Outgoing Chair Speech

Vitality is defined as “the state of being strong and active, the power giving continuance of life”.

There is no doubt that vitality is a characteristic of Alyth and we were very proud to be chosen as one of just six synagogues in the whole of the UK to take part in the Jewish leadership Council’s study of Synagogue Vitality.
The report makes fascinating reading and we came out of it exceptionally well and our core values are exactly those that the report highlights as the key to being a successful synagogue.

If you want evidence of vitality at Alyth you need only consider what has happened here since I reported to you last year.
In lifecycle terms, we celebrated 56 b’neimitzvah, we married 18 young couples, performed numerous baby blessings and welcomed 12 new members into Judaism.
In order to facilitate 56 b’nei mitzvah on only 42 shabbatot  Mark and Josh have crafted a Shabbat service which gives not one but two families the feeling that the day is theirs, and it works superbly.
With so many youngsters around the place it is really important that we are able to inspire our youth and to that end this year we have refreshed our Youth & Education Hub.
Now led by Sam Brunner, the team of Mike Mendoza, Chloe Kimmel and Yael Roberts are doing a terrific job and run highly successful and fully subscribed summer and residential schemes for young people of all ages.

I am delighted to tell you that since last year’s AGM the SHOFAR day care nursery has opened  and that within just a few months, it has already exceeded our forecast and is looking after 45 young Jewish children.
We all worked hard with our partners FRS and MRJ to make this happen but none more so than the late Martyn Gerrard who performed miracles redeveloping the Beit Limmud on time and on budget. We will all miss him terribly.
Last year we unsure what effect SHOFAR would have on our own kindergarten. Now we have a better idea. Currently only three of the 45 at SHOFAR are children of this community and another 3 are grandchildren of Alyth members, so overall – not too bad so far.
But this is only one side of the story. One of THE highlights of the past year was in October 2015 when our Kindergarten was the subject of an OFSTED review and was granted the highest possible rating of Outstanding which itself is a truly exceptional achievement.

100% of the credit for this achievement goes to our Kindergarten Head teacher Cindy Summer, her deputy Tor Alter and their superb team of teachers and assistants and I congratulate them all for getting the recognition that they so richly deserve.

Bearing all this in mind you may not be surprised, but you will be delighted to learn that our Kindergarten is currently absolutely full with 46 children enrolled and a further 7 on the waiting list. Long may this continue.

This building is full of life and positive energy almost all day every day. We estimate that around 700 people use the building during the course of a normal week.
That’s seven hundred people participating and taking an active role in our community. Clubs, societies, meetings, music, learning and of course prayer – the list of activities goes on and on.
This is what makes us strong.

In October last year more than 600 of us came together on a Sunday afternoon to bid farewell to our Director of Music of 35 years, Viv Bellos MBE. What a wonderful afternoon it was – one of those truly outstanding uplifting Alyth occasions and this one gave rise to the greatest thank you speech of all time! Without a single note Viv spoke for over half an hour – and the crowd loved every second of it.
Don’t worry I won’t be doing the same this morning!
Having bid farewell to Viv we were pleased to welcome our new Director of Music Katie Hainbach who you will agree has settled in very well and so quickly and we are absolutely delighted about that.
We also said goodbye to John Ringer who had accompanied Viv and the Choir for nearly the entirety of Viv’s tenure, but I’m pleased to say that it was more au-revoir than goodbye as John is still making the occasional guest appearance for Katie when needed.

Although involving smaller numbers, the Alyth Week End Away 2016 was another highlight of the year and a wonderful celebration of all that makes Alyth great.
130 Alyth members, many of them new, gathered at The Oxford Belfry to enjoy a full programme of learning sessions, services and of communal activities for all ages.

Once again this year we expanded our inter-faith activities championed by Rabbi Maurice Micheals. Services were conducted here in the synagogue at Ramadan when we held our kosher iftar for the second year and this year we also celebrated 50 years of Nostra Aetate with a joint service held at Alyth with our neighbours from St Edward the Confessors church. Both occasions made me proud to be a member of Alyth.

Operationally speaking the year has been as busy as any other. I have led our Executive Committee and Council as we negotiate a path through the normal gamut of Jewish, religious, constitutional, management and financial issues that are the norm in any shul the size of our own.
On the last of those areas, the past two years have been very challenging from a financial perspective.
We will shortly hear the Treasurers report, but one point that I would like to highlight is that the Synagogue holds substantial reserves and in order to maintain the momentum of our progress, while we plan a major capital project, we have had to draw some of those reserves. That said, we know that this cannot continue year in year out.
Finally, we have continued to work hard on our building development plans and you will shortly hear about how that has evolved and progressed since last year.
As I reach the end of my two years as Chairman, we have much to look forward to. Next year I sense will be one in which the emphasis will be on development. Building development will certainly occupy much of our time and I hope it will be the one thing that generates real passion amongst our members.

The other area that needs focus is volunteer and leadership development. This is at the very core of everything that we are able to do as a Community, and creating the opportunities to enable new volunteers and leaders to emerge is a fundamental part of us retaining the vitality that exists at Alyth.
Volunteers need to be identified, encouraged and appreciated and given ample opportunity to get involved, while potential leaders need to be trained and provided with a clear pathway into leadership and fast tracked if necessary. I served on Council & Executive for 11 years before I became Vice Chairman and I don’t think that is a practical proposition anymore.
I am more than pleased that I stuck to it though. Three or four times a year all the Chairs of the reform synagogues meet at the Sternberg Centre. At the beginning of each meeting, which is normally attended by 20 or so chair men and women, we introduce ourselves and saying my name followed by the words “I am the Chairman of Alyth” swelled my heart with pride – every time.

Exchanging stories and comparing notes & experiences with other reform chairs has made me realise that Alyth is not just great, it is truly an amazing synagogue.

When you hear, at first-hand what goes on at other shuls, you gain a true insight into how special this place is. I cannot emphasise that enough.
There are so many reasons why this is the case but I do believe that foremost amongst them is that we are unbelievably fortunate to have the best rabbinic team that there is.
Let me refer back to the Vitality Report and quote to you one if it’s central findings
“Rabbis are vitality builders.  Rabbis shape and communicate vision, lead prayer, teach, administer and offer pastoral care. Rabbis are the key personality in congregational leadership”
Further on in the report, when referring to ‘what vital leadership is’ it says this
“At Alyth, the two Rabbis share a vision, so much so that they sometimes finish each other’s sentences. It is obvious that this clergy is on the same page”
Rabbi Mark and Rabbi Josh are truly outstanding and the way that their partnership has grown is a clear demonstration of how special they both are. Working closely with them for 4 years has been a privilege and I thank them for their support throughout that time.
Their commitment to Alyth, the time that they put into their work, and the leadership, teaching and care that they give us is extraordinary.
Of course they are not alone. Mark and Josh are supported by Rabbi Maurice Micheals and this year we have welcomed Rabbi Colin Eimer into our clergy team. I want to thank them all.
We are also very lucky to have a wonderful staff team running the shul and I would like to thank them too for their commitment and hard work, they make things happen.
I also want to thank Steve Miller who having served for three years as one of our Vice Presidents retires by rotation, and I am delighted that Margaret Harris has agree to be nominated to be our newest Vice President.

I step down safe in the knowledge that Alyth is a strong community in a strong position. We have managed to maintain the momentum that has been building for some time now and I am confident that it will continue to gather pace.
In order for that to be the case we need to be visionary, with clear objectives and a sense of where we are going. We need to be ambitious and dare to dream, for only then will we achieve our potential, and finally we will have to be brave. Raising the money for our building project will not be easy but if we keep trying – we will find a way!
I could not have served as chairman for two years without the help of a wonderfully supportive Executive and Council and thank them all for their help, their encouragement and even for the odd very difficult question.
There are however, two people that really made it possible.
Noeleen, I simply cannot thank you enough for all your support and friendship over the last 24 months. You were always the voice of reason and advised me with such clarity and such depth of knowledge. Not only are you a walking Wikipedia of the Jewish world, you are a true visionary and a natural leader and I couldn’t be handing the reigns to a more capable person, but more than that, someone who has Alyth running through them.

Tracy, without you it would have been so much harder. Thank you for being a model Chairman’s wife and for being by my side on dozens of occasions – always smiling. Thank you for your love & support.
And so the time has almost come for me to quite literally hand in my badge.
Being the Chairman of this wonderful synagogue has been the biggest honour of my life so far. What a great thing to have done.
Whether we have achieved this or that I’m not sure, but I can promise you that I always did my best and that I gave 100%. And what I have tried to do, at every opportunity is to make sure that every member I interacted with knew that they were an important part of this community and that they were appreciated, because after all, that is the Alyth way.
Thank you.