Jewish Care were delighted to announce that they raised just over £5 million from their annual dinner on Monday evening. The event was held at The Grosvenor House Hotel in Mayfair, and the guest speaker was the mayor of London, Sadiq Khan.
Addressing over 1,000 people at Jewish Care’s fundraising dinner, the mayor pledged to do all he can to create new opportunities for the Jewish community and continue in his fight to stamp out anti-Semitism in the capital.
He told the packed audience that “I’m working hard to tackle issues that affect the Jewish community in particular, and a key priority for me is tackling the rise in anti-Semitism. It’s simply not acceptable in London in 2017 – and I’m determined to stamp it out. As long as I’m mayor, we will not rest until we win this battle.
“Jewish Care is an incredible charity and one that I’m proud to support. I’ve had the pleasure of visiting Jewish Care’s Wohl Campus in Golders Green and have seen first-hand the great work the charity does. What’s easy to see is that the values that are the basis of Jewish Care’s work are the values that are rooted in your religion. As a community, you care for one another, you look out for each other – something that’s an inspiration to us all.”
The mayor stressed the importance he places on supporting the Jewish community. He said: “I’m working hard to create new opportunities for your communities – as I do for all Londoners.”
The mayor was welcomed into the room by Lord Levy, Jewish Care’s president, who commented, “We are honoured and delighted that you are here with us this evening. We are a small and very proud community, and being part of the fabric of London and our country is very special and meaningful to us. And to know that our mayor of London is a true friend to our community is very important to each and every one of us.”
Before delivering his speech the mayor spent time talking to the Jewish Care clients, including David, Sid and Hyman, whose stories appeared in a powerful film shown during the event.
Hyman Pittal, aged 95 years old, proudly showed off his war medals to the mayor. They talked about his prized French Légion d’honneur medal, awarded by the French government to D-Day veterans as a way of honouring and thanking those who risked their lives to secure France’s liberation during the Second World War.
Hyman, joined by his son David and daughter Hilary, told the mayor how Jewish Care have kept the family together after Hyman suffered a huge stroke. He could no longer provide the care and support his wife of 71 years, Rosalind, required. Rosalind moved into Jewish Care’s Lady Sarah Cohen House. Three weeks later Hyman joined her. Hyman commented: “Jewish Care kept my wife and me together when we both needed each other and provide us with the care and support we need.”
The evening was brought to a close by award-winning artist Craig David, who donated his time to perform at the event. The Southampton-born star made a visit to a Jewish Care home the week before the dinner to see first-hand the impact the organisation has on the lives of individuals. He commented: “Visiting a Jewish Care home had a very special meaning for me as my manager of 17 years and close friend Colin Lester’s mother is a resident at Otto Schiff Care Home in Golders Green. The dedication and care I witnessed were incredible, as helping to restore elderly and sometimes sick people’s dignity is a difficult task. This is an amazing environment.”
After the event Chairman Steven Lewis proudly announced the amount of money raised. “Thanks to the generosity of our guests, last night we have raised over £5m. This is a great start towards meeting our revenue fundraising target of £15m for the year ahead. I am also delighted to announce that we have made significant progress with securing commitments of £36m for our next capital development project in Stanmore, leaving us with £9m more to raise to meet the £45m build cost.”
Nicola Loftus, Chair of the Campaign Dinner and Jewish Care Trustee, said, “It was a special and incredibly moving evening. At a time when social care has been under the political spotlight, we at Jewish Care are proud of what our community has created on behalf of the elderly and vulnerable in our community.”