Have very recently returned from my first AGM with the Movement for Reform Judaism. It’s a bit of a schlep to London but luckily the weather was great, the trains were running to schedule and I found very reasonably priced student lodgings right in the heart of London.
David Jacobs kindly collected me from Edgware Station and I arrived in good time on Sunday 30th June – which is why I sadly missed Louise Garcia’s leaving do. I hear it all went well and we shall certainly miss Louise’s unique talents.
Meanwhile, our morning meetings began at 10.30am and I was but one chair person amongst many. We held discussions about how to conduct ‘good’ committee meetings, so be prepared, committee members, to be shaken, though not necessarily stirred!
After lunch we participated in the AGM and the anticipated computer-led meeting was slightly let down by the computer not co-operating at all!! Well, Noah wasn’t there! Still we went ahead and we looked at the past year and the year to come. In some ways Kehillat Kernow is still somewhat adrift of the mainstream largely due to where we are and the spread of our members, but also, largely due to the fact that we prepare and run services ourselves and have no synagogue (and the associated costs that go with such a building) and no rabbi. THis means that we are still able to keep our annual subscription far below what almost every other community has to pay. I do think, therefore that we are very fortunate to have so many services available for such reasonable rates and would, therefore urge members to make every effort to support our activities.
I was greeted most warmly by all the delegates who attended the AGM and hope that many of them will be persuaded to visit us here in Cornwall should they ever come down on Holiday.
We have had a really full calendar recently and I thoroughly enjoyed Ze’ev’s bar mitzvah and look forward to helping all those youngsters who are slowly working their way towards that big event themselves. As always my thanks to all those members of the community who are the unsung heroes who help at every function. I look forward to seeing lots of you at the High Holy Day events in September.