Jaffe Family
Born in Evzvelk, Lithuania, in 1878, Shaie Jaffe came to Calgary in 1912.
His family has previously settled in Minneapolis where his father had become Chief Rabbi. Shaie and his wife Leah (nee Geffen) had three children – Rose, Sarah and Irving (a musician who in the Big Band era played with Les Brown and Fred Waring).
Shaie founded and operated Jaffe’s Book and Music Exchange – long a Calgary landmark on 8th Avenue E. Book lovers regularly met at Jaffe’s, where they could find material ranging from ten-cent paperbacks to rare books.
An ardent Zionist, Shaie Jaffe was a founder of the Hebrew School and subsequently served a long term as its President. He was also Chairman of the education committee and in this capacity acted as examiner of the students.
Leah Jaffe died in 1934. In later years Shaie Jaffe married Rose Rabinovitz (1889-1779) who was also actively involved in the community.
She was a founding member of the Ladies’ Aid Society, and served as President when it became affiliated as Calgary’s first Hadassah Chapter.
Colourful Rose Jaffe was known for her prize-winning, hand-painted china, and creation of artistic hats.
Shaie Jaffe passed away in 1975.
