFF Short Cuts Programme. TIFF International Programmer Jason Anderson called the film one of seven “unforgettable films that are as compelling as they are consistently surprising.” Becca Willow traces the seeds of her unique multi-hyphenate career as an actor, singer, director and visual artist to her time at TanenbaumCHAT, crediting former teacher Mrs. Wener for giving her the support, encouragement and confidence to write her own scripts, songs and essays, as well as her time performing in the choir and in Hebrew plays.

Orlee-Rose Strauss '05 center front surrounded by Secret Headquarters cast members.