Dear Friends,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This Friday is the 75th<\/sup> Anniversary of VE Day.\nJust in case you didn\u2019t know this fact, there were two V-Days that occurred during World War II, VE\nDay and VJ Day (Victory over Japan). VE Day stands for Victory in Europe Day on 8 May 1945, when the German Army offered a\ncomplete and unconditional surrender to the Allied Forces. There will be much\ncoverage in the news and we will mark it in our Shabbat service. In the lead up\nto it I remember reading a recent newspaper article, which said that today,\nduring this pandemic, the modern NHS is the equivalent of the World War II air\nforce, army and navy. I agree and this has made me think about the bravery of\nthose who continue to work with patients at the moment, whatever illness or\nneed that they may have and who put themselves at risk each day. In our\nCommunity we have GPs, hospital based doctors in many specialisms,\nanaesthetists, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, nurses, midwives,\ndentists, carers and many others. I would like to thank them for all that they\nare doing (you know who are you are) and when we stand up this Thursday to clap\nfor the NHS, let\u2019s all clap with those in our Community in mind. <\/p>\n\n\n\n This Shabbat, as well as marking VE day, we\nwill be honouring Ruth and David Rothenberg. You will have read in Our\nCongregation that Ruth has just retired as editor of the magazine having worked\non it for years and years and made it a truly enjoyable read. It is David\u2019s 80th<\/sup>\nbirthday and he has just stepped down from being a warden, a role he has\ncarried out for many years. It is also their 55th<\/sup> wedding\nanniversary. We had planned a Kiddush to thank them for all they have done for\nus but now we send them a virtual Mazel Tov<\/em> and Thank You instead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I have been asked a few times over the last few weeks about\nwhat arrangements can be made if you suffer bereavement and want to hold a\nShiva. Sadly, we have\nhad a number of deaths in the congregation and some of our families have chosen\nto have shiva minyanim by Zoom which Rabbi Altshuler or Cantor Heller will\nconduct. One family had over 150 people tuned in for a Maariv service, rabbinic\nwords, and shared memories by family and friends. Some families are also\ntalking to Rabbi Altshuler about future services in person, in memory of the\nindividual. If you are at all concerned about any of this please do contact\nRabbi Altshuler at rabbi@synagogue.co.uk<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n With Shavuot fast approaching, Rabbi Altshuler\nis working on our annual Shavuot Tikkun. Full details of the programme will be\nsent out shortly but please add this to your diaries \u2013 the evening of Thursday\n28 May. <\/p>\n\n\n\n I had some interesting information passed to me\nthis week which was sent into the office. One of our members has put\ntogether an anthology to raise money for a mental health charity and asked if\nwe could publicise it. In the past we have had a policy to decline to publicise\nany charity fundraising other than if it related to charities that we as a\nSynagogue officially support. Your Honorary Officers and I discussed this\nrequest and we are aware that times have changed and there are charities\nworking in areas that are important to us all during the lockdown. For instance\nthose creating food for the NHS, or working with food banks, mental health, or\npeople at risk. From next week we will therefore include a new section in News\nFrom The Square any information about initiatives that you are involved in,\nthat relate to these type of charities. Please send information to office@synagogue.org.uk<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I have also\nhad brought to my attention that there is an organisation called Paperweight\nwhich may be of interest to some of you. Paperweight is the Jewish\ncommunity\u2019s Citizens Advice Bureau and is there to support you through the\ncurrent crisis if you need them. They offer free services for all those\nneeding guidance on legal, financial and welfare issues. Their website is www.paperweight.org.uk<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Lastly, we have been contacted by\nUK Jewish Film. At the\nmoment, whilst cinemas are closed, they have a large selection of films\navailable to see online, so you can access Jewish content from the safety of\nyour own homes. New material is added to the site all the time. All of the\nshort films are entirely free to watch, but if you want to watch a longer new\nfilm then you will need to pay to rent it. You don\u2019t have to pay to access\nthe site and you can find it at https:\/\/ukjewishfilm.org\/ondemand\/<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n That is all from me for this week and as always\nstay well and stay safe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Jackie<\/p>\n\n\n\n