Danial Sprintz was born on April 6, 1979. He has one older brother, Jonathan Sprintz, born on August 6, 1977. Their mother, Carol Sprintz, was born in Winnipeg in 1945 to Al and Rebecca (Fogelman) Sprintz.

Al, a child immigrant from Romania, was well known in the music world. He was a jazz musician and composer and played his clarinet and sax as the leader of the Al Sprintz Band. The band was well known in many clubs around the city, but especially as the house band at Club Morocco. In later years he joined his son, Gary Sprintz, in the suit business - Al Sprintz & Son on Albert Street.

Rebecca (Becky) immigrated from Lodz, Poland as a child. She was a much-loved partner to Al, and an excellent role model for her children. Her family, the Fogelmans, owned rental cottages at Winnipeg Beach; Danial says his love for Winnipeg Beach began with that historic family connection.

In 1957, Carol's parents made the move from Rupertsland Ave. to Garden City where Carol was raised. She later moved to the early Maples area (Old Kildonan) where she raised her boys. She was a teacher and taught in the Winnipeg School Division for 40 years. As a single parent, she worked hard to ensure that she would raise loving, strong, successful men. Danial credits her with being an exceptional role model ... "Everything I know about many things, including being a good parent, I learned from her." She carried on her musical legacy by ensuring the boys took piano lessons with the Royal Conservatory of Music. She encouraged Danial's love of swimming and faithfully took him to swimming lessons - sometimes six days a week, sometimes twice a day! She supported him through innumerable competitions and was proud of his teaching swimming and lifeguard jobs at Seven Oaks Pool and the YMHA.

As a young woman, Carol spent time in Israel on a kibbutz; her parents spoke Yiddish but not Hebrew and she was determined that her children should learn Hebrew. Danial attended Talmud Torah/I.L. Peretz school for elementary where he learned Torah and the alphabet, patterns and sounds of the Hebrew language. His teachers - particularly Mrs. Kimelman, Mrs. Parisky, and Mrs. Katz - played a significant, positive role in his life. He next attended Jefferson Junior High because they had a Hebrew program, and then graduated from Garden City Collegiate in 1997, completing his entire public school experience on Jefferson Avenue! Danial went on to the University of Winnipeg and completed a Bachelor of Arts degree with majors in English and History.

There was another "school" that was to have a life-long impact on Danial's life. At the age of 8, he started as a camper at Camp Massad. It was here that his love for the Jewish Community, for the Hebrew language, and for the State of Israel began to grow and flourish. By the age of 10, he was attending for six weeks - the highlight of his summers. Lifetime leadership skills were identified and developed so that by the time he graduated high school, he was asked to come back first as a senior counsellor, and then for several years heading up counsellor training and leadership development. In 2003 he served as Assistant Director of the Camp.

When camp ended in 2003, Danial was asked to serve as the BBYO Regional Director. This gave him the unique privilege, for the next four winters, to work with a group of students from both Camp Massad and B'nai Brith Camp to develop their leadership skills and train them to become valuable community participants. Some summers were spent at BB Camp where he loved the wilderness camping but missed the traditions of Camp Massad.

The year 2007 was pivotal in Danial's life. He collapsed after a game of hockey and was found to have an inoperable brain tumour. The family was told that he had suffered brain damage and his future looked bleak. He was told he would always need an aide and that life would never again be "normal". He struggled to make sense of his future. He gave his girlfriend, Rebecca Lewis, the choice to move on with her life; her decision to stay with him gave him hope, and he decided to stay with her too! Danial made the decision on his own to stop all medications and went on to make a miraculous recovery. He began working out, keeping a diary, keeping a written account of things he had to remember and going over each of his daily activities with his mother, over and over. Today, he has learned to cope with the residual issue of short-term memory loss and life is "normal".

When Rebecca was accepted to a Chinese medicine school in Victoria, Danial stopped working and moved with her. After a series of jobs, Danial found himself at Congregation Emanu-el, the oldest continuously running synagogue in Canada. The rabbi was away, the building was in disrepair, and programs were non-existent ... Danial decided they needed him! At the next Board meeting, he made a presentation and was promptly hired. For the next two years he worked tirelessly to grow membership, raise funds, restore the building, and develop programs. After Rebecca graduated she went back to Winnipeg for a "visit", which ultimately led them to moving back home in 2010. Later the same year, Danial was truly "back where I belong" when he was hired as Executive Director of Camp Massad. Rebecca, whom Danial married in 2011, now owns and practices at Family Acupuncture on Corydon Avenue. They have two children, Sage born March 30, 2012, and Cole, born March 29, 2014. Life has come full circle as Sage now attends Camp Massad.

Danial is committed to the community. As a volunteer, he serves on the Leadership Committee of YAD, on the Marketing Committee for the Sunshine Fund, and on the Board and Accreditation Committee of the Manitoba Camping Association. He is concerned that 20% of the Jewish community lives in poverty and it is important to him that these children are able to attend camp. He and his family have established the Sprintz Family Fund in the Camp Massad Endowment Fund at the Jewish Foundation specifically for the purpose of poverty assistance for camping.

Whether discussing family, work, community, leadership, or fitness, Danial exudes an appreciation and enthusiasm for the role each has played in his 30-something years. He has an extraordinary passion for life and punctuates his sentences with expressions of gratitude. His participation in the Endowment Book of Life is just another way for him to say, "Thank you!"

2016