A Typical Celebration

As the Peterborough community grew and prospered, there were many occasions to celebrate, including weddings and bar mitzvahs. A number of these celebrations became the focus of small articles by Rabbi Fine. The bar mitzvah of Isadore Black offers a typical example of the flavour of these community occasions, as reported by Rabbi Fine.

On Sunday, 11 March 11 1927, Fine wrote that “all the Jews of Peterborough were present” for Isadore Black’s bar mitzvah. In addition, guests came from Ottawa, Montreal, Toronto and New York. They started to arrive on Friday, March 9. At the same time, Isadore’s grandparents, David and Fanny Florence, began preparing their home to receive guests. All the friends arrived safely, despite “inclement weather” and on Saturday Isadore read nicely from the Torah and Haftorah. After this, “good food” was served.

On Sunday, more guests arrived by train. The Black house was decorated with “flowers and flags” and the tables set with food. One of the Black’s sons, Moshe, was toastmaster. He read telegrams from “many different countries”. Greetings were then offered in Hebrew, Yiddish and English by different children and by the Young Judaea youth group, of which Isadore was a member.

Isadore then spoke in Yiddish about the meaning of tefillin and about the responsibilities of becoming a man and “a member of the Jewish nation”. He thanked his parents for giving him a good Jewish education and those present for coming to celebrate with him. His father, Phillip (Pesak) Black spoke next, “with tears in his eyes” about the mission of the Jewish nation and the duties of the young generation. His speech was emotional, wrote Rabbi Fine, so much so that it “made all the people present break into tears”. Rabbi Fine also spoke, praising the bar mitzvah boy and his parents highly.

A number of the guests also made speeches. This was followed by a little fundraising. It was a community practice to take up a collection on happy occasions so as to remember the less fortunate. One favoured charity was the “Old Folks Home” in Toronto, for which $60 was collected on this occasion. Another $20 was collected for a yeshiva in Jerusalem. The party then continued as Philip Black’s father, Rabbi Tzodok Black, entertained the guests with “many national and religious songs”. In the evening Annie Black, then President of Hadassah, held a party for the ladies. Isadore and all the children entertained by repeating their speeches. One of Mrs. Black’s sisters brought a bouquet of flowers and the ladies planted six trees in “Dr. Hertzel’s forest” in the name of the bar mitzvah boy.

Abramsky Family

Extending today into the fifth generation, the Abramsky family is one of Kingston's oldest and most extensive. Joseph Abramsky was the family patriarch, the first to arrive, in 1891. He had come from Volpa, in Belarus to Kingston because his cousins, the Abramsons, were living there. Abramsky began by peddling door to door. When he had saved enough to buy a horse and wagon, he ventured out into the farmlands of Frontenac County. His earnings soon gave him the resources necessary to bring over four of his ten siblings, Alec, William, David and Leah. In 1896, he sent for his wife, Chaia and children, Moses, Ida, Edith and Katherine. Tragically, Chaia died in Kingston giving birth to their fifth child, Harry, in 1897. Joseph was able to marry again in 1900. Rabbi Solomon of Toronto, who officiated at the wedding of Joseph Abramsky and his cousin Geisha (Gussie) Abramson, is reputed to have married the famous Captain Alfred Dreyfus and his wife, in 1891 in Paris.

Joseph Abramsky established a men's and ladies' wear store called Joseph Abramsky & Sons Ltd. on Princess Street in 1893. His three sons, Moses, Harry and Samuel joined him in the business in 1922, expanding its scope by introducing a furniture division. Joseph Abramsky and Sons Ltd. became a booming department store, offering employment to many and serving the Kingston community's retail needs for several generations, until it closed in 1997. The family now run their business under the name of Keystone Property Management Inc., headed by Joseph's great grandson Jay Abramsky.

A founding member of the Hebrew Congregation in 1902, Joseph Abramsky was engaged in Jewish life in Kingston, as were his children and grandchildren. Harry and Ethel Abramsky in particular became pillars of the community, both Jewish and general. Queen's University was a major beneficiary of their philanthropy. Their consistent support and generosity were recognized in 1981 when Harry was recognized by the Queen's Council for "Distinguished Service to Queen's". Harry and Ethel also gave generously to projects in Israel, including the Hebrew University among many others, and their donation of a stock portfolio to Beth El helped guarantee the synagogue's financial security. Joseph Abramsky died in 1927.

Harry and Ethel's son Mortimer and his wife Shirley took up the baton with gusto, carrying on the family tradition of commitment to Jewish life in Kingston and in Israel, as well as support of Kingston's general community.