S2E4 - It's a lonesome life for a Jew in Western Newfoundland—and that's just how Sheina Lerman likes it

Yehupetzville with Ralph Benmergui

Sheina Lerman has moved around a lot in life, but never has she wanted to live in a big city. After moving to Newfoundland some years ago, during the pandemic, she decided to settle in Deer Lake, a town of 5,000 people—perhaps none of them Jews. She found a nice house across from a sandy beach. Life, for the most part, is quiet.

Except when it isn't. Like in 2021, when she decided to stand for the provincial New Democratic Party in the Liberal stronghold that was home to former premier Dwight Ball, who handed it over to his successor, Andrew Furey. Furey won with 2,838 votes; Lerman came in third with 107. But when you're a come-from-away Jew in small-town Newfoundland, you're no stranger to being the odd person out in a crowd.

Lerman sits down with Yehupetzville host Ralph Benmergui to chat about why she chose this quaint and coastal life, and why she believes more Jews need to leave urban centres and make their presence known across the country.

Credits

Yehupetzville is hosted by Ralph Benmergui. Michael Fraiman is the producer and editor. Our music was arranged by Louis Simão and performed by Louis Simão and Jacob Gorzhaltsan. Our sponsor is PearTree Canada, which you can learn more about at peartreecanada.com. This show is a member of The CJN Podcast Network. To learn how to support the show by subscribing to this podcast, watch this video.