Hakol
September / October 2016 Elul/Tishrei 5776
INSIDE THIS EDITION: MEET: ROSITA ROSENBERG AND READ HER FASCINATING STORY
GET THE INSIDE SCOOP ON THE 2016 LJ BIENNIAL
GIRLS ON TOUR! DISCOVER BERLIN THROUGH THE EYES OF THIS YEAR’S KT GROUP 1
RABBI’S WORD – SEPTEMBER 2016
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he September edition of the Rabbi’s Word usually deals with the forthcoming High Holydays. Well, they are coming, but this year they don’t actually arrive until October! So before my thoughts about them, let me just throw in a quick reflection on our monthly Friday night suppers, which are enjoying a new lease of life. The first Friday of every month there is a short service at 6.30pm followed by an opportunity to share the non-meat dishes that participants have brought and for people of all ages to schmooze with others and, as our picture shows, to have a guitar session with Rabbi Pete! The next of these suppers are on Fridays 2nd September and 7th October, so why not come and join the fun? Talking of October, that’s when those High Holydays finally arrive. Here are a couple of pieces of information about them. TICKETS These will be sent out early in September in a separate mailing (which will include your copy of ljtoday). Any paid up adult member or Friend of TLSE will receive a ticket, which is for his or
her use only and will give access to you and any of your children under 21 to our High Holyday services at Clore Shalom School. Holders of valid tickets from other Liberal synagogues will also be given access to those services. In past years we have charged a fixed fee for tickets for non-members (last year it cost £55 for a non-member of TLSE to attend services on both Rosh ha-Shanah and Yom Kippur). This year we are asking for a voluntary donation from non-members for tickets to attend and take part in those services. If you would like tickets for family members or friends, please contact the synagogue office for details. YIZKOR SERVICE This year we will once again be producing a booklet for the Yizkor service on Yom Kippur afternoon. If you would like the names of loved ones included in the booklet (only the names of those who have passed away since last Yom Kippur will be read aloud), please send those names to the synagogue office no later than Friday 7th October. YOM KIPPUR MORNING Once again we will be combining the Additional service with the morning service. This means that there will be no formal break in the service between 11.00am and about 2.00pm on Wednesday 12th October. I hope you will make the effort to be present for this very moving and uplifting element of our High Holyday worship. I look forward to seeing you in the coming weeks.
Above: Rabbi Pete with the Kids
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Rabbi Pete Tobias
COUNCIL ROUNDUP BY VIRGINIA JAFFE, CHAIRMAN
S
o what's been happening over the last couple of months?
I am in the early stages of building a Main Sanctuary Renovation Committee and have started very initial conversations to clarify what, why, how and roughly when enhancements to our biggest asset, our building, could take shape. TLSE turns 50 years old in 2019, so our aim is to have works completed over the next two years. A long time you may think, but it will pass in the blink of an eye! Our software was over 10 years old, and sorely in need of an upgrade. Davina Bennett took on this task and we now have computers that work appropriately for the numbers of members and tasks TLSE needs to process, procuring everything at charity rates which was a bonus. Nick Belkin is in the process of negotiating with our neighbours who are in the initial stages of renovating the house as you turn into our driveway. We will keep you posted on developments that could bring our synagogue significant funds. Mark Kram and Sarah Smullen, both parents of young families, who joined as Council members earlier this year,
have started conversations with Rabbi Pete about Youth Education and activities and how we can enhance our offering to our younger members. Something that was brought to my attention by Rosita Rosenberg last month, was the fact that the disabled parking bays are positioned in spaces probably furthest away from our front door. Not very useful I hear you say. I am in the process of organising rectification of this issue so that at weekends 3 existing spaces will become 2 enlarged disabled bays. During the week we will ensure that alternative arrangements are made for any of our disabled members using our car park. I haven't captured everything currently bubbling away invisibly under the TLSE surface, and welcome any ideas, feedback, hands-on support, help, cups of tea...... anything you have to offer that will add to our synagogue and how it runs day to day. There is so much expertise held within our synagogue membership, that if each of us found time to offer just one day of volunteering input, that would provide over a year (that's excluding children) of much needed support to our community. See you around..... Ginny
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A Roundup of the Liberal Judaism Biennial Weekend Solihull. July 2016 Four members give their review of the weekend Above: Katie Smullen on Danny Rich’s knee Left: Lexi Smullen (at the back) having some fun at the Biennial
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s a family of four we headed up to the Biennial with a certain amount of trepidation as to what to expect. Firstly, everyone is lovely and so friendly. There’s a full programme of events for both adults and children and I was pleasantly surprised to have a supervised crèche to which our 2 year-old could go. Together with LSY Netzer for our 6 year-old, it meant some child-free time ahead! My husband and I scoured the programme and discussed which of the sessions we wanted to attend. There was so much choice with topics to inspire everyone. Saturday morning’s Shabbat service was truly amazing. Rabbi Pete and the organisers had arranged different rooms, with people acting out what a Shabbat service in different time periods would have been like, and you strolled between rooms and took part in the service accordingly.
Saturday afternoon provided some free time so we took the children swimming in the hotel which, of course, they loved. Then back to their respective rooms to be looked after and we headed to another enthralling, thoughtprovoking session. There was an abundance of food and plenty of breaks for tea and coffee, all provided by the hotel. Sunday afternoon we came away happy and enlightened. If anyone is unsure whether the Biennial is for them please give the next one in 2018 a try – you certainly won’t regret it! Sarah and Marcus Smullen, Katie and Lexi
Right: Solomon’s Temple Service
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Top Left: Rabbis Pete Tobias, Charley Baginsky, Dr Andrew Goldstein; Middle: Chassidic dancing; Bottom Left: Rosita and Rabbi Pete at the Biennial
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s is self evident from its title, a Liberal Judaism Biennial Conference takes place every two years, ostensibly to allow for exhaustive preparation time. In reality, in my case, it has to allow for two year’s recovery from exhaustion. Getting up early, then rushing round the various seminar rooms of a large hotel is not my first choice of activity—nevertheless, I had a great time, socialising, learning, socialising, praying and above all, socialising – meeting up with many people I have not seen for quite a while and – equally important – getting to know new people. To give you a brief flavour of the weekend: Picture nearly 300 Liberal Jews from 30-40 congregations throughout the UK all having a Friday night meal together – just imagine the noise level! Picture a Shabbat service with no prayer books, but the text, in Hebrew, English and transliteration projected on to two large screens, accompanied by beautiful illustrations and graphics. Picture a Shabbat morning service
divided into seven historic situations when you could, for example experience sacrifice at Solomon’s Temple, praying in secret at the time of the Inquisition or dancing and singing with the Chassidim before returning to a standard Liberal Jewish Torah service. Try to imagine, on four occasions, having to choose the most appealing workshop when there were up to ten choices of topics. For example, I went to one on the History of the Prayer for the Royal family from George III onwards – fascinating. Above all, picture the atmosphere of hundreds of Liberal Jews eating, chatting, discussing and praying together. The Biennials are open to all members of Liberal Synagogues. This year, you were represented by Rabbi Pete, Deborah Gabbay, Michael Reibscheid, Sarah and Marcus Smullen and me. Think about it for 2018 but also, why not go to the LJ Day of Celebration on Sunday 11th June 2017 – just down the road at Northwood and Pinner Liberal Synagogue where you will get a day’s taster of a future weekend Biennial. Rosita Rosenberg
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Above: 2nd-6th Century Rabbinic Themed Service; Right: Rabbis Pete Tobias and Leah Mulstein with Simon Benscher and Lucian J Hudson
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attended my first Liberal Judaism Biennial Conference in 2008, staying in a local youth hostel and attending during the day, as part of the Tent initiative that was around in those days. I enjoyed it, but seeing the very nice hotel everyone else was staying I decided next time I was going to do the full thing including the accommodation.
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Arriving at the hotel on Friday afternoon, I took the opportunity to try out the swimming pool, before getting ready for supper. There was plenty of opportunity to keep fit, with the hotel also having a gym and a scheduled running session on the Saturday morning (which we unofficially duplicated for Sunday morning). There was also a full set of religious services, the highlight of which for me was the Saturday morning service. During the service we had the opportunity to experience services from various points in Jewish history before returning to the main service; this included sacrifices at the temple, secret services in hiding from the Spanish Inquisition, Chassidic dancing and meditation with Bu Jews. I think these ideas may have been influenced by our very own Rabbi!
sessions, and we had timetable slots where there were dozens of sessions where we could study, listen to speakers or have debates; the sessions were generally run by Liberal Judaism staff, and/or the rabbis. Of course the weekend is also about socialising, eating, meeting people from other congregations and the greater Liberal Judaism movement. The entertainment after dinner on the Saturday evening included old favourite Daniel Cainer, who has played at TLSE, and an amusing tribute to Leo Baeck College, which produces our progressive rabbis. During this, our very own Rosita Rosenberg received a lifetime achievement award for her contribution to Liberal Judaism, and its predecessors. There were a few attendees from The Liberal Synagogue Elstree this year, but it would be nice to see a few more representing us next time round.
Another part of the weekend is study
Michael Reibscheid
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his was my second Biennial (the first being in 2014 where I ran into Rabbi Pete again for the first time in many years – but that’s another story!). At that Biennial, each shul had been asked to decorate a door with items that represented their community. This time, each was given a Tallit to embellish, (all of them hand made by John Bernard from TLSE!). Some of them were quite beautifully done and I took photos of those I considered the best. Our own is not there, not because it wasn’t one of the better ones, but because Rabbi Pete purloined it for the Shabbat morning service, having mislaid his own, and then managed to mislay that one too until too late in the day for me to photograph it. There is a lovely feeling of community at a
Below: Havdalah Service
Biennial, even when there are many people there that you may not know. One of the nicest parts for me this time was the Havdalah ceremony late on Saturday afternoon. The children had made a banner which they displayed outside in the garden while everyone gathered in a circle to sing songs and watch as some of the children lit the Havdalah candle and then extinguished it in the wine, before going inside for a drinks reception before dinner and the evening entertainment. The next Biennial is not until 2018, but there will be a Day of Celebration at Northwood and Pinner Liberal Synagogue on Sunday, 11th June 2017, which will give you a taste of what you might expect at a Biennial. Deborah Gabbay Right: Tallit Collection
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TLSE MEMBER A WINNER ON TV SHOW EGGHEADS!
ong standing TLSE member Jeremy Reese was one of a team of five contestants from Edgware in the popular BBC 2 TV quiz "Egg Heads" on Friday, 29th July. I recognised him immediately and phoned him after the show. The challenging team of which Jeremy was a member won the jackpot of £15,000 (meaning the resident team had won the last 14 games) despite four of the five (including Jeremy) losing their rounds!! What is even more remarkable is that when I told Rabbi Pete about this, it turned out that "Howard" the
one remaining player who effectively won the game for the team, also has a connection with the synagogue! His daughter Jennifer Bradshaw is a member. Howard said: “We were extremely lucky to win; being alone in the final round didn’t daunt me as the production team made me feel so relaxed. The victory wasn’t about the money; it was about the honour and pleasure of being a part of such a great show. However, we did feel euphoric to win!” Congratulations to the team, and especially Jeremy and Howard! *Thanks to Rosita Rosenberg and Jennifer Bradshaw for this contribution.
The winning team – Jeremy is on the far right and Howard is next to him.
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THE CHARITIES SELECTED FOR THIS YEAR’S HIGH HOLYDAY APPEAL ARE: LOCAL CHARITY: The Disability Foundation, based at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital in Stanmore, which provides complementary therapy services to disabled people, anyone suffering from a chronic health issue or medical condition, as well as those involved in their care, including NHS staff. Examples of therapies are: Remedial Massage, Therapeutic Massage, Aromatherapy Massage, Acupuncture, Reflexology, Indian Head Massage, Osteopathy, Acupuncture, Cranio-Sacral Therapy, Hypnotherapy, Reiki, Thai Yoga Massage, Chiropody UK JEWISH CHARITY: The Leo Baeck College founded in 1956 has been training Rabbis for the Reform and Liberal Jewish movements for 60 years. At the recent Biennial, when asked to stand up if their lives had been influenced in one way or another by those present who had graduated from the college, the entire gathering ended up on its feet. The college is struggling financially at the moment and has asked congregations to donate to ensure that it remains viable to continue to do the important work of educating Rabbis for our movement. ISRAEL CHARITY: Youth Aliyah Child Rescue, was established in 1933 in Berlin, when after Hitler’s rise to power, Recha Freier, a woman of determination and Zionist passion, set it up to save the lives of thousands of Jewish children by bringing them to Palestine and Great Britain. It continues its work today bringing homeless and traumatised Jewish children from more than 20 countries to one of its Youth Villages in Israel. The waiting list of children desperately needing a home still grows by the day. But, amidst the olive groves and the orange trees planted by the Youth Aliyah pioneers themselves, these once abandoned children have grown into what today is the backbone of Israeli society – becoming Israel’s teachers, writers, lawyers, accountants, farmers and scientists.
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OUTSIDE EVENTS JUKEBOX, JEWKBOX! The Jewish Museum London is holding an exhibition ‘Jukebox, Jewkbox!’ which will run until 16th October. It will take you on a musical discovery through popular culture and history, featuring the records that changed lives and the technology that made it happen. You can pick up a leaflet about the exhibition in the shul foyer and also find detailed information on the museum website: jewishmuseum.org.uk/ jukebox#jewkbox
LIBERAL JUDAISM ANNUAL QUIZ
UK JEWISH FILM FESTIVAL
The inter-synagogue quiz will take place this year on Sunday 13th November at Northwood and Pinner Liberal Synagogue from 2:30 - 6:00pm. It would be fantastic if TLSE could win, but in order to do so, we need a team! Please contact Deborah in the office if you would be interested in participating. Deadline: 15th September so we have time to register!
As you will have seen from the Weekly Bulletin, the UK Jewish Film Festival has been screening films of Jewish interest in Borehamwood at the Reel Cinema. The last in the current series is the Israeli film ’Laugh Lines’ which will be shown on 2125 September. Please do support it and bring along family and friends. More information at reelcinemas.co.uk/movie/ details/196306
Quite a few of you have already met Deborah Gabbay who, having come from a charity background, initially came to TLSE to review our office infrastructure to see if we could improve in any way. At the time this role was purely interim, but fortuitously for TLSE her circumstances changed which meant that Deborah was able to take up the role permanently and joined us officially on 15th June, 2016. I'd like to extend a warm and official welcome to Deborah who has immediately rolled her sleeves up and got 'stuck in', already having made simple but really useful improvements to how we operate. Ginny
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The Almost Legendary KT Trip to Berlin 2016 An integral element of the TLSE Kabbalat Torah course has always been the Almost Legendary KT Trip to Berlin. Since the course restarted in 2005, there has been a Berlin trip every year for the participants. In order to keep the costs to a minimum, the group only stays one night (in a hostel) but packs in two full days of activities, usually arriving in Berlin by 09:30 on day one and leaving as late as 22:30 the following day! Over 70 young people have taken part in this annual adventure. The most recent was 28th July 2016; the contributions below will give you a flavour of the latest almost legendary trip: Chloe Rabin The thing I found most interesting was the Kindertransport memorial. I found this statue particularly moving as you could see the different expressions on the children's faces. I thought the trip was a great experience and I learnt a lot that I can take away from the trip such as not taking things for granted, as the Jews then wouldn't have been able to do half the things I do today. More photos of the trip can be found on the back page
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Molly Wingate I was very lucky to be able to go on the KT 2016 trip to Berlin. I really enjoyed it, even the 4am start, and it was such a moving two days. I've never stayed in a hostel before and what an experience it was! Lucky for me I really like MacDonald’s as we went there quite a lot! Seriously though, the most moving place for me was visiting Platform 17, a train station where unthinkable amounts of Jews got transported to different concentration camps. I was speechless, as I couldn't even imagine what it would have been like. We also got to experience a German Liberal Friday night shul service. This was very different to how we do it, as men and women sit separately there. I had such an amazing time with all the girls and would like to thank Rabbi Pete and Deborah for putting up with us! Background: Chloe, Molly and Amber looking pensive at one of the Holocaust memorials in Berlin; Left: Memorial to those transported; Below: Kindertransport Statue
Gabby Bishop During my trip to Berlin, I learnt a lot of interesting and valuable information that made me think about the holocaust from the perspective of individuals and their families of how it changed their lives, rather than a number of people who were killed as a whole. We learnt about everything in a fun way that made me appreciate my life today and respect the people in the past. The memorial that meant to the most to me was the life and death outside the train station as it shows both outcomes.
Left: Subdued after seeing Platform 17; Below: The last deportees March 1945; Bottom: Missing souls Platform 17
Deborah Gabbay This was my third trip to Berlin accompanying a KT group, although the first with six giggly girls! But they were great fun and managed the punishing schedule, which involved literally miles of walking punctuated with breaks at MacDonald’s! This year for the first time, we went to Wansee, the place where, in January 1942, a conference was held by a group of high-ranking Nazis. I had known about it and imagined it to be a huge modernist edifice and the conference to be comprised of perhaps a couple of hundred people. All the more shocking then to arrive at a peaceful country estate next to a lake which was probably always a popular beauty spot and learn that it was a mere 15 individuals, who in 90 minutes ratified the Final Solution and thus decided the fate of millions of Jewish men, women and children, as well as Roma, Disabled and Homosexual people. Such a beautiful location, with such a chilling history. Right: Beautiful views at Wannsee
Lottie Deutsch The trip was insightful as the many memorials showed how big the impact of the holocaust was. One of these was an abandoned train platform where once upon a time the victims would have stood lined up ready to be herded into carriages. The fact that there were so many victims and so many numbers was incomprehensible. It particularly shocked me when I saw that they were taking Jews away 6 weeks before the war ended. They managed to find the last 18 Jews in Berlin.
Amber-Jade Bernard The trip to Berlin was a very moving experience that most people should go on whether they are Jewish or not – this is a part of history to remember and learn from. Also I felt that the most moving place was platform 17 as those Jews walking down that platform could have been us if we had lived then, but we were lucky and we walked away. Also to see the numbers of the people sent to the death camps was really upsetting. Even though some parts of the trip were serious, we had lots of fun too and we all got on really well. Alice Pollock My favourite site of the trip was definitely the room in the Holocaust Information Centre where there were different light boards on the floor with suicide notes, letters and diary entries on them. I liked how the dark room and silence gave off an amazing atmosphere that I will never forget.
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MEET ROSITA ROSENBERG
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osita (known as Zeta to her friends) is one of the longest standing members of our shul and also has been involved with Liberal Judaism for all of her adult life. How that transpired is an interesting story. She was born in London, but the day before her 6th birthday, war being imminent, she and her sister
A very small Rosita with her older sister Isobel
were evacuated and sent to a couple who were strict Roman Catholics! Unsurprisingly, they were very unhappy there and persuaded their parents to fetch them home again. Ultimately, this led to the family moving to the relatively safe area of Windsor, where the disparate Jews who found themselves there for the duration of the war, established a synagogue (of which Rosita’s father became Chairman), and Rosita spent her formative years immersed in a strong Jewish environment. Her parents were Orthodox, but not terribly observant, keeping kashrut at home and lighting the Sabbath candles, although her mother never attended shul as she didn’t know Hebrew. The family
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remained in Windsor until 1951, but the buying of kosher meat came to an end some time before that: Everyone, Jews included, was entitled to a bacon ration. The family would swap their bacon ration for kosher meat, obtained by Rosita’s uncle on his weekly visits to London. He was obliged to take whatever he could get and the quality was sometimes questionable. Meanwhile, Rosita’s mother could see lovely meat in the butchers’ shops in Windsor and told her husband she was no longer going to buy the expensive, but poor quality, kosher meat! Rosita knew no one when she came back to South London aged 17. She was working in the Executive Civil Service, where on Friday evenings she attended the fantastic social club. Her parents worried about her secular environment, so they made her join a Jewish Youth Club. She traipsed around several, which she found unfriendly (the girls were snooty Jewish princesses and the boys only interested in showing off their cars), but when a friend took her to a group at South London Liberal Synagogue, as soon as Rosita walked in she had ‘an epiphany’ - they were her kind of people - friendly, welcoming and helpful. She never looked back,
Rosita at Beatrice Webb House Surrey, where all the Youth Conferences were held
Rosita, second from left in middle row, at a Youth Conference in 1958
making lifelong friends, some of whom are also members of TLSE! Her parents were delighted, even though it was a Liberal youth club, it was Jewish, and that was the important thing. Rosita joined the shul and soon became very involved. She edited the National Youth magazine, joined the council and, by her mid twenties, became secretary, then chairman of the national youth movement. She remained at home until she married at 27. (At Brixton United Synagogue, both sets of parents saying they would boycott the wedding if it took place at a Liberal Shul as it wouldn’t be a ‘real marriage’!) She’d met her husband Stanley at a wedding conducted by the great Lily Montagu. Stanley’s job brought them to North West London where they joined Wembley Liberal shul. Rosita was obliged to leave the Civil Service upon marriage but her reputation in the youth movement led to her being invited to work at ULPS by Greta Hyman, the organising secretary, when the movement expanded in 1964. Rosita worked without a break, (taking a 3-month Sabbatical in 1984, which she spent travelling around the USA
Rosita and Stanley with their daughter Sallie at Sallie’s Bat Mitzvah at TLSE
researching the Reform Movement) until her retirement in 1997. Part of her job was to establish new congregations (one of which became TLSE) and after her US trip, she put much of what she learned there in place. She became Executive Director of Liberal Judaism (then Union of Liberal and Progressive Synagogues) when Rabbi Sidney Brichto retired in 1989. Although TLSE was founded in 1969, Rosita and Stanley didn’t join until their daughter Sallie came to the Religion School in 1970. Once here though, Stanley was one of the many, including his friend Gerry Dickson, who spent virtually every weekend hard at work with hammers and nails literally building our shul with their bare hands! This did not mean that they never took holidays however, as proved by the photograph below.
Rosita, Stanley and Sallie on a canal boat holiday with Isobel’s family, late 1970’s
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Rosita recieving her Lifetime Achievment award at the Biennial
Although she retired almost twenty years ago, Rosita has remained involved in Liberal Judaism in a variety of ways. One of her many roles is to serve on the committee that decides on those who are going to be honoured with awards that are given out at the LJ Biennial to people who have been nominated by their communities as having an extraordinary level of commitment to Liberal Judaism. It was a very surprised Rosita therefore who, right at the end of this year’s awards, was suddenly presented with a Life Time Achievement Award that she knew nothing about! But having seen the dedication and hard work she has put into Liberal Judaism during the past sixty-odd years, no one else was and it was with huge pride and pleasure that those gathered
there gave her a standing ovation as she collected it. This is not the first time that Rosita has been taken by surprise at a Biennial. The year she retired, she was actually very involved in the planning of the event. Imagine her astonishment then, when instead of the project she had enthusiastically been expecting on the Saturday evening, they ambushed her with a ‘This Is Your Life” event, of which of course, she was the star! Well done Liberal Judaism for managing to hoodwink someone who was involved at every level, and well done Rosita, for all your hard work and commitment, without which it can truly be said, Liberal Judaism would not be the same today.
I would like to apologise to Gordon Woolf, whose name was inadvertently omitted in the last edition’s articles about the renovations that took place when our building was first purchased. Gordon was Treasurer and instrumental in overseeing the financial arrangements at that time. He was involved in getting the mortgage and responsible for raising and collecting the £5000 Building Fund. Thank you Gordon for being the financial rock that kept us on the straight and narrow in those early days. Ginny
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A-B
Barbara
020 8953 1369
C-F
Leone
07702 349350
G-I
Carol
020 8950 1862
J-M
Estelle
020 8954 9569
N-Q
Peter
020 8953 1369
R-S
Rita
020 8953 4439
T-Z
Judy
01582 468100
Nicky
07788 751275
CONDOLENCES TO:
Lynne Zartz on the loss of her husband Zelic Ruth Steiner on the loss of her husband Michael HIGH HOLYDAYS IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT Don’t be shy to ask - the Care and Welfare Committee is here to help. If anyone requires transport or home hospitality for the High Holydays, or if anyone is unable to attend shul for health reasons and would like prayers at home please contact Carol Hurst on 020 8950 1862.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO: Dylan Berger, Luke and Grace Carmel, Asa Harris, Isla Rose MizelasHall, Oliver Nathan, Arabella Owide, Abigail Perin, Lola Rock, Isabella Sinclair MAZEL TOV TO: Katie McAree on the occasion of her Bat Mitzvah on 24th September Rachel Esner and Paul Christian on the occasion of their marriage on 16th October Lynsey Sugarman and Ryan Thurkettle on the occasion of their marriage on 23rd October SINCERE THANKS TO: I would like to take this opportunity to wholeheartedly thank Tina Shaw who has tirelessly coordinated and edited Hakol until August 2016. This function has now been transferred into the office. Her tenacious commitment has ensured that Hakol arrived on your doormat come rain or shine for the last several years. Thank you Tina. Ginny
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LUNCH CLUB REPORT - JULY 2016
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ast month, the Lunch Club welcomed Lynne Bradley who spoke of her life in the entertainment business. She started her stage career at the age of three – as a dancing penguin! She trained as a ballet dancer and by the time she was thirteen had appeared at Sadler’s Wells and The Royal Festival Hall. Sadly, an accident prevented her becoming a ballerina and she went in to musical comedy and modeling. She has made records with Tommy Steele and The Black and White Minstrels, and a solo LP, singing songs from musicals. She then joined a theatre group as lead dancer and appeared in several musical extravaganzas, but knew it was time to hang up her dancing shoes when the
only costume that fitted her had the name ‘Ronnie Barker’ in it! She went on to choreograph and produce numerous shows. Lynne started writing poetry when she was fifteen and now regularly performs as a singer and comic poet and is a professional speech writer. She has also written two children’s books and is currently working on her autobiography. We are delighted that Lynne has agreed to entertain us, again, for our Chanukkah party on Tuesday 27th December. Not to be missed! Harry Hurst
Lynne Bradley
AN URGENT REQUEST IF WE WANT LUNCH CLUB TO CONTINUE!
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t the end of the year and after many years of doing it, Carol Hurst is hanging up her hat as chief cook and bottle washer for our lunch club. In order for this popular event to continue, we need some volunteers to take over the responsibility for this. Carol will be happy to give help and support during the transition period
to whoever takes it over and Harry will continue doing the programme adverts. If you would be interested in becoming involved, please contact Deborah Gabbay in the office. As with the Kiddush Rota (for which we also need volunteers), the more people that volunteer, the easier the job and the less frequently you will be asked to do it!
Deadline for next issue of Hakol will be Friday 8th October
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LUNCH
CLUB
Enjoy a great lunch! Make new friends! Be entertained! Venue: The Synagogue Time: 1pm TLSE members: £4 Non-Members: £5
Tuesday 27 September
Tuesday 25 October
If you are coming, please contact Carol Tel: 020 8950 1862, email: hurst@hursty.com 19
WALKS Date: Saturday 17th September Meet: The car park at top of Drop Lane, off Smug Oak Lane, for about 4 mile walk to include Frogmore Lakes, River Ver and blackberry picking. Time: 2:00 for 2:15pm Leader: Sue Woolf Mobile: 077 497 266 50. Date: Saturday 29th October Meet: TLSE at for a walk to Shenley Park Tearooms. Transport back to TLSE afterwards. Time: 1:45 for 2:00pm Leaders: Lisa and Leigh Renak Mobile: 07958 502526
AN IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT SECURITY Dear Members You may not be aware that we have for many years been able to provide security for Shabbat services and Religion School with member volunteers. The alternative would be to use a professional security agency at considerable cost which would just add to the cost of membership. Both for moral and economic reasons I am certain you would wish this to continue, but our current volunteer group numbers have fallen and we need new recruits . Security duty is not onerous and can be either a Saturday or Sunday two to three times a year for three hours per session. All new volunteers are placed with experienced members and this gives you an opportunity to meet other members of the community. I would hope you agree with me that volunteering a small amount of your time is part of belonging to our community and look forward to hearing from you on 07760666002 or frinton43@outlook.com Thank you Harvey Adams, Security Administrator
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JULY SHABBAT WALK chance to talk to everyone by the time the walk is ended.
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he July Shabbat walk was led by Ann Etkind on the hottest day of the year so far. Despite the heat we all thoroughly enjoyed our afternoon. Ann and I had practiced the walk a couple of weeks previously. Ann knew where she wanted to go but decided to add on a small extension as she thought the walk was slightly too short. We were lucky with the weather on that day too as the sun shone down on us the whole way. On the day of the walk we set off from our meeting point. There were seven of us altogether. One of the things I enjoy most about our walks is the ability to be out in the fresh air walking alongside one person then another having the
About half way through the walk we arrived in Aldenham village. Ann and I were smiling, remembering on our practice walk seeing a couple having a picnic on the grass, toasting each other with glasses of wine as they watched the ducks swimming on the pond. This time, as we were walking along, we were taken completely by surprise as two enormous flat farm wagons, each being drawn by two huge oxen, appeared coming towards us. They were amazing, travelling so slowly along the road. It was like something from another century. They must have come from Bhaktivedanta Manor, the Hare Krishna Temple in Aldenham. We were all dumbstruck. So, if you've never been on one of our walks, come along. Enjoy the fresh air, enjoy the scenery, enjoy the company and be prepared to be surprised! Nancy Shavick
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WELCOME TO NEW MEMBERS: Adam and Simone Perin and their daughter Abigail, aged 2. They live in Stevenage and have already attended several Tots’ Services. Rabbi Pete did a Baby Blessing for Abigail on Saturday, 30th July, where Abigail stole the show!
Lynsey Sugarman and Ryan Thurkettle and their son Ethan, aged 6 months. They live in Chigwell and Lynsey and Ethan have also been to a Tots’ Service.
Please do introduce yourselves and say hello if you bump into them the next time you are in shul.
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THE COUNCIL EACH COUNCIL MEMBER HAS FOCUSED IN ON AN AREA OF ACTIVITY WHERE THEY FEEL THEY CAN MAKE THE MOST DIFFERENCE:
Sarah Smullen Mark Kram Youth Education (with Rabbi Pete)
Penny Beral Membership
Davina Bennett Ad hoc contracts
Lizzie Rabin
Richard Boulton Social
Harvey Adams Nick Belkin Treasurer & Security Negotiation & Deals
(with Deborah Gabbay)
TLSE member Simon Fisher Experienced cleaner for your home, window cleaning, car valeting etc Contact Melvyn 07340 545872
Ginny Jaffe Building & House Maintenance & Nursery Management
Alan Gordenfelt Grounds, flower/ plants & Ad Hoc articles
(with Maureen Adams) Would all those involved in arranging functions, services or meetings please contact the Office on 020 8953 8889 or office@tlse.org.uk so that they can be scheduled in the Synagogue diary. This ensures that any physical set-ups in the Synagogue are arranged and that meetings do not conflict. Whilst every effort is made to ensure that details printed in Hakol are correct no responsibility can be accepted for information misprinted or incorrectly given to the Editor. Please let the Editor know of any errors or corrections. The editor reserves the right to edit material submitted for publication.
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THE KT TRIP TO BERLIN 2016
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