I was born in Winnipeg and grew up in Garden City with an older brother and sister. I attended Talmud Torah and I.L. Peretz schools for nursery and kindergarten, and then went to H.C. Avery, Jefferson Junior High and Garden City Collegiate. I received my Jewish education at the Rosh Pina Hebrew School. After high school I attended the University of Manitoba and graduated with degrees in Arts and Commerce.

As a child and young adult I was involved with the YMHA, BBYO and B'nai B'rith Camp. As a teenager I worked as a youth leader at the Y and as a counsellor at Camp Tikvah. I am very appreciative of the many close friendships I made with other Jewish youth through my involvement with these organizations, and have many fond memories of those times. But my most cherished memories regarding my Jewish upbringing have to do with the holidays, customs and delicious traditional food I shared with my family. The vivid image of my Baba Freda lighting the candles on Shabbat will remain with me always. My grandparents, parents and older siblings all instilled in me an appreciation of Jewish values, traditions and community, and I try to instill this same appreciation in my own children today.

My grandparents emigrated from Poland and Russia in the first decades of the 20th century, and my parents, Morris and Dorys (Bay) Silver, were both born in Canada. My maternal grandparents, Freda and Abraham Bay, first settled in Saskatchewan, working as kosher caterers and hotel proprietors. My paternal grandparents, Sarah and Abraham Silver, lived in North Dakota before moving to Winnipeg where my grandfather operated a grocery store.

I have been married to David Segal since 1981 and we have two sons, Devin who was born in 1986 and Ryan who was born in 1989. Both of them attended the Brock Corydon Hebrew Bilingual program for their elementary education and have already embraced the culture and traditions of Jewish life and community. My life today revolves around them and around my career as a policy analyst and manager with the provincial civil service. I also find time to be involved with National Council of Jewish Women and the Brock Corydon Daycare Board of Directors.

I feel a very strong attachment to Winnipeg and the Jewish community here. As a parent of two sons I hope that the community remains vibrant so that it can continue to provide younger generations with opportunities and activities, so they will have little reason to move away. With this contribution to the Endowment Book of Life, my family has found a creative and easy way to help fulfill this goal.