Fifth North American Chevra Kadisha Conference
West Edmonton Mall Conference Center
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
June 10-12, 2007
Kavod v’Nichum’s fifth North American Chevra Kadisha Conference will be held in Edmonton, Canada in conjunction with the 100th anniversary of the Edmonton Chevra Kadisha. This year the conference will feature three jam-packed days with many stimulating speakers and workshops related to both chevra and cemetery issues (details soon on the website). One of our keynoters will be Rabbi Maurice Lamm, author of “The Jewish Way in Death and Mourning” and “Consolation: The Spiritual Journey Beyond Grief”. A special treat for all delegates will be a world class cantorial concert, featuring three world renowned cantors Alex Stein (Calgary, Canada), Shimon Farkas (Sydney, Australia) and Yaakov Motzen (Miami, U.S.A.)
The Edmonton Chevra Kadisha is an all volunteer, not for profit organization, which serves the city’s Jewish population of five thousand and operates the only Jewish cemetery. Our community is home to several Conservative, Orthodox and Reform congregations and two Jewish day schools.
Edmonton offers a beautiful river valley, vibrant downtown and endless sunshine. Within an easy drive are two world famous mountain parks, Banff and Jasper and the spectacular Columbia Ice Fields. In June, it does not get dark until almost 11:00 pm so you can do sports or walk in the day light way past your normal bedtime.
The West Edmonton Mall, site of the conference, is the largest entertainment and shopping mall in the world. Yes, it is bigger than the Mall of America. In your spare time you and your family will be able to enjoy fabulous shopping, the GalaxyLand Amusement Park with its Triple Loop Rollercoaster ride, the Water Park with its slides and waves, clubs and restaurants, miniature golf, a full size ice rink (with skate rentals), a miniature lake featuring replicas of Columbus’s ships and Caesar’s Palace Casino. Check it out at www.westedmontonmall.com . While you are at it, check out the Fantasyland Hotel at www.fantasylandhotel.com to see the available accommodations including the unbelievable theme rooms.
The province of Alberta is due north of Montana. Edmonton and Calgary are its two major cities with over a million people in both metro areas. Edmonton is the Provincial Capital and the gateway to the north (Oil Country). Calgary has many corporate head offices and is the second biggest financial centre in Canada (after Toronto). Edmonton is serviced by Air Canada, Westjet Airlines, Northwest, Continental, United, Alaska, and Delta airlines. Many flights are direct while others connect through Calgary or Toronto.
Please make plans to attend the conference and consider bringing your family for a very special holiday. Don’t forget that the U.S dollar is at least 10% higher than the Canadian dollar so U.S delegates will benefit from this favorable exchange rate on all expenditures.
The registration form will be on the web site shortly. See You In Edmonton!
Ron Levin & Jerry Cooper, Conference Co-Chairs