Historic Sites of Manitoba: Shaarey Zedek Synagogue (561 Wellington Crescent, Winnipeg)

Link to:
Presidents | Photos & Coordinates | Sources

A stone building on Wellington Crescent in Winnipeg was designed by the local architectural firm of Green Blankstein Russell for the congregation of Shaarey Zedek Synagogue to replace an earlier structure on Dagmar Street. Its cornerstone was dedicated at a ceremony on 5 June 1949 attended by Lieutenant Governor Roland Fairbairn McWilliams, Premier Douglas Lloyd Campbell, Mayor Garnet Coulter, Reverend W. Gerald Burch, Rabbi Milton Aron, and Congregation President Hyman Kay.

The synagogue was constructed between 1949 and 1950. Its stained glass windows were designed by artist Leo Mol and its tabernacle doors were made by sculptor Hubert A. Garnier.

Presidents

Period	President
1890-1892	Philip Brown (1836-1913)
1893-1894	Simon Avigdor Ripstein (1858-1935)
1895	Philip Brown (1836-1913)
1896	Simon Avigdor Ripstein (1858-1935)
1897-1903	Tavel Finkelstein
1904-1907	David Ripstein (1851-1923)
1908-1909	Herman Steinkopf
1910-1912	Moses Finkelstein (1873-1939)
1913	Henry A. Isaacs
1914-1917	Simon Avigdor Ripstein (1858-1935)
1918-1919	Morris Haid
1920-1921	Hiram L. Weidman (1863-1933)
1922-1923	Max Steinkopf (1881-1935)
1924-1926	Abraham W. Myers
1927-1929	Maurice Halter (c1873-1962)
1930	Solomon Hart Green (1885-1969)
1931-1933	Morris Haid
1934-1935	Jacob Udow
1936-1937	Neiman J. Weidman (1885-1960)
1938-1941	John D. Lyone
1942-1945	Moshe Genser
1946-1947	John D. Lyone
1948-1949	Hyman Kay (1887-1969)
1950	Moshe Genser
1950-1951	Alexander Elihu Cantor (c1896-1969)
1951-1953	William I. Krisman
1953-1955	Israel Nitikman (1905-1988)
1955-1957	Irwin Dorfman (1908-1993)
1957-1959	Julius Berkowitz (1908-1970)
1960-1961	Morris Neaman (1898-1974)
1962-1963	Harold Genser
1964-1965	Hy Schulman
1965-1966	Dr. B. B. Cantor
1966-1967	Archie Hecht
1967-1968	Norman I. Corne (1916-1992)
1968-1969	Dr. Harvey Allen
1969-1970	Ruvin Lyons (1906-1992)
1970-1971	Sidney Sheps
1971-1972	Harry Arenson
1972-1973	Abram Steinberg
1973-1974	Dr. M. J. Lehmann
1975-1976	Murray J. Rosenberg
1976-1977	Robert A. Levenstein
1977-1979	Charles Nathan “Chuck” Rubin (1932-2022)
1979-1980	Horace Jerome Cohen (1922-2009)
1980-1981	Julius Isaac “Jack” Neaman (c1928-2016)
1981-1983	Paul Silver
1983-1985	Gerald Gregory “Greg” Brodsky (1940-2022)
1985-1987	Easton Irving Lexier (1926-2020)
1987-1989	Evelyn Hecht
1989-1991	David Greenberg
1991-1993	Charles Golfman
1993-1995	Brian Pauls
1995-1997	Samuel Isaac “Sam” Wilder (1940-2023)
1997-1999	David Gisser
1999-2001	Dr. Edward A. “Ted” Lyons OC
2001-2003	Justice Perry Schulman
2003-2005	Robert L. “Rocky” Pollack KC
2005-2007	Rick Lee
2007-2009	Saul Greenberg
2009-2010	Dr. Eric Ellis
2010-2012	Dr. Bonnie Cham
2012-2014	Dr. Brent Schacter
2014-2016	Uri Kraut
2016-2018	Lorne Weiss
2018-2020	Dr. Frank Hechter
2020-2022	Dr. Gary Hyman
2022-2024	Neil Duboff

Photos & Coordinates

Shaarey Zedek Synagogue (April 2020) Source: George Penner Site Coordinates (lat/long): N49.90013, W97.14431 denoted by symbol on the map above

See also:

Manitoba Business: Green Blankstein Russell and Associates

Memorable Manitobans: Hubert A. Garnier (1903-1987)

Historic Sites of Manitoba: Shaarey Shomayim Synagogue / Shaarey Zedek Synagogue (129 Dagmar Street, Winnipeg)

Historic Sites of Manitoba: Shaarey Zedek Cemetery (230 Armstrong Avenue, Winnipeg)

Sources:

“Synagogue cornerstone ceremony ‘act of faith’,” Winnipeg Tribune, 6 June 1949, page 15.

Board of Directors, Shaarey Zedek Synagogue.

This page was prepared by George Penner and Gordon Goldsborough.

Page revised: 9 February 2025

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