Tova Vickar was born without papers in post-war Europe, emigrated to Israel in 1954 where she grew up on a kibbutz, then in 1969 as a young adult, bought a one-way ticket to Winnipeg where she lived for the next 57 years. Her experiences as a young refugee who benefitted from the kindness of Jewish organizations around the world inspired her to become a community leader with a special focus on children, immigrants and those with intellectual challenges in Canada, Israel and the Philippines.<\/p>\n
Vickar died in Winnipeg on May 25. She was 76.<\/p>\n
More than 900 people representing a cross-section of Winnipeg attended her funeral at Congregation Shaarey Zedek including Cindy Woodhouse, National Chief, Assembly of First Nations and David Chartrand, president of the Manitoba Metis Federation. Rabbi Carnie Rose told Tova\u2019s husband Larry Vickar it was the most diverse group the synagogue had ever seen.<\/p>\n
\u201cTova was an artisan of the spirit,\u201d Rabbi Rose said in his eulogy. \u201cThere were cracks in her life \u2013 those things bruised her in some ways -but she never allowed for that to get her down. She used the scratches to etch a portrait of beauty and charm. Rather than be bitter, she became better.\u201d<\/p>\n
As part of Philippine Heritage Month, Tova\u2019s contribution to the local Filipino community will be recognized this week at Winnipeg\u2019s city hall by the Philippine organization Ladies of the Knights of Rizal, out of respect to her and what she meant to them.<\/p>\n
Vickar was born somewhere between Poland and Russia after the war ended but she never had an official birth certificate. Her father, Nucham, was an officer in the Russian army who was shot in the head at the end of the war and was treated by a nurse, Yente, who became his wife. Tova was the third of their four children born in five years.<\/p>\n
In 1954, the family emigrated to Israel. Her father was still suffering from the effects of his injury, and her mother was diagnosed with a health condition, so Tova was sent to an absorption centre for children. At the centre, children were chosen for different kibbutzim and settlements. Tova waited while her friends left the centre and finally at age 12, she was sent to Kibbutz Ramat Ha\u2019Shofet, near Haifa. She remembered life on the kibbutz as happy. In an interview for the Jewish Foundation of Manitoba\u2019s Book of Life she said, \u201cIt was a wonderful move and a beautiful way to grow up and learn about community. I loved going to school on kibbutz and didn\u2019t mind the couple of hours of daily work we needed to do, even on school days.\u201d When she was 17, she left the kibbutz and joined the army for a year and a half. \u201cGrowing up in an absorption centre, then moving to kibbutz and then serving in the army helped to define my character.\u00a0 I felt brave and fearless and celebrated my independence.\u201d<\/p>\n
In 1969 when she finished her military service, her independent streak prompted her to buy a one-way ticket to Winnipeg where her mother had located a sister, Tova\u2019s aunt, Rose Levine. \u201cIt seemed like a good place to visit,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Her youthful enthusiasm was short-lived. She missed Israel and was ready to go home the day after she arrived. She realized that she needed to earn money for a ticket back, so she stayed, and the Jewish community in Winnipeg embraced her. She worked at Hercules Manufacturing, sewing pockets on blue jeans, then as a nursing assistant at the Sharon Home. She studied nursing, then interior design at Red River Community College, and she learned to endure the Winnipeg winters.\u00a0<\/p>\n
One cold night she went bowling at a Winnipeg Organization of Jewish Youth event at Roxy Lanes. She met a young man, Larry Vickar, who offered to drive her home. They were married in 1971 at Rosh Pina Synagogue.<\/p>\n
Eventually Larry Vickar built one of Winnipeg\u2019s most prominent automotive businesses and Tova joined his team to help.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Tova\u2019s connection to the Philippine community stretched back to her first job, sewing pockets on jeans, Larry Vickar told The CJN. \u201cShe met many Filipinos there. And she knew some history. She knew that in Rishon LeZion, where a family member lived, there was a statue honouring Philippine president Manuel Quezon who saved about 1,300 Jews during the Holocaust when Canada was saying \u2018none is too many.\u2019<\/p>\n
\u201cWe had Filipino friends all along. In 2006, Tova and I led a Jewish federation leadership mission to Israel with 38 friends, eight of whom were Filipinos. Two years later Gary Doer who was the premier and later, the Canadian ambassador to the U.S. was taking a trade mission to the Philippines. We were asked to go and we said, \u2018let\u2019s get involved and help out more\u2019. In 2012 we went back, in 2018 we went back again and 2024 was our fourth trip.\u201d<\/p>\n
Today the Tova Vickar ANCOP Village in Baliwag, Bulacan, is home to more than 40 families who had previously been squatters or living in huts with dirt floors. The village was built in partnership with ANCOP Canada \u2013 Answering the Cares of the Poor \u2013 a Christian charity. A second project in the Philippines bears her name at Camiguin Island where the Tova Vickar Multipurpose Hall continues to serve the community.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In Israel, near the kibbutz where she spent her childhood, they established the Tova Vickar Educational Special Needs Centre. Her brother was diagnosed with autism, and she wanted to give back to the place that had shaped her. Nearby is the Tova Vickar Outlook and Recreational Area for individuals and families.<\/p>\n
In Winnipeg, the 47-seat L\u2019Arche Tova Caf\u00e9 in Transcona opened 15 years ago and is a social enterprise and community gathering place, run by the L\u2019Arche international federation where people with and without intellectual disabilities live and work together. And inside Congregation Shaarey Zedek, the Tova Vickar and Family Childcare Centre opened in January 2025 and now serves 44 children.<\/p>\n
\u201cTova brought a joyful, wholehearted presence to L\u2019Arche that people felt immediately. She had a genuine curiosity about each person, especially our core members, and took the time to connect in a way that made people feel truly seen and valued,\u201d Dominic Opaka, L\u2019Arche community leader, told The CJN. \u201cShe wasn\u2019t just a supporter from a distance. She showed up with warmth, humour and a deep respect for the relationships that are at the heart of our community.<\/p>\n
\u201cI remember one evening during a Solidarity Music Night when the room was full of energy, but a few people were hesitant to join in. Tova simply stepped onto the dance floor with her characteristic enthusiasm, gently inviting others with a smile and an outstretched hand. Before long, the whole room was moving together. It wasn\u2019t anything elaborate, it was just Tova being herself, but it changed the atmosphere completely. She had a way of making participation feel safe and joyful and people responded to that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Educator and friend Paul Ong who has a passion for music in addition to his full-time job as a vice-principal with the Winnipeg School Division, recalled first meeting Tova in 2014 or 2015 through their shared involvement in Winnipeg\u2019s Filipino community, he told The CJN. Ong was performing his annual Concert for a Cause when Tova came up to introduce herself, he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat began as Larry and Tova\u2019s support through purchasing tickets gradually grew over the years into becoming the title sponsors. Their belief in the work we were doing meant a great deal to me and helped Concert for a Cause grow into what it is today. It was our shared love for music, the arts, building community and helping others that formed the foundation of my relationship with both Tova and Larry.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tova is survived by her husband Larry, sons Sam and Stephen and five grandchildren.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Tova Vickar was born without papers in post-war Europe, emigrated to Israel in 1954 where she grew up…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":94408,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[3009,84],"class_list":["post-94407","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-winnipeg","tag-obituary","tag-winnipeg"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/94407","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=94407"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/94407\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/94408"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=94407"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=94407"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=94407"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}