14 | JULY 28 • 2022
ON THE COVER
counterparts. Rabbi
Yisrael Pinson, executive
director of Chabad of
Greater Downtown Detroit,
recently brought a group
across to Windsor for an
event focused on food and
wine from France. Pinson
came with members of his
Wednesday night Detroit book club.
“We’re literally across the street
from Windsor, so there’s a lot of back
and forth between the young Jewish
community of Windsor and the young
Jewish community of Detroit,” he says,
adding that from the time he and his
wife, Devorah, started the Chabad in
Detroit nine years ago, there have been
many people crossing the border from
Canada to attend their events.
In the early ’80s, there was a major
grant given to Chabad of Michigan,
and Chabad decided to open five new
centers, including one in Windsor,
says Pinson, adding that the volume of
events connecting the cities has been
growing, including this past summer,
when a large event was held in Metro
Detroit for young Jewish professionals
from both regions. During the
pandemic, when border crossing was
tougher, the Chabad held Zoom events,
and they sent each person a package in
advance so they could participate.
“It’s a natural way for young
Canadian Jews to broaden their events
and activities by taking part in events in
the city,” Pinson explains.
Michael Breshgold has long known
about the deep connections between
Michigan and Windsor’s Jewish
communities. Having moved from
Michigan to Windsor some 25 years
ago, he commuted daily for work and
to see family. He also knew families
who drove their children in to attend
Hillel Day School. Today, he’s a member
of Adat Shalom in Farmington Hills
and has five grandchildren who live in
Metro Detroit.
His wife, Roz, is from Windsor. They
met at a Rosh Hashanah singles event
they both attended at Temple Beth El.
There’s a lot of Jewish programming
in Windsor, he says, with more on the
way. “It’s a very active community — a
lot of the young people are starting to
move back,” he says. “Windsor is a nice
community to live in.”
Breshgold adds he’s excited to see
a recent uptick in events set to bring
the Jewish communities together. He’s
looking forward to seeing new faces
at the Windsor Jewish Community
Centre’s monthly gatherings, the
community’s Jewish film festival, Israel
events and more. “We’ve got a lot of
activities — you can pick and choose
Rabbi
Yisrael
Pinson
Michael and
Rosalyn
Breshgold
Jewish Windsorites enjoy
fellowship at this senior
barbecue event.
This outdoor Shabbat service
at the Windsor Jewish
Community Centre was led
by Rabbi Mike Nasielski.
continued from page 13