Welcome to our latest refurbishment project update.
We are all very excited as we are now hopefully within spitting distance of achieving our original fund raising target of £385,000.
We made significant progress in November and December last year when we received news from the Wolfson Foundation that they would giving us a grant of £25,000. We had donations of over £12,000 (with Gift Aid) from the family of one of our past members, not to mention the many smaller but none the less important donations from our members and friends. Our sincere thanks to The Wolfson Foundation and everyone else who have donated.
With these donations we are now 90% funded but still need to raise another £40,000 so that we can start the building work to create the Norwich Jewish Community & Heritage Centre later this year.
Our financial target is based on what we know from the Architects drawings and the work done by our quantity surveyor. Whilst we will shortly be updating this cost estimate, we also have to be aware of the potential ‘unknowns’ which can lead to unexpected expense. In this respect we have just commissioned an Asbestos survey of the buildings and we are preparing to obtain a ‘Party Wall’ agreement with our neighbours which will necessitate some ground survey work to check the stability of the land where our side and rear extensions are to be built.
Fund Raising
Your President, Marian Prinsley and I are continuing work hard to attract and secure the funding we need to reach our target and more if at all possible.
To help raise the extra money needed we are planning a number of fund raising events over the next few months which we hope you will all will support. The first of these will be an interesting talk by Professor Lawrence Goldman (see details below) in February, a “Quiz and Chips” evening in March and a wine tasting event hosted by our Minister Daniel Rosenthal.
In addition to the above we are also planning another “Silent Auction” following the success of the one held last year which raised over £1,600. We already have a number of great auction lots donated but required several more. So if you have an idea for a lot or can donate something special which we can auction, please contact the Treasurer Nick Simons (treasurer@norwichsynagogue) as soon as possible.
Sunday 25th February @ 2.00pm
“Jewish Lives in the Dictionary of National Biography – From Medievil Norwich to Eretz Yisrael”
A talk to be given by Professor Lawrence Goldman, Director of the Institute of Historical Reasearch at the school of Advanced Study in the University of London, a a Senior Fellow at St. Peter’s College Oxford.
Professor Goldman was the first editor of the newly-published Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (ODNB), a post he held from 2004 until 2014. The ODNB, is the record, in more than 65 million words, of the most notable figures in British history.
Professor Goldman now has a home in Southwold, Suffolk and as well as offering to help us with our fundraising with this talk he is also interested in becoming a member of the congregation.
Please come and support both the NHC Refurbishment Fund as well as Prof. Lawrence Goldman and you will be treated to an excellent talk followed by a wonderful cream tea.
Finally, thank you all again for your kind and generous support. Help make our dream of creating the Norwich Jewish Community and Heritage Centre a reality by supporting our fund raisers and if possible making further donations and by encouraging you relative to support Norwich Jewry.
To make a donation on-line click here or contact our Treasurer, Nick Simons: 01362 850515 // [email protected]