14 minute read
Community
13 Year old Amitai celebrates 2 years of volunteering
13 year old Amitai Bloom has been volunteering at the GIFT Hub every week for the past 2 years, packing food support parcels together with his family and family friends.
Marshall Hoffman GIFT Hub Manager said -“It’s great to have Amitai at the Hub, he’s so enthusiastic, helpful and just comes in & gets on with it; he’s a real inspiration.”
Amitai told us “I’ve really enjoyed coming every week to pack food bags, seeing what GiFT does and really appreciating how many people are less fortunate than us.”
Yael Bloom, Amitai’s mother said ‘Thank you GIFT for giving me & my family the opportunity to learn the true meaning of chesed. It’s very humbling packing food support parcels for families who are struggling to put food on the table for their children.”
GIFT’s mission is to enable and inspire lifelong giving.
GIFT is currently looking for volunteers to deliver food support parcels to various locations around London; to prepare food at its Giving Kitchen on a Wednesday in North West London; to do telephone & in person befriending and Helping Hand to support the elderly and families with young children & is also looking for tutors.
To sign up to volunteer with GIFT, contact volunteer@jgift.org
Amitai Bloom at the GIFT warehouse celebrating his Barmitzvah Ariel Fletcher and Miri Kleerekoper
PHOTO: LAWRENCE PURCELL.
Broughton Jewish Cassel Fox Kindergarten learned about Chinese New Year. This year it’s the Year of the Tiger.
The Hachtarah of new Rav of the Beis HaMedrash Beis Yisroel V’Damesek Eliezer (King’s Road Shteible), Rabbi Yisroel Rose
Rav Y.C Horowitz and Rabbi S Goldberg greet Rabbi Yisroel Rose
PHOTO: LAWRENCE PURCELL.
CONSIDERING ALIYAH?
Join hundreds of British Olim making their Aliyah dream a reality.
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT
DOV NEWMARK:
dov@nbn.org.il www.nbn.org.il 0800-075-7200
10 FEBRUARY 2022 TO ADVERTISE CALL 020 3906 8488
COMMUNITY 17
Young Patrons Dinner raises £150,000
Recently, 450 young people came together for the first time in two years at Jewish Care’s largest ever Young Patrons Dinner.
Raising £150,000 for our vital services, this was a true demonstration of the dedication our younger supporters have for Jewish Care.
The dinner, held at The Londoner, focused on the impact Jewish Care makes on more than 10,000 lives each week, and specifically the work of Jewish Care’s Holocaust Survivors’ Centre.
Following a short video explaining the work of the Holocaust Survivors’ Centre, which is the only place of its kind anywhere in the UK, supporting more than 300 survivors and refugees through a specific programme of social, cultural and therapeutic activities, guests heard a moving speech from Holocaust Survivor, Ivor Perl BEM. Ivor regularly attends Jewish Care’s Holocaust Survivors’ Centre and lives at Jewish Care’s Selig Court Retirement Living apartments.
Ivor spoke about his experiences and the importance of being able to stay connected to others.
Ivor said, “At every difficult point in my life, Jewish Care has been there for me.
It started in 1945 when I was just 13 years old. I was sent here after being liberated from Auschwitz where many of my family, including my parents, had perished. I was young and scared – I couldn’t speak a word
Members of Jewish Care’s Young Patrons Committee with Ivor Perl BEM of Jewish Care’s Holocaust Survivors’ Centre
PHOTO: GRAINGE PHOTOGRAPHY
of English, a stranger in a country that was so far away from my home in Hungary, and I desperately missed my family. Alone and in despair, it was the predecessor of Jewish Care, the Jewish Welfare Board, which took me in – I don’t know what I would have done without them. They gave me somewhere to live, fed me and taught me a trade I learnt for life – they gave me a start in life and showed me such warmth, support and Jewish Care when I needed them the most. I will never forget the kindness they showed me. They were my family.
Years later and back on my feet, I was blessed with happiness when I met my wife Rhoda, I was completely in love, and we went on to raise four wonderful children.
However, the memories of the Holocaust never leave you and talking about it with my family brought back many traumatic moments, so what followed was me becoming a member of the Holocaust Survivors’ Centre many years ago and sadly in this time my dear late wife Rhoda receiving a diagnosis of severe dementia, which meant Jewish Care again stepped in and cared for her in what was then known as Lady Sarah Cohen House until she sadly passed away.
I’ve since moved to Selig Court in order to be closer to the centre, and I find myself here at 89 years of age saying again how in the hardest of times during the pandemic, they were there for me again and why the centre is so important to me and others.”
The Young Patrons Dinner fell the day before Ivor’s 90th birthday. Guests sung a very moving rendition of “happy birthday” to Ivor as he was presented with a cake.
Rob Sher, Chair, Young Jewish Care said:
“It’s fantastic to see a record breaking 450 people here tonight after two years without the Young Patrons Dinner. Whether guests were hearing about Jewish Care for the first time or are already a young patron, volunteer, or part of a committee, we are so grateful for their generous contributions.”
Adam Overlander-Kaye, Director of Fundraising and Community Engagement said:
“We are delighted that so many young people care so deeply about Jewish Care and the services we provide. After two years of not being able to hold the dinner, we were so pleased that there were so many young people who came out to show their support for Jewish Care. These young people are the future of our community and Jewish Care, and we are extremely grateful for their generous contributions and donations last night.”
To donate to Jewish Care, please visit jewishcare.org/donate or call 020 8922 2600.
CAMP SIMCHA IS HERE FOR ABI
AND CHILDREN WITH OVER 50 SERIOUS, LIFE-CHANGING OR LIFE-THREATENING MEDICAL CONDITIONS.
I love the art therapy. I painted a canvas that says faith because even with everything I was going through, Camp Simcha gave me faith that good things would happen. Abi, age 16
Scan to hear more from Abi and her Camp Simcha friends or visit www.campsimcha.org.uk/aware
For practical, therapeutic and emotional support for the whole family, when a child is seriously ill, please get in touch. 020 8202 9297 • help@campsimcha.org.uk • WWW.CAMPSIMCHA.ORG.UK
18 COMMUNITY TO ADVERTISE CALL 020 3906 8488
10 FEBRUARY 2022
Earlier this month, World Jewish Relief’s virtual annual fundraising event Make a World of Difference 2022 took more than 800 guests around the world to meet individuals the charity has supported to transform their lives this past year. The event, which raised in excess of £1 million, was hosted by BBC journalist and broadcaster Yalda Hakim, who interviewed Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis, and also included a musical performance from renowned violinist and composer Maxim Vengerov and a unique recital from former UK poetry slam champion Adam Kammerling.
Yalda Hakim is an Afghan refugee whose family fled the Soviet-occupied country when she was 6 months old. She opened the evening by paying tribute to the people who reached out to her family in their early years as refugees in Australia, and whose ‘kindness has never been forgotten’. As such, she understands the charity’s drive to assist refugees arriving in the UK today as they find work and rebuild their lives.
In an exclusive interview with Chief Rabbi Mirvis, he shared with Yalda Hakim how we as Jews ‘know perhaps more than any other people what it means to be on the road, to be homeless, to be looking
The Chief Rabbi being interviewed by Yalda Hakim desperately for a safe haven, for a country that will take us in, looking for work and looking for dignity’. He recalled how a visit to a World Jewish Relief project providing medical and other urgent relief to refugees in Adomeni (on the border of Greece and North Macedonia) was ‘one of the most poignant moments’ of his Chief Rabbinate. Maxim Vengerov shared a message of support for World Jewish Relief’s work. He expressed how growing up in a Jewish family in Russia he knew what it meant to be a minority, and the value his family placed on reaching out and helping others. He performed a beautiful rendition of Liebesleid Fritz, by Kreisler, from his home. During 2021 World Jewish Relief changed the lives of 115,000 people in 21 countries, and throughout the evening guests were transported to meet just three of these individuals in Moldova, Rwanda, and here in the UK. They were reminded of the continued isolation and loneliness experienced by older people as the pandemic rages on, as well as the barriers to finding employment for young Genocide survivors in Rwanda and Syrian refugees here in the UK. Thanks to the charity’s global projects, these people have not had to face their hardships alone. World Jewish Relief’s Chair Maurice Helfgott spoke movingly about his recent trip to the charity’s projects in Turkey supporting Uyghur refugees who have fled China’s campaign of surveillance and persecution targeting their community. He described meeting four teenage girls who had come to the project to learn Turkish. They had lost their fathers, their homes, and left everything they knew behind to start new lives. He couldn’t help but think of his father Sir Ben Helfgott in that moment, whom World Jewish Relief brought over to the UK aged 16 having been orphaned during the Holocaust. He shared his father’s story with the girls and said ‘I don’t mind admitting that I shed a few tears’ as he did so. This is the World Jewish Relief story. As their mantra goes, ‘We helped refugees in the 1930s and 40s because they were Jewish. We help refugees today because we are Jewish.’
Trustee Hilda Worth emphasised how as the organisation’s reach broadens, they will never forget their ‘deep-rooted promise’ to assist older Jewish people in eastern Europe, many of them part of the Survivor Generation. Last year World Jewish Relief met the daily needs of 10,809 older Jews in Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova and Georgia, ensuring they had warm, safe homes with hot water, companionship, and were part of the Jewish communities that the charity has helped rebuild. Their commitment to this largely forgotten client group is uncompromising.
This year, World Jewish Relief anticipates a colossal task ahead. With thousands of older people vulnerable and reliant upon them to stay warm, healthy, and avoid loneliness, with the biggest refugee crisis of our times upon us, and with climate-related disasters and armed conflict on the rise, they must be ready to respond to unexpected events at a moment’s notice. They have the expertise to do this well, but they cannot do it without the help of the Jewish community. This year they expect to need to reach at least 115,000 people in more than 20 countries, at a cost of £6 million. They made a compelling appeal for the Jewish community to give generously, joining them as they rise to this challenge.
If you were unable to join, you can watch Make a World of Difference 2022 now on World Jewish Relief’s YouTube channel. You can still donate at www.worldjewishrelief.org/mawod22.
Advertisement ISRAEL BONDS – a gift for all Simchas!
eMazel Tov bond Starting at
£ 36
Start at: online.israelbondsintl.com
infoEN@israelbondsintl.com 020 3936 2712
Development Company for Israel (International) Ltd. Your capital may be at risk.
This advertisement has been issued by the Development Company for Israel (International) Ltd., which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and registered in England No. 01415853. This is not an offering, which could only be made by prospectus. Your capital is at risk, the rules under FSMA for the protection of retail clients do not apply. An investment in any of these bonds will not be covered by the provisions of the Financial Services Compensation scheme, nor by any similar scheme. Israel bonds are intended as a long-term investment as they are not listed or admitted to dealing on any recognised investment or stock exchange nor is there any established secondary market, as a consequence Israel bonds are not readily realisable before their maturity date. DCI (International) Ltd is not the issuer of these bonds, they are issued by the State of Israel. 01-22
20 ADVERTORIAL
TO ADVERTISE CALL 020 3906 8488 Kickstart your business with Work Avenue's Accelerator
Work Avenue has launched the Jewish community’s first ever Business Accelerator.
This intensive bootcamp training programme is designed to help members of the community navigate the early stages of starting a business, a time which is often fraught with challenges and difficulties.
The scheme will be open to a small number of hand-selected entrepreneurs who are either in the early stages of developing their business or have a well-developed business idea they wish to set up.
It will consist of six modules covering all aspects of building and running your own company – from setting it up to marketing and sales to developing a full plan for growth.
Experts leading the training modules will include Work Avenue’s business team, as well as guest speakers from the worlds of accountancy, innovation, strategy, customer insight, marketing, digital media and brand building.
Best of all, it’s completely free.
Business Accelerators, also known as Start-Up Accelerators, have become very popular over the last few years – with companies such as Airbnb and Dropbox being successful graduates of such programmes..
The Work Avenue Business Accelerator is the first and only one of its kind designed specifically to help budding entrepreneurs in the Jewish community.
It is the result of a long period of
planning by Work Avenue’s Head of Business Joanna Sadie. Before joining Work Avenue, Joanna was a trainer and mentor for two other leading Business Accelerator schemes. Having seen first-hand how they had helped so many new businesses, she was keen to bring those same benefits to the community.
Joanna said: “We know only too well that starting a business can be a very daunting and isolating prospect and founders are unlikely to have all the skills necessary on their own. Many fledgling entrepreneurs can also feel lacking in confidence and overwhelmed by the sheer effort in getting going.
“That’s why we have created this in-depth and motivating programme, to help kickstart new businesses with expert support, training and resources.”
Joanna has identified three key reasons for entrepreneurs and start-ups to join the Work Avenue Business Accelerator:
1) It will provide an ecosystem of support.
The Business Accelerator will give entrepreneurs access to highly qualified experts and mentors in finance, marketing, social media and other key areas at NO COST. There is also the chance to learn from and collaborate with the other start-ups on the programme as ideas are pooled and successes shared.
2) It will help to develop key business skills. In just six weeks, the successful entrepreneurs on the Work Avenue Business Accelerator will have developed a business plan, a financial forecast and a marketing strategy. Usually this would take months, if not years. Being part of the Accelerator will really kickstart the process.
3) It is open to all business ideas and concepts. Many of the other accelerator programmes out there set strict criteria as to whether your idea is the right one for their scheme. Often it may need to be tech-based or address a particular market. But the Work Avenue Business
Accelerator is truly OPEN to anyone that has a fledgling business or business idea of any kind – in fact, the more diverse the better!
Work Avenue Chief Executive David Arden said: “Not only is the Work Avenue Business Accelerator the first in our community but, as importantly, applications are open to all ideas and types of business.
“Those embarking on this exciting programme will leave it with the confidence and motivation to take their business to the next step, as well as benefitting from a new network of entrepreneurs who have shared the experience and supported each other along the way.”
Applications for the Work Avenue Business Accelerator are open now and close on Friday 18 February. For more details, and to apply, please visit www.theworkavenue. org.uk/accelerator.
