JNF Leeds
Leeds JNF has continued to be a major fundraiser for the JNF in the provinces. Its “Three Tenors” Concert in 2002 raised Twenty Five Thousand Pounds for a Music Room at Beit Uri and it hopes in 2003 to raise a further Twenty five Thousand Pounds to establish a project at the Nitzana Youth Village in the Negev. The profile of the JNF in Leeds has never been higher and its support of projects to assist in the development of the Jewish Community in Leeds is now recognised as significant. Our sponsorship of Yom Ha’atzmaut 5763 in Leeds is an example of the importance JNF both locally and Nationally places on the link with Israel.
In 1918 the Leeds office was the third biggest fundraiser in the country. The leaders of this city were especially persuasive and this is still the case today. By the 1930’s the Chairman of Leeds David Fox, was taking “energetic steps to further our interests”. Through the decade up until the outbreak of the Second World War, a series of highly profitable and well attended functions put JNF on the map. Bazaars, tree planting, film premieres – money used to create forests for community members such as Mrs
H Freedman. In 1933 the Biennial Conference was held in Leeds with Sir Montague and Lady Burton hosting the day’s events. The main schemes of the 1940’s, the Land Purchase Schemes, were financed in the main through three offices, London, Manchester and Leeds. The office’s role became more and more influential, under the eye of Mark Labovitch and Max rostoff, the fund was able to capitalise on increased co-operation with other organisations in the Leeds area. Consequently, the Commission saw a healthy return on their hard work and plans were made to increase their projects in Israel.
In 1960 John Goldstone and Bernard Burton took on the Leeds Chairmanship. Money raised was directed to the Goldstone and the John Ellis Forests and later the Family Grove Scheme.
Harry Brown took chairmanship in 1965 followed by Sam Goldman and under his leadership the income from Blue Boxes was twice that of any other Commission. Also, Leeds was to see an increase in income from events that was worthy of a special seminar in 1975 where Sam Goldman offered to show
the rest of the country where they were going wrong. In 1986 Leeds began to raise money for their own Leeds City Forest. On 24 April 1988 the Forest was dedicated by the Lord Mayor of Leeds, Doreen Wood who was proud of the close relationship of the city to its Jewish community. Since 1993, the commission has uniquely staged a series of tribute dinners that have raised £ 1/2 million for projects such as playgrounds, trails in the Galilee, a football stadium and various projects in the British Park. With Sidney Cohen in the office, and a great team led by Sam Goldman, the future of JNF in Leeds is a very bright one indeed.
On April 10th 2003, JNF held a dedication ceremony at the Machal Recreational Area for the physically challenged, situated beside the Machal Memorial in the Yitzhak Rabin Park, just outside Jerusalem.
The £50,000 project was funded through the JNF Tribute Dinner in Leeds to mark the outstanding work of Mr Louis Harris in honour of his 50 years of service to the Leeds Jewish community and to Israel.
Mr Harris, a former Machal soldier in the Israeli army was present to unveil the plaque at the area specifically designed for disabled veterans. Mr. Harris was presented with a certificate in light of the dedication of the recreation area.
JNF Leeds – Louis Harris Tribute Dinner
Approximately 90 people attended the ceremony. The participants included family and friends of Mr. & Mrs. Harris, fellow members of Machal, members of the World Machal Committee (that sits in Israel) and dignitaries from JNF UK.
Machal is the Hebrew acronym for Midnatvei Huz which in English means Volunteers from Abroad. The Machal project stands at an intersection of two major roads (the Burma Road and the Jeep Road). They were built by soldiers, civilians and volunteers in order to bypass the Jordanian outpost and succeeded in breaking the siege on Jerusalem allowing the supply of food, water and medication to once again reach the city of Jerusalem in 1948.
Mr. Louis Harris told the audience of his own personal story.
In 1948, along with 25 other volunteers from Leeds, he made his way to London and on to Paris and Marseilles in order to help the refugees board the old Liberty Boats manned by American and French Jewish men. They reached Israel in a clandestine manner – some by land and some by air.
Mr. Louis described the “unique experience” of being Jews fighting as Jews in a Jewish Army for a Jewish State (the first to do so since the Maccabeans over 2,000 years ago).
Gail Seal President of JNF UK remarked, “It is a privilege for JNF to be able to mark Louis Harris’ support of Israel for life in such a fitting way.”
JNF Leeds – Professor Leslie Wagner Tribute Dinner
A JNF tribute dinner to honour Professor Leslie Wagner CBE for services to the Leeds Jewish Community and higher education raised £55,000 towards the Nitzana Project in Israel.
The Chief Rabbi, Professor Jonathan Sacks, made a special trip from London to attend Sunday’s event at the United Hebrew Congregation. Professor Sacks said that it was a privilege to pay tribute to an individual who had spent his life serving the Jewish community and bringing pride to the Jewish People.
He said this career had been glittering, from his early days at the Open University and more recently as Vice Chancellor of the universities of North London and Leeds Metropolitan.
The Chief Rabbi could also think of no more fitting tribute to Prof Wagner and his wife Jennifer than the JNF Nitzana Project in Israel. Sidney Cohen, JNF District organiser, Said “The brilliance of the evening and the outcome in terms of support for the project, Nitzana was clearly outshone by the stars of the evening the Chief Rabbi and Leslie Wagner”.