MIZRACHI ORGANISATION MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA. (Affiliated with World Mizrachi)

Transcription

1 69 th ANNUAL REPORT MIZRACHI ORGANISATION MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA (Affiliated with World Mizrachi) תשע"ב-תשע"ג EUGEN YAACOV WEISS MIZRACHI CENTRE 81 Balaclava Road Tel: (03) Caulfield North, Victoria 3161 Fax: (03)

2 Contents Key positions Mizrachi Organisation... 2 Key positions Leibler Yavneh College... 2 Mizrachi Organisation Past Presidents... 3 Rabbanim of the Mizrachi Organisation... 3 Mizrachi Organisation Executive Directors... 3 Leibler Yavneh College Past Chairmen... 3 Mizrachi Organisation Executive... 3 Mizrachi Organisation Committee... 3 Mizrachi Organisation Honorary Life Members... 3 Mizrachi Org. Committee Attendance Register... 4 Leibler Yavneh College Council Leibler Yavneh College Appeal Convenors... 4 Kosher Australia Board... 4 Kosher Australia Staff... 5 Beit HaRoeh Committee... 5 Beit Midrash Committee... 5 Beit Midrash Minyan Committee... 5 Bnei Akiva Liaison... 5 Building Chairman... 5 Charity Funds... 5 Elsternwick Jewish Community (EJC)... 5 Eruv Committee... 5 Hospitality Committee... 5 Nachalat David Committee... 5 Sick Visiting Society... 5 Synagogue Sub-Committee... 6 Mizrachi Delegates... 6 Notice of Annual General Meeting... 7 Minutes of 2012 Annual General Meeting... 8 Annual Reports Mara D Atra of the Mizrachi Organisation President s Report Executive Director s Report Rabbi Boruch Abaranok ז"ל Award Beit HaRoeh Beit Midrash Minyan Beit Midrash Sub-Committee Beit Midrash Rosh Kollel Report Bnei Akiva Melbourne Building Chairman Charity Fund Children s Tefillah Groups Culture & Events Committee Elsternwick Jewish Community Emunah Organisation Eruv Report Kosher Australia Pty Ltd Leibler Yavneh College Co-Chairperson s Report 40 Leibler Yavneh College Principal s Report Nachalat David Treasurers Report Auditor s Report & Financial Documents Mizrachi Organisation, MR IAN WALLER SC President RABBI YAAKOV ZELIG SPRUNG Mara D Atra MR ARI MORRIS (from 5 June 2012) Executive Director 81 Balaclava Road, Caulfield North, Victoria 3161 Tel: (03) Fax: (03) MR DANIEL SOLOMON Chief Financial Officer 2 Nagle Avenue, Elsternwick, Victoria 3185 Tel: (03) Fax: (03) MS RAE BOWER PA to Mara D Atra & Executive Director Leibler Yavneh College, JOSEPH & STERA GUTNICK SCHOOL OF JEWISH STUDIES MS ILANA WALD, MR JONATHAN WENIG Co-Chairpersons, College Council MR ROY STEINMAN Principal MRS PNINA LANDAU Head of Jewish Studies, Primary School ABRAHAMOVITS YAVNEH PRIMARY SCHOOL & ABELES LIBERMAN EARLY LEARNING CENTRE MS ELKA GAENSLER Head of General Studies Primary School MRS NAVA MILLER Head of Early Learning Centre 2

3 Mizrachi Organisation Past Presidents ע ה Reverend Chaim Joffe , ע ה Mr David Feiglin ע ה Mr Abraham Samuel Leibler ע ה Mr Joseph Feiglin ע ה Mr Mordechai Rich ע ה Mr Jacob Rich ע ה Mr Shimon Porgesz Lowinger Mr Ben Slonim OAM , ע ה Mr Julius Kraus , ע ה Mr Bernie Pushett ע ה Mr Dovid Apfelbaum ע ה Mr Manfred Levy Mr Robert Fixler Dr Danny Lamm , Mr Warren Zauer ע ה Mr Malcolm Slonim Mr Sam Seigel Dr Shlomi Menahem Mr Ian Waller SC Rabbanim of the Mizrachi Organisation ז"ל Rabbi Abraham First ; ז"ל Rabbi Boruch Abaranok Rabbi Boruch Zaichyk Rabbi Jack Simcha Cohen Rabbi Yaakov Zelig Sprung Mizrachi Organisation Executive Directors Mr Michael Neuhauser Mr Len Hain Dr Peter Kloot , Rabbi Ian Goodhardt Rabbi Ronnie Figdor Mr Ari Morris Leibler Yavneh College Past Chairmen ע ה Mr Judah Feiglin Mr Harold Wise ע ה Mr Bernie Pushett Mr Les Feiglin ע ה Mr Ian Rockman Rabbi Hillel Bick Mr Leon Duval Mr Ron Goldschlager Mr Alex Moss Mr Harry Grynberg Mr David Fisher Mr John Kraus Mr Robert Reisner Mr Mark Joel Ms Ilana Wald & Mr Jonathan Wenig Mizrachi Organisation EXECUTIVE President... Mr Ian Waller SC Vice President... Mr Michael Dodge Treasurer... Mr Mark Franks Secretary... Mrs Sharona Jotkowitz Immediate Past President... Dr Shlomi Menahem Committees Chairman... Mr Sam Seigel Kosher Australia Chairman... Mr Stephen Shnider Beit Midrash Chairman... Dr Lawrence Cher Building Chairman...Mr Nathan Cher Beit HaRoeh Chairperson... Ms Beverley Honig Synagogue Representative... Mr David Brykman College Co-Chairs... Ms Ilana Wald... Mr Jonathan Wenig College Treasurer... Mr Simon Feiglin Executive Director... Mr Ari Morris Chief Financial Officer... Mr Daniel Solomon COMMITTEE In addition to members of the Executive Mr Geoffrey Bloch... Committee Member Mrs Naomi Bloch... Emunah Representative Mr Jonathan Boymal... EJC (ex officio) Dr Michael Bruce... Committee Member Mr Gary Esterman... Committee Member Mrs Eva Goldberg... Committee Member Mr Aron Goodhardt... BA Merakez 2013 (ex-officio) Mr Aaron Judah... Committee Member Mr Tommy Junger... Committee Member Dr Peter Kloot... Life Member Mr Noam Korbl... Committee Member Dr Danny Lamm... Life Member Ms Ronit Lewis... BMM 2013 (ex-officio) Mrs Efrat Metzler... Bnei Akiva Shlicha (ex-officio) Mr Jeff Morrison... Committee Member Mr Michael Neuhauser... Life Member Mr Robert Nossbaum..Committee Member Mr Eli Parkes... BA Merakez 2012 (ex-officio) Mr Ben Slonim OAM... Life Member Dr Joel Steiner... Committee Member Mr Joshua Szwarcbard... BMM 2012 (ex officio) Mr Richard Weider... Committee Member (ex officio) Dr Shira Wenig... Committee Member HONORARY LIFE MEMBERS Mr and Mrs Yehuda Avner (Jerusalem) Dr Peter Kloot Dr Danny Lamm Mr Isi Leibler AO, CBE Mr Michael Neuhauser Mr Ben Slonim OAM 3

4 PRESENT APOLOGIES Mizrachi Organisation Committee Attendance Register May 2012 April 2013 A total of 7 regular meetings were held in the review period. MEMBER Mr Geoffrey Bloch 5 Mrs Naomi Bloch 5 Mr Jonathan Boymal 4 3 Dr Michael Bruce Mr David Brykman 2 Dr Lawrence Cher 3 1 Mr Nathan Cher 5 2 Mr Michael Dodge 6 1 Mr Gary Esterman 5 2 Mr Simon Feiglin Mr Mark Franks 4 3 Mrs Eva Goldberg 6 1 Mr Aron Goodhardt 1 Ms Beverley Honig 3 3 Mrs Sharona Jotkowitz 3 2 Mr Aaron Judah 6 Mr Tommy Junger 3 Dr Peter Kloot 1 1 Mr Noam Korbl 4 2 Dr Danny Lamm 1 6 Ms Ronit Lewis 2 Dr Shlomi Menahem 4 2 Mrs Efrat Metzler 3 2 Mr Ari Morris 7 Mr Jeff Morrison 4 2 Mr Michael Neuhauser 7 Mr Robert Nossbaum Mr Eli Parkes 3 2 Mr Jeff Rubin 1 Mr Sam Seigel 7 Mr Stephen Shnider 7 Mr Ben Slonim OAM 5 Mr Daniel Solomon 5 1 Dr Joel Steiner 2 3 Mr Joshua Szwarcbard 4 Ms Ilana Wald 4 Mr Ian Waller SC 7 Mr Richard Weider 4 1 Mr Jacob Weinmann 1 Mr Jonathan Wenig 1 1 Dr Shira Wenig 4 Leibler Yavneh College Council EXECUTIVE Co-Chair... Ms Ilana Wald & Mr Jonathan Wenig Immediate Past Chairman & Chairman of the Yavneh Foundation.. Mr Mark Joel College Treasurer... Mr Jacob Weinmann... Mr Simon Feiglin President - Mizrachi Organisation... Mr Ian Waller SC Treasurer Mizrachi Organisation... Mr Mark Franks COMMITTEE MEMBERS Mr Leon Burman Mrs Julie Epstein Mrs Zandy Fell Mr Ian Fishman Mrs Karen Franks Mr Avi Gilboa Mr Benjamin Jotkowitz Mrs Pat Levy Mr Jeremy Leibler Mrs Atida Lipshatz Mr Daniel Parasol Mrs Michelle Rubin Mr Michael Szuster Mr Reuben Zelwer LYC Principal... Mr Roy Steinman LYC Chief Financial Officer... Mr Daniel Solomon APPEAL CONVENORS (Siyum Sefer Torah) Mr Benjamin Jotkowitz Mizrachi Committees, Sub-Committees & Convenors KOSHER AUSTRALIA BOARD Chairman... Mr Stephen Shnider General Manager... Mr Yankel Wajsbort Board of Management Dr Menachem Broner Mr David Brykman Mr Tommy Junger Dr Peter Kloot Mrs Sue Korbl Mr Robert Lebovits Mr Michael Lewis Mr Ben Slonim OAM Mr Ian Waller SC Rabbinic Board Rabbinic Administrator... Rabbi Mordechai Gutnick Rabbinic Board... Rabbi Yaakov Sprung... Rabbi Yacov Barber 4

5 Kosher Australia Staff Chief Chemist... Mr Kasriel Oliver, B.App.Sc. Chemist... Mrs Rose Mehlman, B.Sc. Chemist... Mr Mordy Hoenders M.Chem Eng Operations Manager... Mr Chaim Silcove Administration... Mrs Rita Broner... Mrs Devora Gold... Mrs Gail Goldberg... Mrs Christine Stone BEIT HAROEH COMMITTEE Mrs Beverley Honig... Chairperson Mr Gary Esterman... Vice President Dr Michael Gordon... Immediate Past President Mr Selwyn Braver... Secretary R Michael Lewis... Tzedakah project Dr Lawrence Cher & Mr David Greenberger. Gabbaim Mrs Janie Fixler... Events Mr Ralph Greenberger... Initiatives Ms Abigail Cooper... Committee Member Mr Anthony Gosling... Committee Member Mr Michael Granek... Committee Member Mr Ian Symons... Committee Member BEIT MIDRASH COMMITTEE Dr Lawrence Cher... Convenor Mr Geoff Bloch Mr Dean Ellinson Mrs Gila Gold Mr Jeremy Herz Mrs Michal Herz Dr Danny Lamm Dr Joel Steiner Mr Ian Waller SC Rav Dudi Winkler Rebbetzin Chani Winkler BEIT MIDRASH MINYAN COMMITTEE 2013 Rav Dudi Winkler... Rabbi Ms Ronit Lewis... President Mrs Michal Herz... Vice President Mr Alex Izsak... Gizbar Mr Noam Korbl... Gabbai Mr Jeremy Herz... Gabbai Mr Noam Greenberger & Mr Craig Shulman... PR Mrs Ora-Tali Korbl... Functions Ms Tamara Izsak... Functions BNEI AKIVA LIAISON Mr Gary Esterman BUILDING CHAIRMAN Mr Nathan Cher CHARITY FUNDS Mrs Yvonne Korbl... Convenor Mr Robert Epstein... Director Mr Mark Franks... Treasurer Mr Ian Waller SC... Mizrachi President ELSTERNWICK JEWISH COMMUNITY (EJC) Mr Mark Kraus... Co-Chairman Mr Robert Wyner... Co-Chairman Mr Jonathan Boymal Mrs Lorraine Fantl Mr Elan Jacobs Mrs Sally-Ann Jaye Mr Dennis Max Mrs Hazel Shapiro Mr Ken Shapiro Mr Les Sheffield Mrs Helen Silberg Mr Tom Slomovic Dr Bryan Winthrope ERUV BOARD MEMBERS Mr Romy Leibler... COSV Nominee (Chairman) Rabbi Yaakov Zelig Sprung... Rav HaMachshir Dr Peter Kloot... Administrator Mr Isaac Teller... COSV President (ex-officio) Mr Jeff Herz... Mizrachi Nominee (Director) Dr Danny Lamm... Mizrachi Nominee (Director) Mr Tom May... Honorary Solicitor Mr Paul Korbl... COSV Nominee (Treasurer) Mr Moshe Trebish... Coopted Mr Yossi Aron... Project Officer, COSV HOSPITALITY COMMITTEE Mrs Karen Franks (Convenor) NACHALAT DAVID COMMITTEE Dr Shira Wenig... Chairperson Mr Jeremy Gold... Treasurer Dr Shmuli Wenig... Gabbai Mr Richard Weider... Gabbai Ms Ilana Zimmerman... Kiddush Co-ordinator Ms Elisheva Archer... Kiddush Co-ordinator Mrs Dafna Garfield... Functions Co-ordinator R Tuvia Cannon... Public Relations Mr Dovi Perl... Committee Mr David Lamm... Committee Mr Mikey Teller... Committee SICK VISITING SOCIETY Ms Erika Weilburg... Convenor Mrs Talilah May 5

6 SYNAGOGUE SUB-COMMITTEE Chairman... Mr Robert Nossbaum Mizrachi President (ex officio)... Mr Ian Waller SC Mizrachi Treasurer (ex officio)... Mr Mark Franks Members Dr Michael Bruce Mr David Brykman Dr Danny Lamm Gabbaim Dr Menachem Broner... Hashkamah Dr Michael Bruce... Beit Yehuda Mr David Brykman... Beit Yehuda Dr Lawrence Cher... Beit HaRoeh Mr David Greenberger... Beit HaRoeh Mr Liam Gruber... Bnei Akiva Mr Jeremy Herz... Beit Midrash Minyan Mr Elan Jacobs... Elsternwick Jewish Community Mr Noam Korbl... Beit Midrash Minyan Mr Benji Levy... Nachalat David Mr Robert Nossbaum... Beit Yehuda Dr Shmuli Wenig... Nachalat David Dr Bryan Winthrope... Elsternwick Jewish Community MIZRACHI DELEGATES Council of Orthodox Synagogues of Victoria (COSV) Delegate... Mr Ian Waller SC Deputy... Mr Sam Seigel Jewish Community Council of Victoria (JCCV) Delegate... Mr Michael Neuhauser Directors Melbourne Eruv Pty Ltd. Mr Jeff Herz Dr Danny Lamm Zionist Council of Victoria (ZCV) Delegate... Mr Michael Neuhauser 6

7 Members are advised that the 69 th Annual General Meeting of the Mizrachi Organisation will take place at 8:15pm on Wednesday, 1 May 2013 in the Goldberger Hall The Eugene Yaacov Weiss Mizrachi Centre 81 Balaclava Rd, Caulfield North AGENDA 1. Opening of Annual General Meeting 2. Dvar Torah 3. Apologies 4. Minutes of the 68 th Annual General Meeting 5. Matters arising out of the Minutes 6. Adoption of Annual Reports 7. Elections: i. Mizrachi President ii. Mizrachi Vice President iii. Mizrachi Chairperson iv. Mizrachi Treasurer v. Mizrachi Secretary vi. Leibler Yavneh College Chairperson vii. Leibler Yavneh College Deputy Chairperson viii. Leibler Yavneh College Treasurer ix. Kosher Australia Chairperson x. Building Chairperson xi. Beit Midrash Chairperson xii. Twelve Committee Members 8. Address by incoming President 9. General business Ari Morris Returning Officer 7

8 MINUTES OF THE 68TH ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING OF THE MIZRACHI ORGANISATION 23 May 2012 Chairman: Mr Sam Seigel President: Mr Ian Waller SC Minutes: Mr Mark Franks Opening of 68 th Annual General Meeting Mr Sam Seigel opened the meeting and invited the Mara D Atra Rabbi Sprung to speak. The Rav gave a Dvar Torah pertaining to the parsha and referred to the sons of Aharon, Nadav and Avihu, who did not have their own children and who devoted themselves to klal yisrael. The Rav thanked those who work tirelessly for our community and wished them every success in their future endeavours. Minutes of the 67th Annual General Meeting Minutes of the 67th Annual General Meeting held on 18 May 2011 having been previously circulated, were taken as read and adopted as an accurate record. Matters arising out of the Minutes No matters were raised. President s Address Ian Waller welcomed everyone attending the AGM, in particular Ari Morris the newly appointed Executive Director. He then said: A number of recent events celebrating Yom Yerushalayim have demonstrated the special role which Mizrachi plays in the lives of our members and the Jewish community generally. Last Shabbat we had a special Shabbat Achdut in honour of Yom Yerushalayim. In what I hope will become an annual event, our various minyanim came together for a combined tefillah followed by a wonderful Kiddush with inspiring speakers. Although we support a range of minyanim we are all part of one organization and our real strength is in being united. The feedback from Shabbat has been overwhelming and entirely positive. At Seudat Shlishit we welcomed Rabbi Chaim Cowen, the recently appointed Rav of the Elsternwick Jewish Community, highlighting the bonds between the Caulfield and Elsternwick members of Mizrachi. And on Sunday morning Mizrachi once again hosted the communal Yom Yerushalayim tefillah demonstrating the leadership role played by Mizrachi in the Jewish community generally. I thank all those who gave of their time for Mizrachi whether as professional staff, elected representatives or simply as volunteers. Sam Seigel proposed a motion to thank Ian Waller for all he has done for the good of the kehillah. Passed by acclamation. Mizrachi Treasurer s Report Tommy Junger presented the financial accounts for year ending December 2011 and highlighted the operating result with a significant consolidated surplus this year. He noted that this is an accrual accounting result, not a cash position. The true performance barometer is the cash position. The past year posted a solid result. In the past year the bank debt has reduced by over $600,000. This year s debt has been reduced by $75,000 so far. He thanked all those who have assisted to bring these deficits down. Tommy thanked the NAB for providing their lending facility. He also thanked the Mizrachi and College executives and committees, and his co treasurers, Phillip Rubinstein and Jacob Weinmann as well as Rae Bower, Daniel Goodman and Daniel Solomon. Leon Tugendhaft thanked the Treasurer for his hard work and achievements. Leon questioned the significant increase in donations over the past period and well as the doubtful debts. Daniel Solomon responded that the donations received were of a capital nature for the hall. The accrual accounting method accounts for the large 8

9 discrepancy. In fact the donations over the past 2 years were almost the same. The doubtful debt pertains to a lot of old debt. A full review will be undertaken this year to see what can be collected. Leibler Yavneh College Report Jonathan Wenig thanked Roy Steinman and staff for the wonderful job that is done every day with scarce resources. He noted the various Jubilee celebrations including the forthcoming Siyum Sefer Torah and gala jubilee dinner in August. Jonathan encouraged everyone to participate. Adoption of Annual Reports Sam Seigel asked for a motion adopting the Annual Reports. (Michael Lewis moved, seconded by Nathan Cher) The motion was passed on the voices. Resolution The following motion was put before the meeting: That persons who have paid their membership fees for by 18 May 2012 shall be treated as financial members. Sam Seigel read the explanatory note accompanying the notice. Explanatory Note: It has become apparent that a number of people who wish to participate at the AGM by attending and voting or to nominate for positions inadvertently failed to pay their membership fees by 31 December To enable a greater number of people to have their say and vote at the AGM or to stand for positions, a resolution will be put at the AGM that persons who have paid their membership fees for by 18 May 2012 shall be treated as financial members. This will not reflect a permanent change in the rules - membership fees for the coming year continue to be due on or before 31 December It greatly assists Mizrachi's cash flow if people pay their member-ship fees on receipt of their invoice. A delay in paying membership fees can result in the unfortunate situation that people who wish to be financial members and to participate in the AGM may find that due to inadvertence they have missed the cut-off date for paying their fees. Peter Kloot said that the explanatory note was not correct. The reason the current rule was introduced was to avoid stacking the vote the financial benefit was a side benefit. It was a governance issue. The motion was passed on the voices. Elections: EXECUTIVE As there were no contested positions the following were declared duly elected: President... Mr Ian Waller SC Vice President... Mr Michael Dodge Mizrachi Treasurer... Mr Mark Franks Secretary... Mrs Sharona Jotkowitz Immediate Past President... Dr Shlomi Menahem Chairman of Committees... Mr Sam Seigel Leibler Yavneh College Co-Chairpersons... Mrs Ilana Wald & Mr Jonathan Wenig Leibler Yavneh College Treasurer... Mr Simon Feiglin Building Chairman... Mr Nathan Cher Kashrut Board Chairman... Mr Stephen Shnider Beit Midrash Chairman... Dr Lawrence Cher COMMITTEE Dr Danny Lamm moved that all 13 nominees be elected to the committee based on precedent. Ronnie Judah seconded the motion. The motion was passed. 9

10 The following were duly elected. Mr Geoffrey Bloch Mr Michael Bruce Mr David Brykman Mr Gary Esterman Mrs Eva Goldberg Ms Beverley Honig Mr Aaron Judah Mr Tommy Junger Mr Noam Korbl Mr Jeff Morrison Dr Joel Steiner Mr Richard Weider Dr Shira Wenig Address by Incoming President Mr Ian Waller SC First may I thank all those who gave of their time for Mizrachi whether as professional staff, elected representatives or simply as volunteers. I congratulate all those Executive and Committee members who have volunteered to serve Mizrachi for the next 12 months. In particular I welcome Lawrence Cher and Sharona Jotkowitz to the Executive and look forward to each of them making a real contribution to Mizrachi s growth and success Lawrence as Chairman of the Beit Midrash and Sharona as Secretary with special responsibility for activities and events. I also thank Mark Franks who (having served on the Executive as Secretary for some time) has agreed to assume the important role of Mizrachi Treasurer. And I am grateful to the other continuing members of the Executive. I look forward to working together with you all harmoniously and in the best interests of Mizrachi. Thank you also to those members who have attended this evening. In doing so you have shown your support for the Organisation and its lay leadership. To you and to the many members who are not here tonight may I say that I welcome all advice, suggestions and constructive criticism - with one caveat. Whenever you offer criticism or identify a problem or suggest something that we can do better please commit yourselves to being part of the solution as well. In a few days time we will celebrate Shavuot which commemorates Matan Torah. It is also known as Chag Habikurim - the holiday of the first fruits which were offered in the Beit Hamikdash. An integral part of the bikurim ceremony was the recitation of a portion of the Torah drawn from parshat Ki Tavo which spells out a concise history of the Jewish people from the time of Avraham until the moment of that person s appearance at the Temple with his bikurim offering. If we want our offerings and accomplishments in life to have some eternal meaning then we need to connect them to Torah. At Mizrachi that is we what we try to do. May we succeed to the best of our ability and may we all enjoy a very happy Chag Matan Torateinu. General business Dr Alex Savicky asked whether the Rabbi has assisted in fund raising. Ian Waller said that he has, however there is always scope for further involvements. Dr Danny Lamm congratulated the new executive and the previous executive. He noted that the annual report should reflect Mizrachi's contribution to the wider community and to World Mizrachi. Michael Neuhauser thanked the executive and committee and the Mizrachi community. He comments that Mizrachi members hold leadership positions in the wider community. Eli Parkes said that Efrat Metzler has been a tremendous support for Bnei Akiva and the community. 10

11 David Waysman commended the rabbi for his contribution to the community and asks how long the current contract had to run. Ian Waller responded that the current contract runs until July David Waysman also acknowledged the contribution made to Mizrachi s activities by Rabbi James Kennard. The AGM moved a vote of thanks to all those who freely give of their time to present shiurim, in particular Reb Leor Broh, Rabbi Prof. Bert Mond and Raabbi James Kennard. Dr Danny Lamm noted in relation to the recent Shabbat Achdut, which necessitated changing starting times of all minyanim, that the organization has the right to determine certain changes as it deems fit. Dr Peter Kloot commented that although some people did not agree with the Shabbat Achdut arrangements they still participated appropriately. He noted that that reflected well on the organisation as a whole. The meeting concluded with Hatikvah at 9:00 pm 11

12 REPORTS Mara D Atra of the Mizrachi Organisation... Rabbi Yaakov Sprung President... Ian Waller SC Executive Director... Ari Morris Rabbi Baruch Abaranok Award... Menachem Broner & Harry Gelber OAM Beit HaRoeh... Beverley Honig Beit Midrash Minyan... Ronit Lewis Beit Midrash Sub-Committee...Lawrence Cher Beit Midrash Rosh Kollel Report... Rav Dudi Winkler & Rebbetzin Chani Winkler; and Hesder Bachurim Bnei Akiva Melbourne... Aron Goodhardt Building Chairman... Nathan Cher Charity Fund... Devora Gold Children s Tefilah Group... Daniel Herszberg Cultural & Events Committee... Sharona Jotkowitz Elsternwick Jewish Community... Robert Wyner Emunah World Religious Zionist Women s Organisation... Sue Boltin Eruv Report... Jeff Herz Kosher Australia Pty Ltd... Stephen Shnider Leibler Yavneh College Chairman s Report... Ilana Wald & Jonathan Wenig Principal s Report... Roy Steinman Nachalat David... Shira Wenig Financial Reports Treasurers Report...Mark Franks & Simon Feiglin Auditor s Report & Financial Documents 12

13 MARA D ATRA OF MIZRACHI ORGANISATION by Rabbi Yaakov Sprung During the past year, I delivered in excess of 220 shiurim and 70 drashot. The Wednesday evening shiur in Gemara celebrated its 2nd Siyum (the second siyum upon an entire mesechet by a formal shiur given by the Rabbi, in the history of Mizrachi), and began the new study of Mesechet B'rachot. The young men of our community who returned from serious study in Israeli Yeshivot, requested I begin a new shiur for them, which has been added and given in the Midrasha of the Beit Midrash on Thursdays. The V shinantem Saturday night program I began 3 years ago was overseen by Mark Franks this past year, and continued to attract between children and their parents and grandparents on a weekly basis, studying parshah sheets written by the Rebbetzin, in addition to a film, supper and prizes. This past year I added a biweekly informal class for Bar Mitzva boys, focusing upon the mitzvah, meaning and details of Tefillin. The Shabbat morning Tefilah groups, continued under Daniel Herszberg (and Ruth Epstein continuing as chairperson) and once again received anonymous funding from a kind member of our organization, arranged through myself. The Leibler Yavneh afterschool Gemara Classes, I inaugurated several years ago continued, with the help of Mr. Roy Steinman. Representing the Mizrachi Kehilla, I chaired our community's 1000 person Siyum Hashas, and served as the guest speaker at the Siyum Hashas in Sydney. In addition to the above, much time was spent in the following areas: YOUTH DEPARTMENT I met several times with Eli Parkes and Aron Goodhardt of Bnei Akiva, arranging camp Kashrut, as well as davening and speaking at their Minyan during the Yomim Tovim of Pesach and Sukkot. LEIBLER YAVNEH COLLEGE Met with College Principal Roy Steinman on several occasions, and Spoke at all chumash and siddur presentations of the First Grade and Kindergartens Spoke at all Graduations Spoke at Speech night PASTORAL DUTIES I have sat with families prior to the funeral of dear ones, reviewing the details of aveilut and laboriously preparing eulogies (accompanying the consecration of matzevot, as well). I have met with bar- and bat- mitzvah young adults of our community, (and their parent/s) to discuss the event/celebration, and the responsibilities accompanying the celebration of such a milestone. I have met with chatanim and kalot prior to their weddings to discuss pertinent matters, even when not functioning as the Mesader Kedushin. I have met with parents prior to a brit milah. I have counselled numerous families and young adults, in areas of shalom bayit, divorce, bereavement and adolescent challenges. Hospital visits were made whenever sickness was brought to my attention. COMMUNAL ENDEAVOURS Continued to oversee the halachic operation of the Melbourne Eruv, its halachic questions, repair and communal acceptance. I have maintained ongoing contact with HaRav Gavriel Zinner, and provided the Eruv committee with the guidelines to extend our boundaries to encompass the Cabrini Hospital and The Avenue. Met with Rabbinic Board of Kosher Australia and maintained close working relationship with R' Mordechai Gutnick, Stephen Schneider and Yankel Wajsbort, regarding matters of policy, crises, and Pesach and standards. Delivered opening shiur for Emunah women and prepared the yearly times for their calendar including the opening remarks. Sole communal Rabbinic member of Chevra Kadisha. Helped design new shtiebl at Lyndhurst. Provided COSV with halachic information for their website for every Yom Tov and Eruv Tidbits. IN-HOUSE ACTIVITIES Hosted annual communal Purim mesibah at home. Attended and spoke in Beit HaRoeh, Beit Midrash Minyan, Nachalat David. Arranged and presided at the Annual Kinnus Teshuvah. Arranged annual Shavuot Siyum Hatanach with full spectrum of participation Assisted the Rebbetzin in maintaining a home welcoming all members of our community. 13

14 PRESIDENT S REPORT Ian Waller SC Overview The past year has been a vibrant period for the Mizrachi Organisation during which the many arms of the Organisation have continued to provide a range of services to our members and the Jewish community at large. Rabbinic leadership Our Mara D Atra, Rabbi Sprung, continues to provide exemplary spiritual leadership ably assisted by the Rebbetzin. Rabbi Sprung has consistently advanced our objectives to increase Torah learning and to provide spiritual encouragement and support to our members. This manifests itself in carefully prepared drashot and shiurim, innovative Tikkun Leil Shavuot and Siyum Tanach programs and countless hours spent in pastoral and counseling activities. I particularly appreciate the encouragement and support the Rav has extended to me in my role as President. Reb Leor Broh s dedication and commitment to Mizrachi particularly as Manhig Ruchani of Beit Haroeh are also deeply appreciated. And Rav Dudi and Chani Winkler have provided energetic leadership within the Beit Midrash and the Midrasha. Professional Staff Since commencing as Executive Director in June 2012, Ari Morris has made a positive contribution to the administration of the organisation. In particular, the Mizrachi website to be officially launched at this year s AGM, is the result of much time and effort expended by Ari. Rae Bower s wonderful combination of efficiency and cheerfulness has also ensured that the Organisation has continued to run smoothly. Daniel Solomon continues to provide excellent service as Chief Financial Officer. Together with the honorary treasurers and the professional staff, Daniel has ably managed the finances of the Organisation. Devora Gold has continued to sensitively manage and administer Mizrachi Charity Funds. Jim Moustos continues to provide outstanding service as our groundsman and facilities manager assisting in many and varied ways and always doing so with a positive and helpful attitude. Minyanim All of our minyanim both at Balaclava Rd and Elsternwick continue to thrive, offering mitpallelim a wide choice of tefillah options. Elsternwick Jewish community have been well served by Rabbi Menachem Mendel Haller while Rabbi Chaim Cowen has been in Israel receiving specialist educational training in preparation for his additional role as a Jewish studies teacher at Leibler Yavneh College. As always, Robert Wyner and his committee deserve praise for all the work they have done at EJC. Beverley Honig has provided energetic leadership in Beit Haroeh, as have Shira Wenig in Nachalat David and Joshua Szwarcbard and more recently Ronit Lewis in the Beit Midrash Minyan. I would like especially to thank the gabbaim of all our minyanim who daily (or weekly) give of their time to ensure that the tefillot run smoothly : Robbie Nossbaum, Michael Bruce and David Brykman (Beit Yehudah); Menachem Broner and David Lindell (Hashkama); Lawrence Cher and David Greenberger (Beit Haroeh); Jeremy Herz and Noam Korbl (Beit Midrash Minyan); Benji Levy, Richard Wieder and Shmuli Wenig (Nachlat David); Elan Jacobs and Bryan Winthrope (Elsternwick). Leibler Yavneh College The College has completed another very successful year under the capable professional leadership of its Principal Roy Steinman and Senior Management Team supported by College Co-Chairs Ilana Wald and Jonathan Wenig. A clear highlight of last year was the Jubilee Year celebration. In 1962 the families that made up Mizrachi had a vision of a school which would imbue its children with an educational philosophy that advocated traditional orthodoxy as well as modernism and stressed the centrality of the State of Israel. In the years since then, the drive and determination of many individuals principals, administrators, lay leaders, teachers, parents and students have turned the original dream of the founders into a reality. As Leibler Yavneh College celebrated its Jubilee Year, it was profoundly heartening to reflect on how it has grown over the past fifty years from very humble beginnings to become a world class Modern Orthodox Religious Zionist school. The challenge that lies ahead is to perpetuate 14

15 the dreams of yesterday while building an even greater tomorrow. I am confident that Leibler Yavneh College will succeed in doing so. Beit Midrash Since its establishment some 15 years ago the Beit Midrash has been, and continues to be, a place of learning and of teaching Torah. And in that time each Rosh Kollel (and Rosh Midrasha) have made their own special contribution. Rav Dudi and Chani Winkler continue that tradition. Since arriving 18 months ago they have injected enthusiasm and energy and have introduced a range of new shiurim and other programs, including the wellattended lecture series presented by Rabbi James Kennard. Together with the Bachurei Hesder - Amir Cohen, Gilad Cohen, Daniel Moatti and Matan Tur-Paz - they have worked hard to ensure that learning opportunities are available for the entire kehilla. In addition, special mention should be made of the very moving exhibition which Rav Dudi, Chani and the Hesder bachurim created for Yom Hazikaron this year which gave us all a special insight into the sacrifices made by young soldiers for Medinat Yisrael. The Beit Midrash Committee led by Dr Lawrence Cher provides guidance and support and I thank all of its members for their commitment and contribution. The Annual Beit Midrash dinner was once again held in the new school hall and was an outstanding success. In addition to raising much needed funds, the dinner showcases the important role played by the Beit Midrash and brings the Mizrachi kehilla together. Our guest speaker and scholar in residence Rabbi Dr Aharon Adler provided a fascinating presentation which was well received. At the dinner we honoured two individuals who have made outstanding contributions over many years. Dr Danny Lamm who oversaw the establishment of the Beit Midrash and in the years since has remained its most ardent supporter and fundraiser. And Mrs Rita Broner who has played a very special role for our hesder bachurim, coordinating hospitality for them, organising their travel plans and generally acting as their counselor and surrogate mother. Thanks are also due to Rae Bower who also watches over the Hesder bachurim and helps co-ordinate hospitality for them and to the host families and others who extend such hospitality. Kosher Australia As the peak kashrut authority within Australia, Kosher Australia continues to provide the Australian Jewish community with a range of vital services. Guided by its Rabbinic and professional staff (led by Rabbi Mottel Gutnick and Yankel Wajsbort) and under the dedicated chairmanship of Stephen Shnider assisted by the Kosher Australia Board, Kosher Australia has significantly enhanced the range and quality of its services in the last twelve months. Building Nathan Cher has continued to provide dedicated service as Chairman of the Building Committee. As I write this report, building works will shortly commence at Balaclava Road encompassing the construction of a security fence, guard house, high profile entrance gate, covered areas, seating, garden and landscaping. Planning is continuing in other areas particularly in relation to a Master Plan for the overall redevelopment of the Balaclava Road site. Emunah Under the leadership of Mrs Susan Boltin, Emunah has through its various groups continued to undertake a wide range of social, fundraising and educational projects in support of individuals, families and communities facing difficulties in Israel today. Bnei Akiva Bnei Akiva continues to play a central role in the lives of our children. The movement has benefitted from strong and principled leadership particularly under Eli Parkes and his successor Aron Goodhart and from Bnei Akiva shlichah Efrat Metzler. Appointed originally as interim shlichah, Efrat (always assisted by her husband David) has energized the movement and been a tremendous asset to the movement and support for madrichim and chanichim. As the Metzlers make plans to return to Israel in the coming months we hope to soon appoint new shlichim for Bnei Akiva. JCCV Community Award Mizrachi nominated Dr Shlomi Menahem to receive a JCCV Community Award in recognition of his tireless work over many years on behalf of Mizrachi and all its component entities, including serving as President and Vice President. 15

16 Guest speakers and scholars in residence During the past year Mizrachi has hosted many interesting guest speakers, particularly during Seudat Shlishit, Tikkun Leil Shavuot, the annual Siyum Tanach and Kinus Teshuva. We have also welcomed scholars in residence who have provided a range of fascinating shiurim and presentations. Particular mention should be made of: Rabbi Nechemia Taylor who visited over Shavuot Rabbi Benny Lau who visited in August Rabbi Dr Aharon Adler who visited in December. Events and cultural functions The establishment this year of a Cultural and Events Committee under the leadership of Sharona Jotkowitz has been a great success. The committee organised a series of kehilla kiddushim, a Pre-Pesach lunch and a very well attended film night featuring a documentary on the life of Yoni Netanyahu in November. Yom Ha atzmaut and Yom Yerushalayim Mizrachi continues to arrange, in association with the COSV, the RCV and Bnei Akiva, the communal tefillot for Yom Ha atzmaut and Yom Yerushalayim. This year s Yom Ha atzmaut tefilla celebrating the 65 th anniversary of the establishment of Medinat Yisrael was particularly well attended. The guest speaker was Mr Bezalel Gleiser, Jewish Agency Shaliach Aliyah for Australia & New Zealand who gave a very moving presentation. This year, Mizrachi will once again celebrate Yom Yerushalayim with a special Shabbat Achdut. All minyanim will join together for tefillah at 8:30am in Beit Yehudah followed by a seated kiddush featuring guest speakers, including Rabbi Sprung and Dina Joss, First Class Lieutenant in the Israeli Defence Forces. Executive and Committee I thank all members of the Executive and Committee for the commitment they have shown and the time they have devoted to our organization. In particular I am grateful to Executive members Michael Dodge, Sam Seigel, Shlomi Menahem, Mark Franks, Stephen Shnider, Sharona Jotkowitz, David Brykman, Nathan Cher, Beverley Honig, Lawrence Cher, Jonathan Wenig and Ilana Wald for the way in which they have dealt with their particular responsibilities. As Michael Dodge steps down as Vice President I record my thanks to him for his advice and support over the past two years. Mr Michael Neuhauser After some two decades as the Mizrachi Organisation s delegate to the ZCV and JCCV, Mr Michael Neuhauser has decided to relinquish those roles. Michael has had a long and distinguished association with Mizrachi spanning half a century. He served for 19 years as General Secretary of Mizrachi and Bursar of Yavneh College. He has authored two editions of the history of the Melbourne Mizrachi Organisation which will soon be accessible to a wider audience on our new website. As Mizrachi's delegate to the ZCV and JCCV, Michael has rarely if ever missed a meeting of those organisations, ably representing Mizrachi's interests to the wider community and then dutifully reporting their proceedings to our Committee. In appreciation of his long standing association with and commitment to our organisation, Michael was appointed a Life Member of Mizrachi and, in that capacity, I look forward to his continuing participation at committee meetings. On behalf of all members I extend our thanks to Michael and wish him and Rachel continued good health and happiness. Religious Zionists of Australia Conference In late November Mizrachi hosted the annual conference of the RZOA the Religious Zionists of Australia - which brought together leaders and shlichim of the key religious Zionist organisations in Australia and our prominent partners in Israel. Among those attending the conference from Israel were Mr Avraham Duvdevani, Chairman of the World Zionist Organisation, and Mr Roi Abecassis, Deputy Secretary General of World Bnei Akiva. The RZOA conference was officially opened on Thursday evening, 29 November 2012, which coincided with the 65 th anniversary of the United Nation s Partition Plan Resolution which led to the establishment of a Jewish state in the Land of Israel. Hamakom Yinachem I extend sincere condolences to all of our members who have lost loved ones during the past year and record with sadness the passing of our members Mrs Celia Zauer,ע"ה Mr Maurie Isman ע"ה and Mr Yankel Pushett.ע"ה Yehi Zichram Baruch. I write this report having just returned from a very moving Shloshim service held at Mizrachi in memory of Maurie Isman.ע"ה Maurie served the Organisation with dedication and commitment over many years in a variety of leadership roles including Chairman of Elsternwick Jewish Community and Treasurer of Mizrachi. 16

17 Conclusion As the pages of this Annual Report demonstrate, Mizrachi s activities are broad ranging and enhance many aspects of our lives. As I wrote last year, there is always scope for improvement. We should involve more people in our activities. We should encourage more people to attend our minyanim and shiurim. We should attract more students to our College while maintaining and enhancing the quality of limudei kodesh and general studies and the panoply of co-curricular activities. We should involve ourselves and others in the activities of the Beit Midrash. We should support Bnei Akiva and encourage it to grow while maintaining the high standards on which the movement is based. There is always more that we can do and we can always do things better. Finally I record my particular thanks to my wife Adina and our children - Avital, Ya akov, Gidon and Amira - who have supported me in everything I have done and provided me with much needed advice and encouragement throughout the year. Pictured: Dr Danny Lamm, Rabbi Dr Aaron Adler & Ian Waller 17

18 EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR S REPORT Ari Morris The past year at Mizrachi might have been a regular one for its members, but for this writer each day has been a first insofar as learning the ropes is concerned. Commencing my role as Executive Director in the period leading up to the Yamim Nora im felt a bit like being thrown into the deep end without floaties. However, in no small part thanks to the support and encouragement of our membership and staff, the recent months have felt a lot more like smooth sailing. Since the last Annual General Meeting, there have been many highlights at Mizrachi, including the: 15 th Anniversary Naftali Herc Beit Midrash Dinner; Yavneh College Jubilee Dinner; renovation of the Bnei Akiva maon; hosting of the Religious Zionist Organisation of Australia conference; participation of numerous Mizrachi members in the Siyum HaShas; Purim Carnival at the Elsternwick campus; and Yom Hazikaron and Yom Ha atzma ut service in Beit Yehuda. When the Mizrachi office is not busy organising milestone events such as those listed above, it is kept busy with the more regular activities of publishing the weekly Mizrachi Matters and its expanded monthly edition, coordinating the times of shul services and keeping track of members personal milestones, organising the allocation of shul seats, attending to the necessary preparations in advance of all chagim, ensuring the proper maintenance of Mizrachi premises, and much more. The ability to efficiently and effectively conduct the administrative running of the Mizrachi Organisation is not the job of a single person, but rather is a team effort. Thankfully, all of our staff excel at what they do and I would like to particularly mention Daniel Solomon (our Chief Financial Officer, whose encyclopaedic knowledge of the entire organisation s finances is a wonder to behold), Yankel Wajsbort (whose dedication to Kosher Australia has seen the number of kosher manufacturers and products grow exponentially during his time as General Manager) and Rae Bower (whose experience with all that goes on behind the scenes is invaluable), with each of whom I work closely on a daily basis and from whom I have learned a great deal over the past year. Mizrachi is also very fortunate to have as its respective spiritual and lay leaders two of Melbourne s finest personalities. The Mara D Atra, Rabbi Yaakov Sprung, has assisted me immensely in my role as Executive Director with both spiritual and practical guidance, whilst our President, Ian Waller SC, is skilled at leading the Organisation with a common sense approach and is a steady source of sound advice in the face of uncertainty. One of Mizrachi s central features is the Naftali Herc Beit Midrash, home to Melbourne s Torah Kollel MiTzion. Headed by Rav Dudi Winkler, who is ably assisted by his wife Chani (who heads the Midrashah) and four graduates of the Hesder program in Israel Amir, Daniel, Gilad and Matan the Beit Midrash is a hub of learning on a daily basis. The past year has seen the introduction of a number of new shiurim and the forming of many new chevrutot. We are incredibly fortunate to have among us people of such quality, who are fully committed to promoting the principle of Torah im Derech Eretz, and who first and foremost lead by example. If you have not yet made the Beit Midrash a daily or weekly feature of your life, there is no better time to start than now. The year ahead is expected to be full of exciting developments, starting with the launch of Mizrachi s first dedicated website. The product of many months of planning, designing, programming and development, the Mizrachi website will be a fully interactive source of information, as well as providing users with the ability to pay their account online, subscribe to the Mizrachi newsletter, view upcoming events and more. Later in the year we expect to see some significant structural improvements to parts of the Balaclava Road property, which will enhance the premises both in an aesthetic sense and in terms of security. We are also embarking on a long-term project of creating an electronic archive of Mizrachi s vast number of historical documents and are currently working on establishing a detailed catalogue of all of the sefarim located in the Beit Midrash library. I look back on the past year with a sense of satisfaction at what has been achieved, and look forward to the coming year with anticipation of continued growth and success. It has also been a real pleasure becoming personally acquainted with many of our members and I look forward to meeting many more in the coming year. 18

19 REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES OF THE RABBI BARUCH ABARANOK AWARD Menachem Broner & Harry Gelber OAM Before reporting on the past 12 months, we would like to highlight the fact that the Award carries the name of Rabbi Abaranok ZT"L whose love for Torah and Eretz Yisrael exemplified his life. It is in the spirit of his memory that we award a Scholarship for Torah Studies in Israel. The Trustees go through a rigorous process to choose the candidate for each year. This involves an interview with all candidates, discussions with referees and many meetings and deliberations of the interview panel. We would like to thank the other members of the interview panel for their valuable input and assistance with this process. For 2012 we had two winners Mazal Atzil and Chana Engel. They will start their programs later this year in Seminaries in Tzfat in early September. On behalf of the Trustees, we would like to take this opportunity to thank the Mizrachi Organisation and those members who assisted us with this process. We also want to thank the various School Representatives who assisted our deliberations. BEIT HAROEH Beverley Honig, Chairperson Beit Haroeh continues to thrive and grow. General attendance at Shule is swelling and there is a feeling of achdut within the Beit Haroeh Kehilah. Members are coming back and new members are joining. We have has a succession of weekly visitors from overseas and other shules which adds diversity to the Beit Haroeh Shule and is a further endorsement of its well-received initiatives. Thank you to our committee and members and the wider Mizrachi for all your support. The following is a snapshot of our activities and initiatives over the past 12 months. Your naches is our naches. Beit Haroeh Committee Beverley Honig (Chairperson), Gary Esterman (Vice President), Michael Gordon (Immediate past president), Selwyn Braver (secretary), Michael Lewis (Tzedakah project), Lawrence Cher (Gabbai), David Greenberger (Gabbai), Janie Fixler (Events), Ralph Greenberger (initiatives), Abigail Cooper, Anthony Gosling, Michael Granek, Ian Symons. Beit Haroeh Spiritual Leader and Speakers Reb Leor Broh (Spiritual Leader) Reb Leor, our Spiritual Leader, continues to inspire and invigorate the Beit Haroeh Kehilah with his eloquent and inspiring Divrai Torah on Shabbat, and his Parshah Quiz questions to ensure we become ensconced in layning to find the answers. Occasionally we also bring in a variety of outstanding or visiting speakers including: Rabbi James Kennard Rabbi Benny Lau Rabbi Yitzchak Schwarz from Orchot Chaim Rav Rafi Feuerstein from Tzohar & ICELP Centres Rav Yoni Rosenzweig, returning from Israel Rav Dudi Winkler Reb Tuvia Canon Beit Haroeh Initiatives Beit Haroeh coined The Friendly Shule President Honig arranged valuable mosaics wall hangings for Beit Haroeh to give the place warmth and vibrancy. Weekly President s to members/non-members to tie in Parshah with weekly events and Beit Haroeh Bytes (special thanks to Dr Zev Barr for 15 years of Beit Haroeh Bytes publications). President of Beit Haroeh invited to join Mizrachi Executive and Mizrachi Committee. Beit Haroeh contributed to the new Mizrachi website Our annual Tzedakah Project is taking shape, this year s project is Retorno s addiction rehab workshops in Israel 19

20 Winning of community grant from Bendigo Bank Beit Haroeh Recognition Beit Haroeh was successful in winning on a small grant from the Bendigo Bank in recognition of its growth potential and community mindedness. A formal grant ceremony was held for us following the Bank s AGM and Beverley Honig gave an acceptance speech praising the bank and explaining Beit Haroeh s positioning in the Mizrachi Community. Apart from the naches it gave everyone, it was also an excellent PR exercise for the greater Mizrachi as a whole, and the Chairman of the Bank congratulated us on our endeavours to make a difference to the community around us. Pictured: Chairman of Bendigo Bank s Caulfield Branch Chairman congratulating Beit Haroeh Chairperson Beverley Honig and Vice President Gary Esterman It was recognised that the members of Beit Haroeh are well positioned to become mentors to the fragmented group of year olds (not necessarily affiliated but searching) who are doing University or in the workforce, and too old for youth groups so may become disconnected. Beit Haroeh members, as part of the sandwich generation, are young enough to give and old enough to know how. We plan to commence a mentoring program in 2013 where we match up Mentors and Mentees to coach and mentor through issues relating to social, religious and culture dilemma. We believe we can make a difference through this program and have received endorsement of support by many members of the Kehilah both as Mentors and Mentees. We are currently gathering names of people interested in becoming part of the program, including peer mentees, and professionals in the coaching and allied health areas. This is the first time such a program has formally been piloted at Mizrachi and we are excited to add value to the organisation. Since its announcement we have been approached by willing Mentors and Mentees and are building our pilot program. A founding committee has been formed to shape the program and spearhead it, including Beverley Honig, Dr Michelle Myer and Daniel Parasol (also head of Yavneh Alumni). We also intend working very closely with Bogrim and other Minyanim. We are looking to launch this initiative in a public evening event comprising speakers and networking. Those interested please contact Beverley on honig@honeylight.com.au The essence of the program is to initiate a program of a pilot group of Mentor/Mentee matches. 1. Mentoring role models will be religious professionals who have gained respect in their fields of expertise, and/or seasoned community leaders. 2. Mentees will fall into one of 4 categories: Career transition (into new career or moving career) Moving to Melbourne from Interstate (connection, advice, contacts) Moving towards a more Jewish/frum lifestyle (seeking inspiration and answers) Interested in leadership role models particular in the community service field Periodic follow on events such as career expos, panel evenings and networking/social functions The key outcomes and benefits from this program will be to achieve the following: Short term: Intergenerational Engagement/ Coaching for leadership, professional success and cultural cohesiveness Medium to long term: Through one on one mentoring, role modelling, inspiring and engaging young adults going through transition or seeking ideas, truth or professional encouragement. Through periodic events, mass inspiration and food for thought and engagement Long term this has potential to ultimately strengthen, grow and unite the Mizrachi Centre and impact future leader potential, perhaps even curb assimilation figures and strengthen their cultural identity as modern professional committed Jews. Beit Haroeh Special events Beit Haroeh has arranged a series of very well attended and successful major events including: May 2012: Beit Haroeh/Sharei Tzedek Space night to raise funds for Sharei Tzedek, 180 people attended September 2012: Community Shlock Rock Lenny Solomon Concert, over 200 attendees from all kehilot December 2012: Successful Chanukah event at Zimmermans, called The Lighter Side of Chanukah. Over 120 people in attendance, a Chanukah quiz and musical night and a great supper created a truly enjoyable evening. April 2013: Joint Film evening with Peulah featuring Cheryl Mandel of the OneFamily Fund May 26 th 2013: Beit Haroeh AGM 20

21 Beit Haroeh Smachot Each Baal/Baalat Simcha also receives a special certificate from Beit Haroeh in commemoration of their simchah and members also receive a Siddur from Mizrachi. We host a succession of smachot at Beit Haroeh including: Hoffmann Marriage call-up/aufruf Ginsberg Bar Mitzvah at Beit Haroeh Syber Bar Mitzvah at Beit Haroeh Wein Bat Mitzvah ceremony and Divrai Torah Gosling Bat Mitzvah Ceremony (al frescoe) Wyman Bat Mitzvah Ceremony Hammer Bar Mitzvah Berkovitz Bar Mitzvah Beit Haroeh Kiddushim We are busy organising weekly hot kiddushim to commemorate long standing members smachot or to honour people who have committed time and energy to the Beit Haroeh kehilah e.g. Merryl Sacher who donated the glistening Mosaic wall hangings. Warm kiddushim has created an air of achdut and chevrah that people were looking for, and the fact that they are haymish and humble means affordability with a great atmosphere. Thank you to all the wonderful kiddush sponsors who have made this possible We also have special event kiddushim such as the much anticipated Shavuot ice-cream kiddush for kids Beit Haroeh Joint events and Yomtov Our philosophy is to be both welcoming to visitors and new members and in turn be welcomed by others, and we held a few joint events to reach out to others: Joint Minyan davening at Beit Haroeh with Bogrim on a few occasions We invited Hamaayan to join us for davening and kiddush We invited Bnei Akivah Minyan to daven with us right through January 2013 during their renovations We invited Hamaayan to a joint kiddush sponsored by a new Beit Haroeh member (previously a Hamaayan member) Shavuot: we hosted the usual ice cream/cheese cake kiddush The annual Women s forum held in Beit Haroeh on Simchat Torah Morning, organised by Adina Waller and Gloria Blau, with 4 very diverse and able women speakers inspiring us and entertaining us with pearls of wisdom and personal journeys. The Women s forum is an annual gathering of women from all around the community where women hear women and learn together as one. 2 nd day Sukkot we expressed achdut by inviting the Bogrim/Beit HaMidrash kehilah for the usual Beit Haroeh Kiddush, having a combined kiddush, sponsored jointly by several members of Beit Haroeh and by Bogrim. Simchat Torah ended with a high, and a strong display of achdut and simchah, with Beit Haroeh joining forces with Beit Yehudah for the great dancing and the wonderful chatanim Kiddush. BEIT MIDRASH MINYAN Ronit Lewis, Chairperson Aim for 2013 The aim for the BMM committee for 2013, in addition to the smooth running of the minyan, is to establish the BMM as a social place for the post Bnei Akiva age group with in Mizrachi. We aim to make the shule a prominent part of peoples social lives. We hope to make the BMM into a vibrant community within Mizrachi, by providing more than just Shabbat focused shule attendance. At present moment the majority of socializing is done within a university or work environment and we strive to change that in the coming year. We endeavor to hold monthly events that will allow us to develop and maintain the shule as a social center for the young members of Mizrachi. Kiddushim We have continued hosting weekly kiddushim after Shabbat morning Shachrit, both minyan sponsored and individual sponsored from members celebrating smachot. These kiddushim are well attended and well regarded by 21

22 the mitpallelim and provide an opportunity for mitpallelim to socialize at shul every week. The success of these kiddushim is apparent in that we have been able to maintain a very high rate of member sponsorship for kiddushim throughout this year. BMM Survey results: At the commencement of the year the BMM committee sent a survey out to help us gage the needs and wants of our mitpalelim. The results showed: A need a great need for social events. A great desire for mitpalelim to have a connection with the Rosh Kollel. A need to improve the shule atmosphere Décor. Reducing talking in shule. Being able to relate to topics of weekly Drasha. Working Within the Mizrachi Organisation We hope to strengthen the bond within the Mizrachi organization. We hope to help unite the minyanim in creating a community. In addition to the monthly events we plan to hold, we hope to develop other programs to help develop not only the BMM but also our connection to the wider organization. These include: Mentoring program- connecting people within the BMM with professionals in other minyanim. Along with helping our young professionals this furthers our aim of bridging the gap and creating a mizrachi community rather then separate minyanim that use the same campus. Tammuz/Av lecture series- looking to invite other young groups (young UIA, UJEB, AJUS) to a series of speakers. The aim of the series is to make the meaning of 9 AV relatable. Events We have held three events this year so far with huge success. Burks Backward - our first event for the year was an outdoor cinema. People brought along there own deck chairs, blankets and beanbags to enjoy the projected movie. Approximately 65 people attended the event. The committee would like to thank the Berkowitz family for hosting the event. Purim on a boat The Purim event for 2013 was a huge success, with megalith, havdallah and Purim party while cruising down the Yarra. Expected attendance for the event was 100, however we sold out prior to the night with all 120 tickets being sold. Yom Haatzmaut 1948 Big Band Bash - Held at Obscura Gallery the cocktail party took us back to 1948, with big hair, slim ties and fedoras. All functions have been financially successful with no loss. Any profit made at a function has been ear marked for future functions. Including but not limited to: Lag B'omer bonfire. Yom Yerushalayim Oneg Shabbat. Shavuot function Friday night dinner Friday night live (series of Friday night/ post dinner functions) Simchat Torah dinner Thanks must go to the outgoing committee of 2012: Mr. Joshua Szwarcbard... Chairman Ms. Madeline Rivkah Edwards... Vice-Chairman Mr. Noam Korbl... Gabbai Mr. Jeremy Herz... Gabbai Mr. Yoel Rosenbaum... Treasurer Ms. Esther Trebish... Functions Mrs. Michal Herz & Ms. Tamara Izsak... Kiddushim 22

23 The committee is working hard within its limited budget to develop the minyan and provide a religious social environment for it mitpalelim. If anyone is interested in donating towards this cause please speak to any member of the BMM committee. BEIT MIDRASH SUB-COMMITTEE Lawrence Cher, Convenor This year has been a year of progress with the settling in of our Rosh Kollel team of Rav Dudi and Chani Winkler. They have implemented new programs at Leibler Yavneh College and within the Beit Midrash. One special program, for example, held just recently was for Yom Hazikaron ( bringing home the sacrifice of those who have lost their lives for the sake of Am Yisrael. It was a very moving exhibition. The Winklers are staying for a third year which will consolidate the contribution they have made to the Melbourne Jewish community. We have really appreciated the dedication they have shown and the efforts they have put in as a team. Rabbi Ahron Adler was our keynote speaker at the Beit Midrash dinner which celebrated our 14 th anniversary. As in previous years, the evening was widely supported by the kehilah. It was a successful evening and the accompanying educational program around the event was inspirational. Another new initiative is a pilot scholarship program to encourage those who have returned from study in Israel to commit to learning in the Beit Midrash nightly and participating in the activities of the Beit Midrash. This has been spearheaded by Doodie Bankier who is overseeing those learning. We currently have funding for six months and will look to extend this further with the support of the community. In addition, we have had a number of shiurim webcast from Israel, in particular with Chasida Pinchuk which have been successful. Rabbi Kennard has extended his special shiurim now with the support of the Bloch family who are supporting the Arnold Bloch Memorial Lecture Series. This initiative has been very successful with interest from across the Melbourne community. By targeting the series to different ages it has made it available and attractive to high school students, university aged students as well as adults. The support of the Bloch family has been invaluable to allow us to reach out across the Melbourne Jewish community, which has been an important step in raising the profile of the Kollel Torah Mitzion. My thanks go to Dean Ellinson who has taken this on and coordinated with AUJS, and spread the word via traditional and new media. In addition, these events have recorded and are available on jml.org.au. In the last two years Rav Dudi has travelled to Israel to interview the potential new Hesder Bachurim and this has been an important step, as it shows our interest in finding the best team for the year and allows for a direct connection between the Rosh Kollel and the next group. This is an initiative that we should continue and is an investment in the future. This year s team are Gilad Cohen, Amir Cohen, Daniel Moatti, and Matan Tur-Paz. As well as shiurim and Chevrutot they also run the Holy Bagel on Sunday mornings and Chillin Chulent on Thursday night. Check out also the Facebook page and the KTM website for more information. I would like to thank each member of the sub-committee for their invaluable assistance over the past year. We hope to see as many people as possible participating in activities of the Beit Midrash. 23

24 Beit Midrash Rosh Kollel Rav Dudi Winkler & Rebbetzin Chani Winkler; and Hesder Bachurim Besides the weekly sessions given by the hesder boys to the secondary students, we started this year another few projects with the students: Beis café Every Monday during lunch break all the students are invited to come to a short learning with the hesder boys. The students enjoy, besides the learning, a cup of (de-caffeinated) iced coffee and cookies. Shabbat meals Once a month, the boys of one year of secondary at Yavneh are invited to the hesder boys' house for Shabbat meal, including, of course food, divrei torah and zmirot. Tim-time Twice a week, on Mondays and Thursdays, after early minyan, during breakfast time in the tuck-shop, the students are joining the hesder boys for a short "chaburah" about the prayer and the blessings, followed by hot chocolate and Tim-Tams. Yom Hazikaron For Yom Hazikaron we ran a special exhibition. All secondary students came and got to know two very special people, who gave their lives defending the State of Israel. These two young men, Major Benaya Rhein and Staff Sergeant Uri Grossman came from very different backgrounds, one from a religious right-winged family, and the other from a very secular left-winged family, but despite all the differences, they fought together, at the same tank, and fell together in the second Lebanon war. We showed the kids the principle of unity in the army, despites all differences in Israeli society, and the values held by these people and continued by their family in their memory. On Sunday, the exhibition was open to the community. On Monday, Yom Hazikaron, the Hesder Bachurim made a special assembly, in which they spoke about the stories of two of them; Amir Cohen & Matan Tur-Paz, who have had family members fall; one in a terror attack and one on the Israeli independence war. REGULAR BEIT MIDRASH LIVES Weekly shiurim in the Beit Midrash During the week there is a schedule of shiurim in the Beit Midrash given by various people including Rav Dudi and the Hesder Boys and others. Rav Dudi gives shiurim about Parashat Hashavuah, Halachic Dilemmas, Tanach, Jewish Philosophy, and Gemara. Rabbi Sprung gives a weekly Gemara Shiur in BM, and Chani Winkler gives a weekly women shiur about historical aspects in the land of Israel. Chill n' cholent/chummus Every Thursday night after Maariv, the tradition has continued of having a chill n' cholent. Joined by Madrichim of Bnei Akiva, the evening begins with the singing of 'ka echsof' and ends with everyone enjoying a delicious Cholent, prepared and served by the Hesder Boys. This year, we added an Israeli atmosphere, by changing the cholent during summer into chummus with meet and fried onions. 24

25 Holy bagel Every Sunday morning after 'Shacharit' in the Beit Midrash, a bagel breakfast is being provided in conjunction with Leibler Yavneh College and the students start off the week with Tefilah and words of Torah spiced by given by our Bachurim. FESTIVALS PROGRAMMS INSIDE THE BEIT MIDRASH Shavuot On the night of Shavuot, the Beit Midrash was abuzz with people from all over Melbourne who came to learn and participate in Tikkun Leil Shavuot. Throughout the night the Hesder Boys gave Chaburot and shiurim were given. Learning night for Tisha B'Av Few days before Tisha Be'av we gathered, people from the wider jewish community in Melbourne, to discuss different aspects of Tisha Be'av, such as the relevancy of the destruction of the temple in our days. Succot chill n' cholent This Sukkot, the Hesder boys moved and expend our regular Chill n Chulent to a larger event in Mizrachi s big sukka. With many friends and even tastier chulent than ever, we had a Siyum of Massechet Brachot, of our largest Daf Yomi group ever, lead by Aron Rubin. Over 40 people chilled, sang, and ate under the Schach. Hoshana Raba On Saturday night, the last day of Succot, Hoshana Raba evening, we had an annual learning night, open for everyone, about the war of "apocalypse". People of different ages and year levels arrived, and had group learning together with Rav Dudi, Chani and the hesder boys. Pre-Pesach limmud night A week before Pesach the Beit Midrash held a very special limmud night. The theme was the number four in Pesach, we had 4 speakers from the wider jewish community, giving 15 minutes talk each Mimuna At the end of the last day of Pesach, about an hour after the end of Yom tov, the hesder boys hosted a Mimuna celebration in their house, with original mufletot and other traditional food and music. Yom Haatzmaut celebration in Beth Weizman During the annual Yom Haatzmaut celebration in Beth Weitzman, the Beit Midrash operated an activity for kids and adults: for the adults we made the "spirit-mint"- we served fresh lemonade and had a spiritual moment discussing the meaning of the flag, and for the children we made a giant snakes and ladders game with trivia questions about the state of Israel. Yom Yerushalayim celebration Last year we arranged a "Yom Yerushalayim Seder" in the house of Sonia Slonim who worked hard preparing the food and refreshments. More than 60 members of the community came to celebrate 45 years since the re-uniting of the city. There was a presentation called The Gates of Jerusalem, which explained the gate s different names and history, and together we feasted and sang. This year we're organising again an event at similar atmosphere, as well as an event for Bnei Akiva madrichim. MIDRASHA ACTIVITIES Shavuot During the night of Shavuot, in parallel in the men event in the Beit Midrash, the ladies heard an amazing shiur given by Adina Benkier-Karp on the topic of "Location: The true value of Israel estate", and the young ladies learned in the home of the 25

26 Bachurim, and where inspired by three Divrei Torah that were given by Chana WaYsman, Ronit Lewis and Dina Lederman. Elul programme for women During the month of Elul, as a preparation to Rosh Hashana and the days of awe, the midrasha held a series of shiurim for the women, including, besides the talks and shiurim, also an arts and crafts event. Pre-pesach learning night About a week before pesach, the beit midrash held a special pre pesach limmud night for women, including two shiurim, given by Chani Winkler, and by Ronit Lewis. On-line shiurim by Chasida Pinchuk Once in a while, an on-line shiur for women is given by Rabbait Chasida Pinchuk (former shlicha and rosh midrasha of mizrachi organisation), the shiur is projected to a crowed in the midrsha, and also optional to be joined on-line via internet website. In her shiur, Chasida talks about the current festivals and related to family topics. Musical Hallel on Yom Haatzmaut On Yom Haatzmaut, approximately 30 women gathered in Beit Haroeh for a musical Hallel to celebrate Yom Haatzmaut. Opening words were given by Chani Winkler, and Rav Dudi Winkler provided the musical accompaniment. This was followed by a Shiur given by Michal Kaufman. COOPERATION WITH BNEI AKIVA Brother in the Beis A new project, partnership between the Beit midrash and Bnei Akiva, offers chanichim from grade 3 to 12 to come and learn with their madrichim in 1 on 1 form or as a group, either free topic decided by them, or pre-written source sheet, organized by the Beit midrash team. Every 5-6 weeks there will be an event night, encouraging the kids with snacks and prizes. Seuda shlishit Every Shabbat after Bnei Akiva activities, all madrichim are invited to the hesder boys' house for a seuda shlishit, with some snacks and soul songs. Purim seuda Continuing the tradition, also this year we had a purim seuda, joint with Bnei Akiva, this year at the house of the Metzlers. We enjoyed the warm environment and the divrei torah by all participants, including madrichim, Rav Dudi and the hesder boys. Shnaties BBQ At the beginning of the year, we organized a bbq in the hesder boys' house to welcome the people returning from shnat in Israel. BNEI AKIVA MELBOURNE Aron Goodhardt, Merakez It s rather humbling being able to write his report. I think about my predecessors, the Madrichim and Madrichot who came before me in Bnei Akiva Mebourne and what they have given me. In turn, it is my duty, and that of this generation s Madrichim, to prepare our Chanichim, and infuse them with that same love of our community and our faith. 26

27 This is the notion of Bnei Akiva. It is constantly moving, changing, adapting. Every year, the leadership changes over and new directors are elected in. Most other organisations around the world would crumble with constant leadership change, but ours thrives and prospers. It means higher involvement and levels of passion from our outstanding Madrichim, who are the heart of the movement. We are extremely lucky to have 67 members of our Madrich body, each of whom brings his or her own enthusiasm and unique perspective. Our strength and ability comes from their efforts in taking ownership of the movement, and giving it everything they can. But, our Madrich body would not be complete without our phenomenal Shlicha, Efrat Metzler. Along with being a mother of 4, Efrat spends countless hours of every day on the betterment of the movement, and we have been truly blessed to have her in our midst. Over time, there have been the established events that are grounded as fixtures in our yearly calendar, yet each and every year, new projects and initiatives are created and implemented with great success. Here is what comprises Bnei Akiva Melbourne s calendar, including our new initiatives for 2013: NEW INITIATIVES FOR 2013 Mishloach Manot Program at Mount Scopus Over Purim, the Mishloach Manot drive is the largest-scale communal service we provide annually. This year, Bnei Akiva delivered over 500 baskets and 400 Emunah cards in 4 hours over the course of Purim night. Deliveries went to over 30 suburbs of Melbourne and interstate to Sydney and Perth. Alongside this already mammoth task to coordinate, our Rosh Mishloach Manot Tali Sharp took the initiative to invest in the youth together with the adults of our community and organised a program targeted directly at year 7 and 8 Mount Scopus students. Madrichim ran a prepared program about the meaning of various rituals on Purim and joined them in packing Mishlochei Manot, as part of the activity. The Mishlochim were later given, on Purim, to residents of Emmy Monash. This wonderful idea benefitted all parties involved, and was a huge success. BA Social The BA Social, the creation of our Rosh Chinnuch Brett Sacks, was focussed on Madrichim becoming better aquatinted, allowing those returning from Israel to integrate with already active Madrichim. This social speed dating allowed all Madrichim to meet and greet, and find out something personal and unknown about the people they would be working alongside for a year. The room, set with tables for two and tea lights, offered a unique opportunity to explore personal ideas and concepts with like minded individuals. This is the wonderful nature of a youth movement, and it was aptly demonstrated through the design of the evening. Shule Renovation and Shabbat Minyanim Over 2 years and 3 groups of BA leadership, a complete overhaul to our Bnei Akiva Shule was successfully achieved. It was a project that had much time, money and recources invested into it. Having been completed this past February, the Shule stands proudly with new windows, new blinds, new air conditioning units, new chairs, new book cases, newly painted walls and new carpet. The coordination could not have been done without the inspired help of Pnina Lissauer and Jim Moustos, who selflessly gave hours and hours of their time to allow this plan to come to fruition. We see the Shule as the spiritual epicentre of our movement. With regular Minyanim every Friday night and Shabbat morning, Madrichim and Chanichim alike have a unique opportunity to run the Minyan and lift their Avodat HaShem to new heights. In 2013, we ve been having more sponsored weekly Kiddushim, attracting bigger crowds of hungry Shule goers! Another new initiative in the Minyan, being smoothly run by Gaby Lefkovits, is an overview of the Parashah given by Grade 2, 3 and 4 Chanichim. Many proud parents join us on a Shabbat morning to shep nachas and learn a thing or two about the 27

28 Torah reading. This year s vision for the Minyan is to include Chanichim from a younger age, allowing them to hold a share in the running of the service. Bigger Weekly Numbers We are very proud of the fact that we are such a large snif (branch), and we are the largest Bnei Akiva branch outside of Israel. During our first week of tochniot, with our Madrichim buzzing with excitement after a stimulating MadSem (Madrich Seminar), over 330 Chanichim came flooding through the gates of Mizrachi. We have seen an average of over 270 Chanichim on a weekly basis, all receiving high quality tochniot (activities) from their Madrichim, many of whom spend many hours planning and creating them during the week. Federal Yidsem For the first time in many years, just after Pesach 2013, Bnei Akiva Australia ran a national ideology seminar for its one hundred plus Madrichim across Australia. Aimed at transforming the kids of today into the Yids of tomorrow, it was coined Yidsem. The ideological discussions ranged from some of the more core principles of Bnei Akiva, such as the education of Torah values, the obligation of making Aliyah and what to do about the extinct socialist values of the movement; to more unfamiliar ideological territory, such as our origins as a socialist-zionist movement, or our political non-partisanship, or the basis behind the federalisaiton of the movement. Tricky philosophical questions were put to the Madrichim by the Chanichim on a video, which sparked lively debate, and gave our Madrichim much food for thought for their future programs. Based in the Mizrachi/Bnei Akiva premises, the programs were run all around Melbourne, from afloat the Yarra on a boat cruise; by the sea side of St Kilda beach; to the mid-air thrill of the trampolines at Bounce. It enables Madrichim from around Australia to bond and discuss the similarities and differences we have between our state branches. ESTABLISHED FIXTURES IN BNEI AKIVA MELBOURNE Shevet Yuval Shevet Yuval is one of the most exciting parts of Bnei Akiva Melbourne, and is the only group of its kind in Australia. We continue to develop and refine innovative programs designed to push the boundaries of what is possible with special needs education and integration. Café Yuval Café Yuval provides a three-course, high quality catered meal for up to 600 people over three nights at a café set up during the 9 days. Shevet Yuval youth are the centre of attention on the nights, as they work as waiters and waitresses, serving guests with professionalism and charm. Café Yuval achieves four distinct goals: 1. Opportunity for true integration into the community 2. Spreading communal awareness of Shevet Yuval 3. Raising funds for our work with Shevet Yuval throughout the year 4. Providing the Yuval Chanichim with a sense of accomplishment, knowing that they have worked to earn the activities which are conducted for them through the year. Federal Shabbat Lech Lecha An initiative of Bnei Akiva in Melbourne, Shabbat Lech Lecha began in 2010 as an opportunity to spread a Torah message from Bnei around the wider Melbourne community, with Chanichim and Madrichim going to almost 20 different shules on the week of Parshat Lech Lecha to share a Dvar Torah. This year, the project is being expanded Australia-wide, so that Bneichaverim will speak in almost 35 different shules across three states, all on the same Shabbat. Bneizing Race This year will see the third production of what is fast becoming an annual highlight: the Bneizing Race. 12 teams of six Chanichim and two Madrichim each spend 24 hours running around Melbourne finding clues, completing challenges, and negotiating public transport in an Amazing Race style event which leaves everyone tired, bruised, sore, and incredibly excited for next year s race! Year 12 Shnat Seminar This year, Bnei is re-inventing the year 12 Shnat seminar which prepares Chanichim for their upcoming year in Israel. The new seminar will be longer, more focused, and geared towards helping the year 12s understand how to best take advantage of their sure-to-be life changing Israel experience. 28

29 Biannual Camps What could be better than a week (or more) of concentrated time to learn, laugh and live Bnei Akiva? Months of preparation go in to each camp, and most Madrichim and Chanichim describe them as the highlights of the year. Preparations for Winter Camp 2013 are in full swing, and it is shaping up to be one of the best camps yet! Be er Akiva Bnei s weekly newsletter, containing Divrei Torah, feature articles, entertainment, and recent Bnei news, is printed and distributed to over ten Shules in Melbourne each week. Mishloach Manot Each year for Purim, Bnei packs and hand delivers over 500 Mishloach Manot packages and around 400 Tzedakah donation cards. This annual project is one of our largest and most logistically challenging to run, but also one of the more enjoyable, with Chanichim participating in deliveries on Erev Purim. Additionally, this year Bnei again partnered with Emunah and successfully raises almost $2000 for Israeli children s educational programs annually. Communal Pre-Pesach Barbeque (PPBBQ) On Erev Pesach, when there s no Chametz to be found at home, Bnei provides one last Chametz dinner before Chag, along with some entertainment for the kids! Yom Ha zikaron/yom Ha atzmaut This year, Bnei participated in and ran eight events over three days to commemorate Yom Ha zikaron, and celebrate Yom Ha atzmaut. These days represent the true essence of our Zionist ideology, and Bnei Chanichim and Madrichim were actively involved in celebrating and mourning along with our fellow Jews in Israel. Lag Ba Omer Carnival Bnei s annual Lag Ba Omer carnival is a wonderful way to celebrate this significant day, with rides, food, live music, dancing, and of course, a huge bonfire! This year s attractions included a jumping castle, a bungee run and the biggest bonfire in Melbourne!! Tikkun Leil Shavuot Learning Our Tikkun Leil program is designed to cater specifically to young people and provide engaging and thoughtprovoking shiurim, chaburot, and other activities all night long. In addition, Bnei each year hosts the other five Zionist youth movements in Melbourne for a combined ZYC Tikkun Leil immediately preceding Bnei s own program. Lulav & Etrog One of the wonderful services Bnei Akiva provides the community each year is the sale of the Arba Minim to the wider community. Hundreds of sets are imported from Israel and distributed Australia wide in time for Sukkot, with 100% of proceeds supporting Jewish youth. Simchat Torah Dinner The Simchat Torah Dinner is an opportunity for Bnei Akiva to host Jewish youth from all around Melbourne. Following our energetic davening and dancing for Simchat Torah, we provide a free festive Yom-Tov meal for almost 300 Chanichim and community youth. Biannual Mishelanu Publication This professionally printed book of Divrei Torah is published twice a year For Pesach-Shavuot, and for the Elul-Tishrei Chagim. It showcases Divrei Torah written by Madrichim, Chanichim, and Bogrim of Bnei Akiva, and is distributed free across all of the Shules in Melbourne. 29

30 Year 11 Hadracha Program A six-week leadership training course for our year 11 Chanichim is followed by several weeks leading Bnei groups, alongside Madrichim, each Shabbat, and gives them the chance to gain valuable leadership experience and begin to make a contribution to the great movement of which they are a part. A highlight of the program is spending a Shabbat away in East Melbourne Shul, to reflect on what they learnt and share memories of the course. Shule Takeovers A great way to connect Bnei Akiva with the wider community, takeovers consist of the Bnei Minyan joining another Shule or Minyan for a Shabbat. Previous year s takeovers have included Elsternwick Hebrew Congregation, Sassoon Yehuda Sephardi Shule and the Mount Scopus Youth Minyan at Gandel Besen House. Year level/shichvah functions In addition to all the other Bnei events, each year group runs individual functions twice a year, which are often more informal and are a great way to bond as a year level. The Shichvot (Juniors / Intermediates / Seniors / Yuval) also run Shichvah-wide functions twice a year. Previous functions have included Bounce, bike-riding, bowling, and roller-blading. Bnei Akiva Israel Year (Shnat) Programs The culmination of our Chanichim s journey through Bnei in school is the Shnat year (or two!) in Israel on one of our tailor-made programs MTA and Limmud. MTA is focused on Yeshiva/Midrasha learning, while Limmud aims to provide an all-round experience, with Yeshiva/Midrasha combined with volunteering, Marva/MDA, and the incredible Machon. This year s Shnat group has reported a fantastic start to their year! Madrich Training Seminars Two Madrich Seminars ( MadSem ) take place each year, a Melbourne-only seminar in February, and an Australiawide Shabbaton in October. They are a great chance for Madrichim to hone their Hadracha skills, have meaningful discussions about relevant Bnei Akiva issues, and just have a good time! This year, an additional Hadracha Day is also planned for before Winter Camp. Madrich Events Aside from MadSem, some events are run exclusively for the Madrichim, as a way to bond as a group and just have some fun. This year we have already had a park picnic lunch, BA Social and an Oneg Shabbat, and are looking forward to our upcoming Shabbat Dinner for Yom Yerushalayim, as well as many more. Leadership 2013 Efrat Metzler (Shlicha), Aron Goodhardt (Merakez), Nathan Joel (Sgan Merakez), Yehonatan Dodge (Gizbar), Brett Sacks (Rosh Chinuch), Romy Spicer (Rosh Tarbut), Ella Joel (Rosh PR), Gaby Lefkovits (Rosh Minyan), Talsi Gordon (Mazkir) Efrat Metzler (Shlicha), Eli Parkes (Merakez), Jason Feigen (Sgan Merakez), David West (Gizbar), Marcus Rosenberg (Rosh Chinuch), Romy Spicer (Rosh Tarbut), Tali Igel (Rosh PR), Aron Goodhardt (Rosh Minyan), Avidan Baum (Mazkir). Mizrachi Building Chairman s Report Nathan Cher Summary Our organisation remains asset-rich in property compared to cash on hand, or operational income. Our spread of real estate holdings in Balaclava and Elsternwick (and their realisable value) are enviable but they are somewhat 30

31 underdeveloped. We do not at present have the capital reserves to make vast improvements to the building assets on site. We cover maintenance costs adequately, but major maintenance needs are addressed from an unbudgeted perspective. There have been minor improvements to both campuses; however we will need raise serious funds: to address the age of our buildings in order to maintain or replace structures across both of our campuses, answering the continued call for more and better spaces for all our groups, and for capital improvement. Holdings We have not acquired or divested any real estate over the past 12 months. Major Improvements / Demolitions We have received government funding to assist in: the introduction of demountable classrooms to accommodate an upgrade and expansion the ELC (Early Learning Centre) at Balaclava Road replacement and Enhancement of Fences and Security installations at Balaclava Road in line with the plans and specifications approved and circulated to the members for comment recently. The two pieces of work above: will be programmed to start midyear proceeding up until the Yamim Noraim, and then from Simchat Torah to calendar year end for completion. It is envisaged that the classrooms will be ready for handover to the school for the 2014 Academic year. We await the granting of further permits from Glen Eira council prior to beginning. are mostly fully funded by Government grants and supported further by individual donations. include naming rights provisions and the refurbishment of existing naming rights & signage where relevant. will incorporate the need for us to work on the Campus during this year leading to some disruption of services over the period as safety fences are erected, and preparatory works are established. will involve the re-establishment of the Succah in a new location following Simchat Torah. Work is underway at Elsternwick to convert the old hall building into a multi-purpose drama and creative space. Minor Initiatives There are a range of minor initiatives which are being executed. Masterplanning The core buildings at Balaclava Road are between 40 and 80 years old. There has not been a substantial upgrade to facilities since the addition of Beit Haroeh and the foyer entrance to the Beit Yehuda Synagogue. A Masterplan for the site is in the early stages of development and will be circulated to members in good time. It will serve as the touchstone for development and sequencing at Balaclava Road for the next 50 years. Members will be invited to participate in the development of this Masterplan and have valuable opportunity for input. Policy Matters We continue to apply our nominated subcontractors policy welcoming participation from our Members or Parent body for recommendations or subcontracting whenever we action a new project and where that involvement lowers cost or improves outcomes without increasing project risk as determined by our professional advisors. In order to protect the interests of the school and Mizrachi, professional project managers are retained to manage and audit any larger building process and the signoff of all payment certificates. The management team on all projects work closely with the financial controller and treasurers to ensuring that all milestones are met in accordance with payment controls and fund raising initiatives. We will review the approach taken to Naming Rights and Donations looking forward. We will begin to remove restrictive covenants at the Balaclava site starting this year in order to facilitate future developments. Staffing Jim Moustos continues to provide an outstanding service to the organisation in his role as Caretaker / Facilities Manager at Balaclava Road, and we thank Jim for his exceptional service. The Elsternwick campus is property-managed under the school s management control. 31

32 Charity Fund Devorah Gold, Fund Administrator Number of People/Families Benefitting The number of families who benefit on a regular basis has increased slightly from 20 last year to 22 this year. The number of additional groups who drift in/out when they need help has increased from 10 last year to 14 this year. This might be a few occasional bills which require payment or food vouchers to tide them over. Whilst the assistance provided is supposed to be a once-off, more often than not, the client returns for further assistance, but does not become a regular client. The minimum dollar value our clients received $30 per week and there are more people in receipt of $100 per week (per voucher) than in previous years. Further, most of these combined, plus several former clients and additional clients receive Yom Tov assistance in the way of food or Coles vouchers or cash handouts. Regular Assistance Predominantly we distribute food vouchers. And our suppliers remain unchanged, with the exception of Elsternwick Fruit and Vegetables, which has closed down. They are: CKB Carnegie Fruit Dom s Fruit Mart Alex s Note: We may not continue to use Alex s as a supplier in the future; we will not be looking into an alternative Kosher groceries supplier as the products in these shops are not considered to be necessitous and are often quite expensive. We continue to encourage people to get back on their feet by encouraging further studies, and/or any employment possible, but it s obvious that this option has dramatically reduced since economic and outside influences change people s situations. Another noticeable change is more people require assistance with occasional rental payments and car registration. Networking We continue to have a solid working relationship with Linda Faigen, Social Worker of the Melbourne Jewish Charity Funds and Ben Weinstock, Financial Counsellor at Jewish Care. Additionally, the Posh Op Shop, under the auspices of the National Council of Jewish Women, has, on several occasions agreed to clothe clients at no cost to the client or us! Maot Chittin Appeal We have completed our 2013 Appeal. As has been in the past, despite much prompting in the Newsletters leading up to Pesach, the main bulk of donations were received just prior to the Chag, and some continued to come in after Pesach. The total amount donated was on par with the amount donated last year. The current concern is the indisputable fact that prices of fuel, meat, fruit and vegetables are continuing to rise. We are concerned that this will impact on our donations as well as cause a further increase in requests for current and future clients. Despite urging our donors to be generous, we are aware that many in our community are feeling the pinch clients and donors alike. Children s Tefilah Groups Daniel Herszberg, Kids Minyan Coordinator & Ruth Epstein, Kids Minyan Chairwoman In its seventh year, the Kids Minyan program has truly prospered. The program runs from 10:15-11:30am every Shabbat morning in the rooms opposite the Bnei Akiva Minyan. After Tefilla, the Madrichim run Tochniot which endeavour to impart the children with key themes from the Parsha, Chagim and Middot. The educational tools used include age-appropriate quizzes, games, plays, songs and stories. The highlight of the program is a Kiddush, where children are encouraged to lead the group in the Shabbat Kiddush Brachot over grape juice and Shabbat treats. 32

33 The program has had a great attendance this year, with about 100 children attending weekly. This is an increase on last year s figures which approximated 90 children weekly. Programs are run for Kinder, Prep, grades 1/2, grades 3/4, grades 5/6 boys and grades 5/6 girls. The new Madrichim body is fresh, mature and bursting with ideas. The Madrichim provide an excellent Doogma (example) for the children in their genuine dedication to Torah, Tefillah and Chinuch. There are two Madrichim allocated per group. This year's Madrichim body have displayed maturity beyond their years and are facilitating enjoyable programs and consistent high attendance numbers. Additionally, the male Madrichim are attending the hashkama minyan on a weekly basis. The Kinder Madrichim engage the children with songs, stories and puzzles. They often create make-believe Shabbat meals where the children are encouraged to sing the songs and brachot associated with Shabbat, and carry out the Mitzvot of Shabbat such as lighting candles. This group does not do much Tefillah as such due to the young age of the children, but age-appropriate songs are encouraged (such as Purim songs in Adar). The Prep Madrichim do an excellent job in creating exciting and relevant Tochniot for the children. For example, before Purim, the children prepared charades with different scenes from the Megilah. The children do basic Tefillah, and children are encouraged to share any new parts of Tefillah learnt in school. The Grade 1/2 Madrichim do a very good job managing the extremely active and enthusiastic children in this group. Tefillah is given a real priority, with a Chazzan/it appointed each week to lead the group. Active games are used mainly in the giving-over of the Parsha content. The Grade 3/4 Madrichim have a very challenging job as this group can be relatively unruly. The children know most of the Shabbat Tefillah, and most of the program is taken up with group Tefillah. In the remaining time active games are used to keep the children engaged. The Madrichim use an interactive Kiddush to quiz the children on Parshah, with the winners given the prize of leading the group in Kiddush. The Grade 5/6 boys group is a similarly challenging group with some discipline problems. The number of children attending the program often depends on peer pressure of older children who play with football cards instead of attending Kids Minyan. The group runs an impressive complete Shabbat Tefillah of Shacharit and Musaf. The Grade 5/6 girls group is a very successful group. The group runs an impressive complete Shabbat Tefillah of Shacharit and Musaf. The Madrichim also lead quizzes, games and songs which give over the Parshah content. Kids Minyan is a vital component of the Mizrachi Organisation. It provides children with an opportunity to learn about Shabbat and Chagim in a safe, informal and fun environment. We hope that the successes of Kids Minyan so far will encourage Madrichim to join the program, children to attend it, and sponsors to nurture it. Cultural & Events Committee Sharona Jotkowitz The newly established Cultural & Events Committee has introduced several new initiatives over the past year which have all been quite successful. These include: A very successful kids tefillah program was held on Yamim Noraiim. Grade 1-3 had programs run by Bnei Madrichim and Grade 4, 5 and 6's went into the Bnei Shule with buddies to participate in the davening there. This was all followed by a kiddush for them. The kids all really enjoyed and felt that it was a valuable addition to their yom tov. As in ptrevious years, a kids simchat torah dinner was held with a huge number of kids and parents attending from all over the community. They had dinner in the sukkah, followed by hakafot and lolly bags. A movie night was held at the Classic cinema in November featuring the excellent documentary "Follow Me" about Entebbe and the life and death of Yoni Netanyahu. It was a sell out, and everyone appreciated the emotional movie which was followed by a delicious supper. It was agreed that such movie nights should definitely be held again. 33

34 Regular Kehillah Kiddushim have been held throughout the year with more to follow this year. As the year progressed, feedback and suggestions were taken into account and a successful formula has now been arrived at. A pre-pesach kiddush style lunch was held on the Shabbat before Pesach. This was a huge help to people preparing for Pesach and there were over 100 people there. I would like to thank the hard working members of the committee who helped ensure the success of all of these functions - Pninah Lissauer, Karen Franks, Pat Levy, Shira Wenig, Adina Waller, Naomi Bloch, and Beverley Honig. We hope to plan more and varied events in the coming year and would welcome any help or suggestions people can provide. Elsternwick Jewish Community Chairman s Report Robbie Wyner, Chairman Hard to believe that the time has flown and here I am again writing my Chairman s Report. The past twelve months has been a year of consolidation with Rabbi & Rebbetzin Cowen settling into our community and also with the arrival of Levana. Quite a few enhancements have been seen, the morning Shiurim, the Feature Friday nights, Weekly Gemara Shiur as well as the Kids Club. We are an extremely resilient community and the coming six months is again bringing change with Rabbi & Rebbetzin Cowen and Levana heading off to Israel, where Rabbi Cowen will be undertaking a Bar Ilan University course prior to him taking up a full time position with Leibler Yavneh College. In the meantime, Rabbi Mendel Haller has accepted and is our Locum Rabbi for the interim period. As I keep saying, our Shule is around for you 365 days a year and apart from the summer holidays attendances are improving. Our daily morning services are here for all and we unfortunately always have someone who needs to say Kaddish, so if you can see yourself helping out at least once a week or fortnight, it would be most appreciated. This year s Yamim Noraim services were again very well attended and we tweaked the floor plan again. The next twelve months are going to be busy for both Rabbi Haller and Rabbi Cowen with all the activities being planned. Last year we broke ground on Shavuot by having the Tikun running all night, with the first half with guest speakers and then speakers from our community. I d like to thank the Committee for all the hard work they ve put in over the past twelve months, at times it has been a bit difficult but we got through it by working as a team. Our Gabbaim, Elan and Bryan have again done an outstanding job, ensuring the services have run smoothly and efficiently. I d like especially thank each and every member of the Committee for their support and the time you ve put in to ensure our community continues to grow. To Rabbi & Rebbetzin Cowen, thank you for your friendship and support and we look forward to your many stories from Israel. I finish this report as I have done in the past as a community we are strong, but more of us need to step up as we need more people to be involved. 34

35 A special thank you to you, our members, for your support over the past six years, we ve broken new ground with the highlight being with your support for the EJC Sefer Torah. Emunah World Religious Zionist Women s Organisation Susan Boltin, President During 2012 Emunah continued its involvement in a wide range of projects. Through personal efforts in both Israel and the Diaspora we engage in both fund-raising and consciousness-raising in an effort to help alleviate many of the social problems faced by individuals, families and communities in Israel today. We strive to strengthen national and religious consciousness, care for Israel s disadvantaged children and families, enhance the status of women and provide education and opportunity for a secure and meaningful Jewish future. Over the past year Emunah Australia has continued to support Emunah Israel through a wide range of activities, functions and projects. The projects for which we have particular responsibility include the Midreshet Emunah Family Counseling Centre in Jerusalem, a High School for Girls in Bnei Brak, the Neve Sharett Day Care Centre in Tel Aviv, and a range of facilities within the Neve Michael Children s Village in Pardess Hana. For a complete list, including donors, please visit the World Emunah website In accordance with the values of World Emunah we focus both on fund-raising through a variety of events, and on education within the community. Emunah Australia extends a special thanks to all those in our community who shared their smachot with us over the past year, as well as to all our donors, sponsors and supporters. In 2012 Emunah Aviv, our senior group, continued to function under the leadership of Brigetta Paneth, and the annual Brochure was once again coordinated by Elaine Bloch-Jaffe. Under the stewardship of Gilda Moss, Emunah Tiferet undertook their annual projects, most of which focus on the cycle of the Jewish calendar. These activities have been running for several decades and continue to be wellreceived by our supporters. They include Purim cards, which were for the first time sold in a joint venture with Bnei Akiva, and B dikat Chametz kits for Pesach, which were again packed with the help of students from Leibler Yavneh College. Tiferet s annual 16-month Hebrew/English wall calendar continued to prove popular, with several new sponsors coming on board. A highlight of 2012 was Emunah Hillel s production of the Purim Spiel under the leadership of Talia Boltin. Substantial audiences over four nights thoroughly enjoyed a witty, hilarious and generally entertaining performance, which involved a whole new generation of young Jewish adults and raised much-needed funds for Emunah s projects in Israel. In the area of education, the Emunah Rina Pushett summer shiurim series, held each Shabbat afternoon in the Mizrachi Shul, continued to attract a loyal group of participants. The shiurim were organised by Ruth Wein and Naomi Bloch, and we sincerely thank all our guest speakers who graciously and willingly give us their time. Our annual education evening was held at the home of Keren & Reuben Zelwer, with educator Rabbi James Kennard addressing the question of Road to Nowhere or Stairway to Heaven? The Future of our Community. We also sponsored a special shiur by Lisa Fredman at the home of Sue & Paul Korbl. Rounding out our activities for the year, Emunah s annual Yom Haatzmaut Hostess Bruncheon was held at the home of Sharonne & Michael Slonim, with guest speaker Zeddy Lawrence. And finally, many families joined in our annual Rosh Hashana Greetings project. In addition, we extend warm appreciation to all those members of our community who chose to share their personal smachot with us. As always, our thanks go to Rabbi Yaakov Sprung, to the Mizrachi committee and to the staff in the Mizrachi office. We greatly appreciate the guidance, encouragement, advice and assistance provided by each and every one. 35

36 Eruv Report Jeff Herz Mizrachi and the Council of Orthodox Synagogues (COSV) are partners in the management of the Melbourne Eruv. From its inception in August 1997, the Eruv has undergone several extensions, with the most recent adding Carnegie and parts of Moorabbin, Highett, Bentleigh and East Bentleigh. Naturally, a larger Eruv requires greater inspection time, additional infrastructure and hence more maintenance. With each extension there is a commensurate increase in the cost of repairs and maintenance, also reflected in the need to progressively replace ageing infrastructure such as lechis (usually conduits/pipes) & wires. It should be noted that the day-to-day operation of the Eruv depends on funding from the COSV which contributes a portion of its shule seat levy to the cause. Not all shules belong to the COSV so unless these shules make a special donation for the running of the Eruv, their members are, in a sense, freeloading. Rabbi Gavriel Zinner from the U.S. is the posek for our Eruv and has visited Australia twice in this capacity, participating in several meetings and inspections of the current Eruv infrastructure and advising on the planned extension across Dandenong Road. This extension will incorporate where practicable within the Eruv, sites of significance such as Cabrini and The Avenue hospitals as well as Malvern Chabad. Specifications & costings are being prepared at present and have taken longer than expected due to the complexity involved as well as the increased regulations. The Board is negotiating with two power companies as well two organisations involved with the tramways and its infrastructure, and the assessment process is much more rigorous than our experience when constructing our previous stages. The Board is nonetheless confident that the necessary approvals will eventually be forthcoming. The routine operations are under the Halachic guidance of Rabbi Sprung, who wears two hats, being the Mara D Atra of Mizrachi as well as the nominee of the Rabbinical Council of Victoria. Rabbi Sprung acts in consultation with Rabbi Beck of Adass Yisroel, when necessary. Rabbi Sprung participates in Board meetings and his contribution to all aspects of Melbourne Eruv is greatly valued and appreciated. The Eruv Board is considering its options in regard to personnel succession in the areas of administration and inspections/driving which have predominantly been undertaken by the same people since the Melbourne Eruv was established almost sixteen years ago. We will need to have additional people trained and ready to take over in due course. The current Administrator since the Eruv s inception, Dr Peter Kloot has advised of his intention to retire in the next 12 months and steps are being taken to find a suitable successor. Dr Kloot has provided sterling dedicated service beyond the call of duty, not limited to his successful dealings with a range of public authorities and privatised utilities, and even on occasion effecting repairs to lechis to avoid the cost of calling out our maintenance crews. Dr Kloot s immense and vital contribution in benefitting Melbourne s orthodox Jewish community is well recognised by the Board. Inspections The Eruv is inspected every Thursday by members of the Kollel Beis HaTalmud and Adass Yisroel, together with Yossi Aron, Peter Kloot and Jeff Herz on occasions. Two teams comprising a driver and mashgiach inspect one half of the Eruv each week. The COSV provides one team and Adass Yisroel the other. Each team reports its findings to the Eruv administrator, Dr Kloot, who initiates repairs when necessary. These are carried out by our expert and dedicated contract technical crew. Once completed, the green flag is raised outside Mizrachi and a text and message is sent by the COSV to all those requesting receipt of the weekly Eruv status. The weekly Eruv status is also circulated via by Emmanuel which given its large database enhances dissemination of this important information and this notification service is appreciated by the Board. The COSV website ( contains current information about the Eruv including a detailed map of the boundaries and details of how to make a financial contribution to the upkeep of the Eruv. 36

37 A public inspection of the Eruv was arranged during Chol HaMoed Pesach complementing the Daf Yomi study of Masechet Eruvin, and Yossi Aron provided on-site explanation of construction methods etc. used in the Melbourne Eruv. Approximately 200 people attended the three sessions held. Maintenance Records indicate that most weeks, the Eruv does not require maintenance. On those occasions, when repairs are required, they are usually needed to replace a lechi (post) brushed by a passing vehicle. When the power companies replace poles bearing a lechi, our team is usually required to reposition the lechi correctly. The Eruv Board is very fortunate to have contractor Ian Taylor, an accredited linesman with the electricity distributors, as head of our Eruv infrastructure maintenance provider team. Eruv Board Eruv board meetings are convened as required. Eruv Board Members Mr Romy Leibler Chairman Mr Jeff Herz Director Dr Danny Lamn Director Mr Paul Korbl COSV Mr Tom May Honorary Solicitor Mr Moshe Trebish COSV Rabbi Yaakov Sprung Rav HaMachshir Dr Peter Kloot Administrator Mr Yossi Aron COSV Mr Isaac Teller COSV President (ex-officio) Financial It is vital that the Eruv board continues to receive the COSV seat levy distribution to pay for the ongoing maintenance and inspections, which have increased with each Eruv expansion. This levy accounts for the bulk of the income of the Eruv Board. It is imperative that all shules provide this nominal, but critical funding. Private donations are also welcome. They may be made by contacting the COSV through its website ( Kosher Australia Pty. Ltd. Stephen Shnider, Chairman It is my pleasure to present the report for Kosher Australia Pty. Ltd. for the calendar year of In 2012 we once again experienced another year of expansion in all areas of Kosher Australia s activities. Almost every week the office receives an enquiry or indeed multiple enquiries from manufacturers for certification. Each enquiry is carefully examined in order to determine whether the granting of certification is possible. The central platform of Kosher Australia is to whenever halachically possible to grant certification to as many products as possible in order to give the consumer the widest choice of food and the ability to purchase those products from as many shops, beyond the Caulfield/East St Kilda area. For some time Coles supermarkets have sold numerous kosher products and meat with many kosher products in designated aisle space. Coles wanted the kosher consumer to fully appreciate how many every day products are on our List. To better promote the availability of kosher products in their stores, Coles approached Kosher Australia with its proposal to have our symbol affixed to its shelving in front of the products which are contained on our List as a guide to assist the shopper. After much discussion with Coles a trial was started in the Balaclava and Elsternwick stores. The overwhelming positive response by the consumers that this guide was making their shopping easier, encouraged Coles to seek our assistance to roll out the same programme in several of their 37

38 supermarkets including Bentleigh, Malvern and a number of stores in the eastern suburbs of Sydney. The maintenance of the programme does take a lot of time and effort, as we are required to send personnel to each store which is involved to check that our symbol is placed in front of only kosher products. The system has had some difficulties in that the symbol has been inadvertently placed in front of products which are not on our list. We are continuing to work closely with Coles to find ways to improve the programme. It is therefore imperative to note that the use of the symbol on the shelf is only a guide and it is the Kosher Australia Food Guide which is the definitive listing of kosher products. Also during the year Coles approached Kosher Australia to supervise the sale of fish before Pesach and Rosh Hashanah.in their Elsternwick store. Again this initiative was very well received by the community and has been repeated prior to Pesach Kosher Australia. is pleased to be working together with Coles and we hope to further develop this relationship for the mutual benefit of the consumer and Coles. During the year we were pleased to welcome Milk and Honey and Sweet Crumble as new licensees. It is pleasing to note that the growth in the variety of venues where you can purchase kosher food is not only growing but also there is strong ongoing support for these businesses. We were also pleased to take over the supervision of the kosher functions at Zinc, Federation Square. Pesach 2012 saw us provide supervision to Unger Catering, Klein s, Goldberg s, and Kimberley and for the first time Passionate ran a Pesach retreat at Anglesea. Also for the first time, our licensee Off the Hook decided to trade during Pesach, thereby giving an extra choice over that Yom Tov. The entry into the market by these new establishments together with our existing licensees is further proof of the increasing demand for kosher food in Melbourne. Behind the scenes the team at Kosher Australia continued to travel throughout greater Melbourne, Victoria, interstate and overseas to carry out our inspections and audits. In order for us to prepare our Kosher Food Guide, we first check the ingredients and the food processes of approximately 11,438 items. This involved carrying out audits at 449 companies stretching from Melbourne to various parts of the country and overseas including Fiji, Japan, Taiwan, China, New Zealand and Europe. We supervised in excess of 420 kosher functions during the year. Our team of masgichim carried out in excess of 8,700 visits on our licensees premises in order to fulfill the requirement of yotses v nichnas supervision. During the year we have again assisted the Jewish Communities in New Zealand by releasing our senior Shochet, Avremel Krinsky from his daily duties here to fly to New Zealand to shecht lamb and chickens for the New Zealand comunities. As I have reported in previous years the pressure being brought to by the various lobby groups on the New Zealand government to stop shechita is very challenging and it is important to maintain a regular shechita in New Zealand to prevent any retrograde action being taken. Whilst Kosher Australia did not officially go to Kosherfest in New York in 2012, Rabbi Gutnick did attend as an observer and made and renewed many valuable contacts. Rabbi Gutnick then was invited to deliver a seminar at the annual conference of the Association of Kashrus Organisations (AKO), which was also in New York following Kosherfest. Presently there are over 1000 different hechsheirim in the world, yet only 69 are considered worthy of being invited to be members of AKO. I consider it to be a privilege and of real importance that Kosher Australia is a member of this very distinguished group. Our membership clearly speaks volumes about our standards, our Rabbinic and administrative leadership. Rabbi Gutnick is held in very high regard by our sister kashrus authorities overseas and his views and rulings are respected and accepted by the major Authorities in Israel, Europe and North America. Each week we receive numerous enquiries from manufacturers wishing to obtain our certification. Each of these enquiries requires a great deal of time and effort to determine whether or not it is possible on halachic grounds to provide certification. In order to deal with these enquiries and indeed the many halachic and administrative issues which arise on a daily basis we are fortunate to have the highly respected Rabbinic Board and the very committed office staff. I record my appreciation to the Members of our Rabbinic Board which comprises of Rabbi Mordechai Gutnick, Rabbi Sprung and Rabbi Barber. I also acknowledge the services provided by Rabbi Sofer. 38

39 Our General Manager, Mr. Yankel Wajsbort works tirelessly to ensure that all under his management runs smoothly. I express my personal thanks to him for his enormous contribution and the seemingly endless hours which he devotes to kashrut. I also acknowledge the role undertaken by Mr. Kasriel Oliver, our Chief Investigating Chemist and our Assistant Investigating Chemists, Mrs. Rose Mehlman and Mordy Heonders, our Operations Manager, Mr. Chaim Silcove, Mrs. Christine Stone, Mrs. Gail Goldberg and Mrs. Rita Broner. I am pleased to report that all of our staff work with absolute dedication and commitment to ensure that the highest standards are achieved. In my last report I recorded the decision of, Mrs. Christine Stone to retire at Pesach Mrs. Stone has been with Kosher Australia in a full time capacity for over 16 years and we are indeed fortunate that Mrs. Stone has continued on with us on a part time basis of two days per week. I also wish to acknowledge the contribution of the Mr. Ari Morris, who during the year commenced as Executive Director of Mizrachi. Whilst he has many other duties he has been of great assistance to both Yankel Wajsbort and me in many areas of our operation, and I am grateful for his contribution. I also wish to acknowledge the assistance of Ms Rae Bower of the Mizrachi Office for her assistance and support to our team. I also take this opportunity to acknowledge the dedicated work of our team who work with Continental Kosher Butchers. I appreciate the assistance of our Shochtim Avraham Krinsky, Moshe Hanovitch and Rabbi Goldzweig. Our Mashgichim, Rabbi Nocham Goodman, Rabbi Shusterman, Mr. Jacobi, Mr. Danks, Mr. Dzienciol and Mr. Bonder all of whom continue to carry out their duties to the highest standards thereby ensuring that our meat supply is in accordance with all halachic requirements. In addition Kosher Australia sends out each week several individuals to factories, functions and various other establishments to ensure that our standards are being followed. To all of our Masgichim I thank you for your dedication and commitment. To my colleagues who have served on the Board of Kosher Australia, Dr Menachem Broner, Mr. David Brykman, Dr Peter Kloot, Sue Korbl, Robert Lebovits, Michael Lewis, Ben Slonim, Moshe Trebish, and Mr. Ian Waller. I thank you for your assistance throughout the year. It must also be recorded that the community in general owes a great debt of gratitude to the Mizrachi Organisation for its continued support for kashrut in Melbourne. In particular I wish to acknowledge the support I receive from Mizrachi s President, Mr. Waller. I also acknowledge the support of the Mizrachi Treasurer, Mr. Mark Franks and the Mizrachi Executive. In closing, I wish to take the opportunity to once again state that the true strength and value of Kosher Australia comes from the depth of its experience and knowledge. Reading ingredients printed on packaging is not the way to determine if a product is kosher. There are no short cuts in kosher certification. You need to check right back to the source ingredient, not just the final items used. You need to understand how high tech food production works and the impact that such equipment has on the kosher status of products. In these times when food production and food processes present many challenges, there needs to be a blend of halachic knowledge with a detailed understanding of food production. It is because Kosher Australia has on staff people with the required skill sets, that we are able to carry out all our audits, add numerous new products to our list, deal where possible to resolve the various and many issues which arise and where such issues cannot be resolved to know when to withdraw a product. Adding products to a list may seem the easiest and quickest way to gain recognition and acceptance. However, adding products can only be undertaken after full and proper enquiries have been made. Kosher Australia like all professional bodies does not seek to exist on the size of its list or its popularity in the community. We do seek to add as many products as possible but only after being satisfied that proper standards have been met. There are times when we have to withdraw products, and such decisions are only taken because the manufacturer has for its own reason altered ingredients and/or production processes which compromises kashrut. Where possible we will always work with the manufacturer to suggest alternatives in order to keep the kosher status, but if this is not possible then the product will be delisted. It is wrong to say that Kosher Australia is too 39

40 stringent; all that we seek to do is maintain the same level of kashrut which is employed by the major international kashrut authorities. It is because of our standards and our knowledge that we are respected and accepted by the major international authorities, the manufacturers and the community. Kosher Australia looks forward continuing to serve the Community for the benefit of kashrut for many years to come. Leibler Yavneh College Co-Chairperson s Report Jonathan Wenig and Ilana Wald As co-chair persons of Leibler Yavneh College we are again delighted to present our report for consideration of members of the Mizrachi Organization. This report relates to the activities of the College for the 2012 school year. Foundation We are pleased to report that Leon Burman has agreed to assume the role of Chair of the Yavneh Foundation. The board of the Yavneh Foundation has had another extremely successful year, and is continuing to operate effectively and harmoniously. We again thank Mark Joel for his many long years of wise and committed effort on behalf of the organisation. We would also like to thank all those board members and look forward to continuing to work with them on future initiatives. Staff and Teaching Some of the most significant changes during 2012 happened in the classroom. Under the leadership of Roy Steinman, the College filled a significant number of key staff positions, particularly in the secondary school at VCE level, and those appointments have had an immense and immediate impact on the quality of the educational environment. There is little, if anything that is more important in achieving educational outcomes than the skills and abilities of the teacher in the classroom. Enrolments The enrolments at our College continue to be strong and stand at around 700. Early Learning Centre Our Early Learning Centre has continued to operate very successfully, although the quality and state of the physical environment continues to be a concern of the highest priority. We expect to be leading a discussion within our community regarding our future plans and projects in this regard, in the very near future. Finances We are grateful for the support of the members of the Yavneh Foundation. That support is making a tangible contribution to the education of our children and the success of our community. We continue to work very hard to present a balanced budget for the College, to manage costs aggressively, and to be efficient and responsible in our financial management of all aspects of College life. We have, during 2012, again achieved that outcome, after repaying a small amount of bank debt principal. We continue to apply and implement a policy of providing Jewish children with an outstanding general and Jewish education of the highest quality, and not to restrict access to this education for reasons of finance. No Jewish child should miss out on that education because their parents are unable to afford it. However, this policy costs us millions of dollars every year. In simple terms, fees remitted, deferred and forgone constitute more than 25% of the College s annual budget. That is an enormous burden for our school to bear and it is a burden that it appears to be getting worse as the years progress. More families require our assistance with every year that passes. 40

41 Our finance committee do an incredible and thankless job. We have a rigorous and transparent system by which applications for fee relief are assessed and pursuant to which debts are collected. We are as strong in our commitment to the policy articulated above, as we are in our resolve to ensure that people do not abuse the generosity of our College, our community and our organization. We need more support. We need to invest more in our programs. We need to invest more in our teachers. We need to give our children the very best opportunity to realise all of their ambitions and to encourage them to, in turn, give back to our community. We need more support from our community, from Mizrachi, and from its members, so that we can do an even better job of executing on our vision. We want our children to have excellence in their Jewish education, excellence in their general education, as well as at least some of the breadth of opportunities for learning and discovery that should be part of a quality private school education. And, as always, we operate in an environment with multiple pressures. At the time of writing this report, the State Government is on the verge of approving a wage increase for state school teachers, which will have an inevitable flow on effect to our cost base. We are complying with new National Curriculum requirements, but they take time, and money, and the only way we can possibly continue to deliver the desired outcomes in all the other aspects of our programming, when the time available is shrinking, is to find a way to increase the quality. In our conversations and interactions with parents, we continue to experience a growing level of economic difficulty, which in turn translates into additional requests for fee assistance, and additional delay and difficulty in collections. As things stand, doing more with less is very hard. Without your support, it is impossible. Thanks We would like to take this opportunity to thank Roy Steinman along with his senior management team Shula Lazar, David Fisher, Esther Meltzer, Daniel Solomon, Elka Gaensler, Nava Miller and our new Deputy Principal Curriculum, [Reene Dabchek], and all of the College staff for their dedication to the welfare and success of our children. We would also like to thank Graeme Dent, who filled the role of Deputy Principal Curriculum, on an interim basis during We are particularly proud of our departing VCE class who have again ensured that our College was ranked among the very top schools in the State. We would like to take this opportunity to thank the members of our Executives for their hard work and dedication through 2012; College Treasurer Simon Feiglin, Mizrachi Treasurer Mark Franks, Mizrachi President Ian Waller, Avi Gilboa, Leon Burman, Ian Fishman, Daniel Parasol and Michelle Rubin, Zandy Fell and Jeremy Leibler. The Executive puts in an enormous amount of time and we are grateful for their wisdom, their energy, their passion and their support. For the members of the College Council who join with the Executives on a regular basis to review the activities of the College we would also like to extend our thanks. Thank you to Julie Epstein, Karen Franks, Alissa Burman, Benji Jotkowitz, Pat Levy, Atida Lipshatz, Michael Szuster and Reuben Zelwer. We would also like to acknowledge the ongoing commitment of the Yavneh Parents Organization led by Julie Epstein. Conclusion Leibler Yavneh College is an incredible school. We are not just another Jewish State School. We don t simply make up the numbers. We don t simply fill a niche somewhere on the spectrum between the Charedi schools at one end and the Chiloni schools at the other. We have an outlook, an offering that we have inherited from Mizrachi, of which we are very proud. We are creating incredible graduates and have classrooms and hallways full of wonderful Jewish children. We look forward to your ongoing commitment and support in furthering our endeavours. 41

42 Leibler Yavneh College Principal s Report Roy Steinman VCE 2012 I am very proud to record our outstanding 2012 VCE results and congratulate our students, their parents and our wonderful teachers, who continue to go above and beyond in so many ways. 13% of the Year 12 class achieved an ATAR score of 99 or above (placing them in the top 1% of the State) 39% achieved over 95 61% of the VCE group achieved an ATAR score of 90 or above (placing them in the top 10% of the State). Nearly two thirds of the class achieved results in the top 10% of the state. Mazaltov to Yael Lefkovits, the Dux of the College for 2012, with an ATAR score of We also congratulate the following students who achieved perfect scores of 50: Rachel Joel English Yael Lefkovits English Eli Lipshatz English Ari Wenig English Yael Lefkovits English Literature Romy Hersham French Rachel Joel Further Mathematics We note with pride the achievements of all our students, and are delighted that the following students all achieved marks in excess of 99: Yael Lefkovits; Ari Wenig; Rachel Joel; Eli Lipshatz; Samuel Bloom and Levi Pilcer. This year, our proportion of results above 40 has soared to an outstanding 1 in 3 of all results. Staff Long serving staff members who retired or resigned during were: Vivian Brenner Catherine Bellair Marissa Sarif Shavi Slodowitz Senior Staff In January we welcomed Pnina Landau, formerly Primary Jewish Studies Teacher, to the position of Head of Jewish Studies Primary School. Also in January, Renee Dabscheck joined the College as Deputy Principal Curriculum (Secondary School). She was previously VCE & Curriculum Co-ordinator at Yesodei HaTorah. Pnina and Renee have both been appointed to the College s Senior Management Team. New members of staff who took up their appointments at the beginning of 2013 are: Abeles Liberman Early Learning Centre Eti Cohen Kindergarten Assistant Tzippi Deutsch returns to our ELC as a Hebrew/JS teacher Primary School Linda Evans Education Support Teacher Chavi Grossman Year 4 Jewish Studies Teacher Orit Sidelman Year 3-6 Hebrew Teacher Nici Aron returned to Primary as Jewish Studies/Hebrew Teacher for Prep and Year 1. 42

43 Diane Stollard, who has been responsible for Hebrew Support (P-6) at the College for the past four years Prep Jewish Studies. Rabbi Garfunkel, who has been teaching Jewish Studies in the Secondary School, joined Primary as a Year 4-6 Jewish Studies Teacher. Secondary School Elisheva Balkany Food Technology Teacher Frank Curigliano Psychology Teacher Eytan Epstein Jewish Studies Teacher Carly Jaku Special Education Teacher Gauthier Bouchardeau French Teacher Yoni Swerdlin Science Teacher We also welcomed back in 2013 the following members of staff who were away on long service or maternity leave: Shoshi Vorchheimer in the newly created position of Head of English, Middle Years (Years 6-8) Nami Mehra, our Co-ordinator of Education Support. Slezak Scholarship winners 2013 Year 7 & 8 - Amit Slonim and Andrew Feiglin Years 9 & 10 - Batya Maron and Sarah Winthrope Years 11 & 12 - Noam Marom and Rebecca Ellinson External Scholarships Daniel Olshansky joined Year 7 in February 2013 on a full scholarship. Leadership Team 2013 College Captains - Shuki Wyman, Ellie Searle Vice-College Captains - Yoel Dodge, Maeve Slonim Jewish Life & Zionism Captains - Gabe Casper, Nathaniel Pizmony Social Action Captains - Isaac Chizik, Melanie Perch House Captains ROSH TZURIM: David Rubin, Ilana Leber OFRA: Josh Ben-Moshe, Naomi Retman MAGSHIMIM: Joshua Jones, Ari Josefsberg EFRAT: Mikey Chaskiel, Hannah Levin Hesder Bachurim In August 2012 we said farewell to Jonty Loeber, Yoni Rubin, Yair Green and Yuval Ben Yehuda and welcomed the new team of Amir Cohen, Daniel Moatti, Gilad Cohen and Matan Tur-Paz Bnot Sherut We said farewell to our 2012 team of Aviya Azran, Ron Lahav, Ita Gruda and Ayala Yeret and welcomed our new team of Chana Efrati, Liat Mehazri, Naamah Oliven and Talia Zimchoni who have already made a significant impact on the College. Their enthusiasm, passion and creativity have enriched the lives of our students in many ways. Rav Dudi Winkler I particularly thank Rav Dudi and Rebbetzin Chani for their contribution to Yavneh. Chani works in our Primary School and inspires our Tefillah program. Rav Dudi teaches our senior Secondary students (two classes) and coordinates our Hesder Bachurim. He then goes on to a very busy evening at the Beit Midrash. We value their efforts and the sacrifices they have made to be with us and our community and we thank them for their hard work. Overview 2012/2013 With the Siyum Sefer Torah and the Jubilee Dinner commemorating our 50 th Anniversary in 2012, the College was imbued with a spirit of revival, excitement and optimism. A number of significant changes to the educational delivery in the College which were planned during 2010 and 2011 were implemented in 2012, many of which also 43

44 brought a new energy to the College and have considerably widened student participation in the programs and activities which make our College the very special place it is will see the expansion of our Interschool s Sporting Competition as well as an expanded Debating Program, Musical Performance Program and our new Primary School Jewish Studies Curriculum, together with the further expansion of our Secondary School Jewish Studies Formal and Informal Programs. Secondary Interschool Sports Competition 2012 marked Yavneh s entry into the Interschool s Sporting Competition. For a number of years we have attempted, unsuccessfully, to be included in a significant interschool sports program. While some measure of interschool sport has taken place between some of the Jewish Day Schools, this has been fraught with difficulties. Many of the bigger Jewish Day Schools feel that their loyalty to their own particular interschool sports league has prevented them from meeting their commitments fully in developing a dynamic inter-jewish Day School sporting competition. With this in mind, and in an endeavour to widen our students participation in sport at the interschool level, we made overtures to a number of different leagues and associations, hoping that we would be successful in gaining entry. Our search and endeavours were rewarded when we were allowed into the EISM Sports Association in Our students have enjoyed the opportunity to represent their College at an interschool level against some really tough opposition from across the spectrum of sports and against some significant schools in and immediately outside of our area. It is with great pride that we are able to see our students play interschool cricket, basketball, volleyball, futsal, soccer, netball, in addition to athletics and a number of other sports. It is an amazing lift to school morale and improves the ruach and pride in the school. Debating Our debating teams did exceptionally well during during 2012 against incredible opposition. Once again, teams faced almost impossible odds as they pitted their wits and prowess against schools three and four times our size. Leibler Yavneh College has certainly earned its reputation as having one of Melbourne s best school debating teams. All our students and their coaches need to be congratulated on representing our school so admirably and with such aplomb. We wish them hatzlacha for We are immensely proud of their achievements. Music Program We took a strategic decision to significantly improve the opportunities for students to sing and play instruments at the College in various different public arenas. We knew that we had to employ someone who had the vision, the stamina, the creativity, the understanding of the College and who was himself or herself a significant musician. Jonathan Skovron, an ex-student of the College, who had worked in our College before as a part-time music teacher, and who had left the College in order to pursue a solo professional career, was wooed back to the College and is now the Head of Music at Leibler Yavneh College. We gave Jonathan the brief to build music in all its forms to promote and nurture public performance, to raise the profile of singers and musicians in our College and to build a strategic music program throughout the College, leading to a greater number of students taking music at VCE level and performing music in public. This has been achieved with great success. New teachers: a search for excellence At the end of 2010 we had already taken the decision that we needed to embark on an appraisal or review process to identify outstanding teachers in our College, professionally develop those teachers who are not yet delivering excellence, and identify those teachers that we feel ought not to be teaching at the College. It has taken quite a lot of time to implement the program fully however, at the end of 2011, we were able to take serious steps to meeting these objectives. Consequently, I am delighted to report that there has been a significant recruitment drive to fill our VCE classes in the first instance with really excellent teachers. We have managed to recruit excellent VCE teachers and we are looking forward to a long and happy association with them. We have also recruited a number of other teachers in other levels and they too are delivering excellence in their areas. Parallel to this is the determination to work with our teachers in order to get them to take the next steps towards achieving excellence. The College cannot retain teachers who cannot deliver what we believe are the minimum acceptable standards necessary in an academic environment such as our school where parents are paying a premium to be here. 44

45 The new Australian Curriculum rising to the challenge The new Australian Curriculum, which has been implemented in 2013, will bring with it significant challenges in a number of areas. In order to better meet the outcomes we believe are critical, we have restructured our Hebrew and English Departments in such a way as to get a much more focused teaching of those two areas. In Hebrew, Debbie Garber, who was Head of Hebrew in the Secondary School, has now assumed the position of Head of Hebrew Years Debbie is also looking at a number of different and exciting programs to ensure that there is a consistent holistic approach to the teaching of Hebrew right across the school from Primary to Secondary School. The other area in which we have made significant structural change is the area of English. We have appointed Shoshi Vorchheimer to the position of Head of Middle Years English from Years 5-8. In this way, we hope that there will be a consistent approach to the teaching of English across the Senior Primary and the Junior Secondary years in a spiral structure meeting very specific outcomes in each of those areas. Shoshi Vorchheimer is an experienced educator and has taught in Junior Secondary School all the way through to Senior Secondary School including VCE. She comes to us with a wealth of experience and her very caring, nurturing teaching style will ensure that our children grow to love English and continue to meet the important benchmarks in all areas of literacy. Shoshi will also be working very closely with Elka Gaensler who effectively manages the General Studies Program and the delivery of English in the Junior Primary School, leading through to our Middle Years Program. At the same time, Shoshi will also work with Rachel Kafka, our newly appointed Head of English, Senior Secondary Years. Rachel will be given responsibility for the teaching of English from Year 9 to VCE. In her short time at Yavneh, Rachel has endeared herself to students and parents as a charismatic, highly competent and excellent classroom practitioner. In addition, we have also introduced a number of new subjects for We wanted to broaden the options available to students and have significantly done this. Subjects like Astrophysics and Forensic Science are two such examples. In addition, the College has introduced History at Year 11 level, Units 1 and 2, and will commit to extending this to Units 3 and 4 in Year 12 the year afterwards subject to numbers. Charlie Parkes, one of our newly recruited English teachers, is also a History specialist and will be taking the History 1 and 2 subjects in Year 11 in In an effort to promote the teaching and studying of English at the highest levels, we have introduced into Year 9 a Creative Writing elective designed for those students who are already achieving excellence in English and want to further develop their writing skills. We have also introduced an English Literature unit in Year 10, again to nurture and groom those students who might want to be taking English Literature at VCE level. New uniform This has been a long journey and I am very appreciative to all those who have worked so tirelessly to complete the project. This year saw the implementation of our new uniform as a complete unit. Ruth Szuster and the YPO have given invaluable time and efforts to ensure that the project is completed successfully. Our students look really smart and reflect the pride they now have in their uniform and in their College. There are still a few items that need to be added (a windbreaker, a warmer outer garment for the winter months, etc.). However, most of the uniform is now being worn and already has given the school a new look. Community Service The College is very proud of its Community Service Program, which is compulsory from Years We are still trying to get students to commit themselves to performing more hours than the minimum required number of hours, in an effort to stretch themselves beyond themselves. We are also struggling to get students to take on Community Service projects that take them significantly out of their own comfort zones in order to make a difference to the lives of others out there. They still tend to go for the easier options. We are increasing the Community Service awareness significantly and have successfully managed to create an environment where students are willing and able to take on individual and significant Community Service projects in order to raise awareness, funds and contributions to those causes outside of the College and even outside the small community of which we are a part. Our weekly assemblies have been used to showcase a number of these projects and have also been used to allow various organisations to report back to us their gratitude for having had our contribution either in funds or in time and service which have made significant impact on their particular causes. 45

46 Middle Years Play We introduced the concept of the Middle Years Play for students in Years 6, 7 and 8. Usually, the main parts of the Secondary School Musical are given to older and more experienced singers and actors. The Middle Years Play was an opportunity to give the younger students a chance to have their own spotlight, as it were. Redesign of Primary special evenings We spent a lot of time redesigning a number of our public evenings. To this end, celebrations such as Night of the Notables; Earth Science Night; Year 6 Graduation celebration; Orientation and Information Evenings; Chumash, Siddur and Shabbat Parties, etc., including Speech Night, have been refreshed and have already been favourably received. VCE feedback from students In the interests of getting constructive feedback on our VCE teaching, we initiated a survey in order to get feedback from our VCE students about their experience in VCE. Recognising that students could exploit this anonymous survey, we hope that the feedback we gain will be constructive and useful in giving our VCE teachers an opportunity to reflect on what has worked and what could work better from a student perspective. Wi-Fi, Smartboards and technology We have now introduced and implemented Wi-Fi at the College in order to enhance our access to and usage of technology. A number of years ago we identified the need to significantly upgrade our technology and our educational delivery in elearning. We have already introduced Smartboards to most of our classrooms, both in both Primary and Secondary Schools and will continue to roll out the Smartboards until we believe we have covered the entire College. At the same time, we are substantially increasing our internet capacity for faster and easier access and have greatly improved the number of educational-friendly programs and systems to bring the College into the 21 st century. The new Reporting System, the electronic Homework Planners, Moodle and the use of the Intranet have greatly enhanced and improved students access to and usage of technology. We are also hoping next year to pioneer an ipad program which will allow a select pilot group of students and staff to work with ipads as an educational medium in the classroom. Jewish Studies Our No. 1 focus during 2012 was the search for and appointment of a suitable candidate to the position of Head of Jewish Studies, Primary School. We are delighted to report the appointment of Pnina Landau to the position of Head of Jewish Studies and wish her much hatzlacha for what we are sure will be an exciting new phase at the College. Our teachers have been conversing over Skype on a regular basis with Rabbi Dr Pinchas Hayman, formerly of Bar Ilan University, who has developed his own system of Mishna, Chagim and Chumash programs and curricula. At the same time, we are in the process of implementing the new Jewish Curriculum Project (JCP) into our College. This curriculum, designed and directed by Rabbi Eli Kohn of the Lookstein Centre of Bar Ilan University, is widely used across Jewish Day Schools in the UK and we believe it will make a significant difference to the teaching of Chumash in our Primary School. Secondary School Jewish Studies Our Curriculum Project continues to be developed and has taken some interesting steps to offer greater flexibility of choice to students this year. We took the decision to advance our work on creating a two-track model for students in Years 9 and 10 giving students the opportunity to choose between text-based learning or a more generalist approach focusing on Jewish values, Jewish history and Israel studies. This approach will be enhanced next year as we continue along the two-track model, fine-tuning and revising some of those areas which we believe are still in need of attention. Tefillah Tefillah in Jewish Day Schools is always one of the most difficult issues to discuss and implement. There are a number of different models available and our school, like many others, is struggling to find its own tailor-made model. As an experiment last year, we opened up more choice for Secondary School students to daven in different ways. The Early Morning Minyan continues to attract both regulars and those students who need to come to the Early Minyan in order to participate in some other program during the regular late davening. Our girls prayer group, initially pioneered as a Year 7 and 8 group, has now expanded to include girls from other year groups. This prayer group is meant to be a place where the girls can feel free to express themselves, unhindered by the more traditional setup necessary in a regular and mixed minyan. We also introduced a very special Meditational Program under the direction of our Campus Rabbi, Rabbi Sendor. This attracts about 25 students on a regular basis and is meant to help them connect with Hashem in a more unstructured and freer manner. Obviously, the goal is to try 46

47 and get people to connect more with the traditional davening that is demanded of a religious Jewish Day School such as ours. However, we need to acknowledge that davening is a very difficult aspect of Judaism and one that teenagers in particular struggle to master. Rabbi Sendor s group is designed to inspire, motivate, connect and instruct. We will be evaluating this on a regular basis in order to understand for ourselves what we should do to take the next step. Appointment of Campus Rabbi We appointed Rabbi Sendor to the position of Campus Rabbi in an effort to introduce into our school the capacity for and the potential to connect to individual students on a much more meaningful level. Rabbi Sendor s mission and brief is to connect to our students souls in various different ways. Both on an individual level and at a more general level, Rabbi Sendor s programs and initiatives are specifically targeted to help those who feel challenged by some of Judaism s more difficult aspects. Communication with parents We have spent a lot of time analysing and planning for improved communication between school and home. Our s and weekly Kesher have been constantly refined to eradicate the errors of communication that used to plague many of our communication processes. Dates, times and information are now more carefully cross-checked and I believe comes to parents in a much more professional and user-friendly manner. We are constantly searching for better communication media and are always prepared to revisit any of our communication mechanisms in order to maximise the effectiveness of this important aspect of our College s delivery. Indigenous connections: Primary School Our Primary School has initiated a number of opportunities to help our children connect with Indigenous communities, children and adults. Visits to the Bubup Wilam Early Learning and Family Centre set the tone for what we hope will be greater interaction between our two communities. We hope the links established between their community and our Primary School will continue for many years to come. Sustainable Practices It is absolutely essential that our students be inspired to understand their responsibility in contributing to a more sustainable, eco-friendly world. Our Primary School has in many ways led the way in this regard. Involving students and staff, the Primary School has created a culture of sustainability via numerous projects including the fundraising project Adopt a Dolphin and a number of Recycle your Waste programs. Assembly format change (Primary) In an effort to create a more interactive and exciting atmosphere in Assemblies, we have revamped the structure to include far more student participation via singing, music, drama and other items. Another innovation was to include in each Assembly the presentation of a Certificate of Appreciation to nominated members of the Leibler Yavneh Community. Parent Volunteer Program (Primary) We commenced our Parent Volunteer Program in Term 3 of 2012, initially with an invitation to parents, grandparents and carers to attend one of two workshops by way of training them to assist with reading in Prep and Year 1. The half hour training sessions were conducted by our teachers and focused on the techniques of supporting young readers. The morning session saw 30 parents and grandparents attend, with 20 parents attending the afternoon workshop. Given the success of this, our aim is to also include Year 2 in the program. Technology and Social Media in the Primary School Our Primary School House Captains launched their blog at the school assembly midway through the year. They gave the entire Primary School a window into their hard work. The blog is used to inform students about exciting events relating to the Houses, the House Captains themselves, their activities and House point tallies. Expansion of Lunchtime Clubs Lunchtime can be a very difficult time for some students. In an effort to increase their social interaction and give them an opportunity to involve themselves in something very specific and creative, we have initiated a number of special lunchtime clubs including Origami, Meccano Robotics, in addition to Hama Beads, Drama, Sports Club, Computer, Vocal Ensemble and Library. Challenges for the rest of 2013 include increasing available play space for the increasing number of Primary School students; the size of our classrooms also remains a constraint. Modern pedagogy demands greater interaction and movement within classrooms. At this stage, the cost of redesigning classrooms and renovating the College to accommodate these needs would be prohibitive. 47

48 In 2014 we hope to focus on a more strategically designed Early Intervention Program for the growing number of students with learning difficulties. Improvements to the College We are completing a number of significant projects which promise to enhance the learning environment for all our students: (a) Our old hall will be renovated with a beautiful, sprung wooden floor; the removal of the iconic metal pole in the centre of the hall; acoustic treatments; sound and lighting renovations. It will become an attractive and professional venue for Drama, Tefillah, Informal activities, Assemblies and special events for both Primary and Secondary Schools. (b) A purpose-designed Informal Jewish Education and Zionist Centre has been created as a result of the Jubilee Sefer Torah fund-raising project. It is being called HaMakom and has already become a vibrant and active centre. (c) A new Secondary School Education Support Centre has also been constructed to better meet the needs of all students requiring curriculum and learning support. (d) Our Primary School Reception area has also been renovated and is now a smart, professional reception area for students, staff and parents. (e) We have commenced the installation of Wi-Fi in the College. (f) We have continued to install Smartboards throughout the College. Most of our classrooms are now fully equipped with Smartboards and Data Projectors. Executive and Council I take this opportunity to thank Jonathan Wenig and Ilana Wald for their leadership of the College Executive and Council. I also thank all the members of the Executive and Council for their time, efforts and dedication to the College. Both Jonathan and Ilana have always been there for me, especially during some of the more urgent and difficult decisions and I thank them for their insight, leadership and support. The team of Principal and Chairperson is a very important one and certainly helps to facilitate the smooth running of the College as a whole. Their guidance and dedication are always valued and admired as are their integrity and expertise. Senior Management I also pay tribute to, and thank, my Senior Management colleagues who always go the extra mile and whose commitment to our College is exceptional in every way: Daniel Solomon, David Fisher, Esther Meltzer, Elka Gaensler, Shula Lazar, Pnina Landau, Renee Dabscheck and Nava Miller. We are truly fortunate to have their passion, dedication and professionalism and I feel very privileged to work with them, individually and collectively. Nachalat David Report Shira Wenig This year has been an important one for Nachalat David as we celebrated our 1 st birthday and started to settle into a routine while initiating some new projects. We once again affirm our gratitude to the LYC Early Learning Centre for allowing us the use of one of their kindergartens. Thank you to Rae Bower, Ari Morris and Jim Moustos for their ongoing assistance and support. An important development this year was the engagement of Rabbi James Kennard to give a drasha fortnightly in Nachalat David, as we do not yet have our own rabbi. Rabbi Kennard s drashot are insightful and extremely well received and we are very appreciative of the time and effort he dedicates to us, over and above his many other commitments. In the alternate weeks we hear from a range of other speakers, with particular thanks going to Tuvia Cannon, Shmuli Wenig and Benjy Levy who frequently give divrei torah. 48

49 Our committed and talented mitpallelim continue to work hard to make our minyan run smoothly and our community warm and vibrant. Thank you to gabbai Shmuli Wenig, treasurer Jeremy Gold, kiddush coordinators Ilana Zimmerman and Elisheva Archer, functions coordinator Dafna Garfield, Rosh PR and regular baal koreh Tuvia Cannon and committee members Mikey Teller and David Lamm; as well as to Richard Weider and Dovi Perl who both served on our committee before moving away from Caulfield. Thanks also to all those who assist with kiddushim, functions, meal rosters for those needing help and generally lending a hand when needed. Although our regular weekly attendance has reduced a bit (in large part due to people moving interstate or overseas) our membership increased this year despite significantly higher prices, with 54 adults purchasing seats, including 10 new members. Our main challenge is consolidating our numbers so that we can get a minyan on time; we generally have good attendance by the end of tefillah. Our weekly catered kiddushim continue to create a warm and friendly social atmosphere, as do our regular functions. Events this year included: Friday night tefillah and dinner on erev Shavuot with scholar in residence Rav Nechemya Taylor speaking on the topic Do Jewish law and secular law coexist? followed by a tish and discussion Bowling night at Kingpin Bowling, Richmond Simchat Torah BBQ lunch sponsored by our chatanim Chanukah games night at the home of Julie & Ben Gibbs Purim night megillah reading and BBQ, also hosted by Julie & Ben Leil limmud to mark the yahrzeit of Danny Pollak z l Rosh Chodesh shiurim given by a variety of speakers Our most pressing goals at this stage are increasing our weekly attendance, finding a Rav for the minyan and improving our room aesthetically for shabbatot and chagim (such as with new shul furniture). We have already introduced a new aron kodesh, a big improvement over the previous one. We look forward to another year of growth and friendship at Nachalat David. 49