World Jewish Relief ‘gives us belief in our future’
Emotional annual dinner features message from Prince Charles who said he is 'enormously proud' to be patron of the charity
Jenni Frazer is a freelance journalist
It would, said retired Ukrainian teacher Lidia, be impossible to survive without World Jewish Relief (WJR). It was a message echoed repeatedly during an emotional virtual event held by the charity.
Hosted by BBC journalist Emily Maitlis, the evening, for which more than 1,000 people registered, featured a heartfelt message from the charity’s patron, Prince Charles, a discussion with the outgoing chair, Dan Rosenfield – now Chief of Staff in Downing Street – and, courtesy of a longstanding university friendship with Rosenfield, a special one-off message and performance from Coldplay singer-songwriter, Chris Martin.
As WJR’s chief executive Paul Anticoni made clear, its work spans 18 countries with 66 separate partner organisations. Last year, the charity provided services to 73,000 people.
But this year’s theme, “saving lives, transforming communities”, was highlighted in the work WJR does in Jewish communities in eastern Europe. Lidia, the retired teacher from Kherson, Ukraine, has a disabled husband, and the couple receive help from WJR via its local partner.
Apart from vital medicines and social welfare care, there is now the opportunity for them to engage in daily programmes online. She said: “I know that every day at 11am when I sit down with my husband, after this online meeting, we will have belief in our future again.”
Online opportunities have transformed the lives of many of WJR’s clients. One of the charity’s areas of expertise is employment retraining. Natalya Akulova, from Kyiv, lost her travel job as a result of the pandemic but has now received training and mental health coaching, to begin a new career as an English teacher and thanked WJR for its support.
Rosenfield spoke of the highlights of his six years in the post. “I found a charity which was ‘of’ the Jewish community yet not constrained by it”, he said, adding he had been attracted by WJR’s “fundamental principle of not turning your back”.
He welcomed his successor as chairman, Maurice Helfgott, son of Sir Ben Helfgott, one of the original “Boys” who were brought to Britain and helped by WJR’s founding organisation, the Central British Fund.
The Prince of Wales said: “I am enormously proud to be a patron of World Jewish Relief, just as I am proud of the British Jewish community, precisely because of the compassion you show to others.”
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
