
There’s a new podcast in town, and it’s all about Jewish Ottawa. Shalom Ottawa, which debuted last month, is a project being undertaken by Les Kom.
Originally from Montreal but having lived in Ottawa for many years now, Kom hopes to highlight the Ottawa Jewish community's deeps sense of joy and pride.
Inspired in part by radio programs in Montreal that he used to listen to as a child, which highlighted the cultural diversity of the city, Kom hopes to give a voice to Jewish life in Ottawa.
“We've got a lot to be proud of in the Ottawa Jewish community," said Kom. “I want to help broadcast and amplify that pride.”
Kom also took inspiration from the October 7 attacks in Israel and the ensuing reaction here in Canada to the war that followed. When the Jewish Federation of Ottawa put out the call for advocacy volunteers, he answered with enthusiasm, and has aided in the efforts of signing petitions and circulating letters, but there was still something that Kom wanted to do to help the community. (To become an advocate, sign up here).
And thus, Shalom Ottawa was born. While there are numerous global issues related to the Jewish community that he could cover, Kom wants to keep this show specific to the National Capital Region, as well as some tie-ins to Israel.
“It’s quality, not quantity,” said Kom. “Ottawa is a great place, and I want to get some of those stories about everyday people out there.”
The show will run the gamut of topics. Whether it’s a holiday, music, food, or other cultural facets of Jewish life, Kom wants to cover diverse topics that all listeners can enjoy.
Last month, the first episode was about the joyous time of Chanukah. In it, he featured Dr. Oren Gutfeld, an archaeologist from Israel whose explorations have discovered artifacts related to Chanukah, as well as Rabbi Erin Polansky of Kehillat Beth Israel and Rabbi Menachem Blum of Ottawa Torah Centre, who talked about the origins of this holiday, the triumph of the Jewish people in times of upheaval, and religious and spiritual aspects of the holiday.
This month’s episode, which came out last week, is about the many volunteers who keep Jewish Ottawa running. Among those featured are Joel Diener, Ken Wright, Nicole Dodek, and Joseph Gitler.
“We're all busy, right? Raising kids, going to work, walking the dog, surfing the Net, prepping meals,” Kom explains in the show’s notes. “Yet many of our fellow community members make the time to volunteer to do some great things for our community. They are Vigorous Volunteers, and they are the secret sauce of our community.”
Listen to the full episode here.
Kom explains that he has a full schedule of topics lined up, and he is always looking for suggestions for topics to cover or people to feature on his show.
If you have a story idea, he can be reached at shalom_ottawa@proton.me. People can also find the show on all podcast streaming platforms, including Spotify and Apple, as well as on the show’s website, https://shalom-ottawa.simplecast.com/