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Sense of Spadina Tour

For over 30 years the OJA has been offering the Sense of Spadina Tour, which provides participants with a glimpse at old Jewish Toronto in Kensington Market. It is a 90 minute walking tour offered from April to October. We provide 4 public tours during the season as well as tours for private groups. The last public tour will be held on Sunday September 22nd.  For those interested in signing up for this tour you can either pay on-line or contact us for more information.

Pape Avenue Cemetery Tour

The Pape Avenue Cemetery tour takes participants through Toronto’s oldest Jewish cemetery, established in 1849. It is led by Dr. Ellen Scheinberg, Director of the OJA and Susan Brown, artist and local community leader. Participants will be exposed to the rich history of this cemetery as well as stories surrounding the individuals who were buried there. The last public tour this season will be held on Sunday October 2nd. For those interested in registering you can pay on-line or contact us at for more information.

The OJA held a public launch for its recent exhibition "Facets of Fame: Portraits by Toronto Photographer Al Gilbert" on July 29th at the Market Gallery. The display opened on April 22nd and includes approximately 75 portraits taken by internationally acclaimed portrait photographer Al Gilbert. During his 60 plus year career, Gilbert has photographed some of the most notable personalities of our time such as Frank Sinatra, Charles Best, Prime Minister John Diefenbaker, Oscar Peterson, Pope John Paul II, the Queen Mum and many others.

The event attracted over 120 visitors who viewed the display and had the opportunity to mingle with Al and partake in the refreshments. Several of the subjects who are featured in the exhibit attended this event such as Mel Lastman, Raymond Moriyama, Judy Feld Carr and Rabbi Frydman Kohl. The family of the late William Wen, who owened the popular Chinese restaurant Sai Woo, were also in attendance.

The exhibition will remain at the Market Gallery until September 11th. After that time, the OJA will organize a travelling exhibition so that institutions from across North America can borrow it. We would encourage everyone who hasn't yet had the opportunity to see it to pay a visit to the Market Gallery before it closes. We would like to thank Pam Wachna, the head of the Gallery, as well as the curator, Michael Dowbenka, for their work and support. It's been a real pleasure working with them and having our display mounted at such a spaceous and professionally run venue. 

On left: Ellen Scheinberg (Director of the OJA) and Ralph Coram from the Archives of Ontario.
On right: Melissa Caza and Emma Leverty from the OJA pose by the Gallery window showcasing the view of the city.

Photo Credit: Michael Rajzman