A SUMMER TO REMEMBER WITH THE HERSHEL WEISS CENTRE
Summers with the Hershel Weiss Centre have come to be part of the fabric of life in Salford; the subsidised annual day trips are eagerly awaited by hundreds of families who rely on them as the only way they can afford to give their families an enjoyable summer holidays.
This year due to Covid-19, the Summer trips, like so many other parts of our life, are by necessity not able to take place, but don’t think that means Michelle Ciffer and her team at the Children’s Centre are taking any time off this year. On the contrary, as the numerous adverts have been promising, this will be a Summer to Remember! ‘Not just for you, not just for me, for everyone’ which is the slogan for this year’s summer activities, is the perfect description of how the organisers are planning to benefit as many people in the kehilla as possible.
Talking to Mrs Ciffer is an adventure in itself, as she shares the background of the current Summer plans, a joint project between the Hershel Weiss Centre, Mesamchei Lev and Binoh of Manchester.
“Last year, just after Pesach, my husband Adrian / Avrohom Yaakov was diagnosed, for the second time, with the illness which would eventually take his life. His prognosis was grim, with the doctors giving him only a short time to live.
“Very bravely he sat down and wrote a will, including both the physical items he was leaving for the children as well as guidance for how he wanted them to live their lives. In his tzavo’oh he mentioned the story in gemoro where Rav Beroka met Eliyohu Hanovi in the market place and asked him which people here are going to go to Gan Eden. Eliyohu Hanovi pointed to two jesters, explaining that in the merit of making people happy, they are worthy of enormous reward.
“Reb Adrian then specified that he wants to leave a legacy which will help make people happy, and asked for a fund to be set up which would enable children to go to Camp or Day Camp, as well as apportioning some of the funds for the HWC Summer Trips.”
Mrs Ciffer explained that they had managed to raise a fair amount of money for the new fund, Mesamchei Lev, and were starting on their summer plans when Covid-19 appeared and turned the world upside down. Despite all the challenges, she remained undaunted in her determination to make this year a ‘Summer to Remember’ as she felt that now families need an exciting summer holiday more than ever after going through the challenging last few months. And so, after countless hours of planning, Summer 2020 has been unveiled.
After consulting with local Rabbonim, Mrs Ciffer decided to launch a fundraising campaign to support these endeavours, but was still slightly hesitant, knowing how people are currently struggling financially more than usual, and reluctant to ask for money. But the very next morning a letter arrived in the post which Mrs Ciffer saw as a clear sign from Hashem that she was doing the right thing. The letter was from an old classmate of her late husband who had heard about his untimely passing and wanted to express his condolences, sharing what a special person Reb Adrian was, and included in the letter an open charity voucher for £100, asking Mrs Ciffer to donate it to a charity which her husband would have wanted.
“To me, this was such a clear message that I should go ahead with the fundraising campaign. We have dedicated the coming Sunday, 19th July as a fundraising day and hope to raise £60,000, which will be triple matched, in those 12 hours, due to the generosity of two private donors.”
The money raised will be used in two main ways, namely individual grants for families in the community, and also a spectacular program of Zoom and tele-conference entertainment running throughout the summer.
Application forms for the grants have been launched, and Mrs Ciffer expects to be inundated with requests. This innovative idea allows families to choose from one of five different categories including money towards day camps, outdoor toys, entry tickets to outing attractions such as zoos or theme parks or else public transport and car hire. Additionally, there is an option for families who have lost a family member due to Covid-19, to receive money towards going away on holiday.
As long as families live in Greater Manchester and have 2 or more children, with at least one of them over the age of 5, they are invited to apply for one of these grants.
The second aspect of the Sumer Holiday plans is the entertainment which will be provided. Even a cursory look at the list of scheduled entertainers is enough to provide much anticipation for the forthcoming holiday weeks. Magicians and singers, cookery and art demonstrations, and an Uncle Moishy concert; these are only some of the things which have been arranged.
Ever cognizant of those in the community who don’t use the internet, Mrs Ciffer has endeavoured to arrange entertainment ideas which can be accessed on the phone as well.
HWC has also partnered with Kosher Savers who will be setting up a dedicated tent in their car park over the course of the summer, where there will be free activity packs available for all children every week throughout the summer holidays.
The difference this will potentially make to a more exciting summer holiday for thousands of Manchester children is astounding, and will surely be a tremendous zechus for Reb Adrian’s neshomo.
