It is such a privilege to be the CEO of Jewish Child’s Day. Jewish Child’s Day is all about the children. Ensuring that, wherever possible, Jewish children grow up in an environment that is loving, caring and nurturing. Our hope is that no Jewish child, anywhere in the world, should be subjected to discrimination, abuse, poverty or exclusion.
After working for more than 20 years in the events industry, in the charity and hospitality sectors, I was drawn to Jewish Child’s Day, as it was an established but small charity making a demonstrable difference to hundreds of organisations across the globe.
We support the projects that have no voice in the UK, Israel and the rest of the world. Projects like these rely on Jewish Child’s Day funding to continue their work, as they have no other way of raising vital funds.
Following my appointment in August 2019, I hit the ground running, along with my small but dedicated team. I have visited some of the schools and projects that we support here in the UK and I feel so inspired and proud to know that JCD is making a difference to so many children who need emotional, holistic, educational or physical support. It is heartwarming to see where our funds are being used and I look forward to ensuring we can keep on supporting these children on so many levels.
I am excited about the year ahead and working hard to build partnerships, create exciting initiatives and collaborate with other similar organisations. For example, we are working with The Malki Foundation to run a joint trek in Israel in October this year and I think it is really important for the community to see that, through this new partnership, we can cut and share our costs and hopefully make a bigger impact for both our charities in the long run.
I am incredibly excited about my Feburary trip to Israel, where I will have the opportunity to visit around 30 new and existing projects and to see behind the scenes, at first hand, the people who are dedicated to helping these children in really necessitous circumstances.
My life outside of charity is focused on my family, my children, my dog and my other passion — food. I live with my husband, Mark and our son Ben, who is 15. I also have two grown-up children with two pending weddings.
I have been working in the charity sector for many years, however I had a five-year break when I was the business consultant for the Glasgow Restaurant Association (which meant I could be surrounded by food!). This was a marketing association with more than 100 members, working together with the public and private sectors. I was involved in dining promotions, award ceremonies, festivals and conferences which helped to drive customers and business through their doors.
I was still able to wear my charity hat and through the restaurateurs’ support we raised hundreds of thousands of pounds for many different charities, including Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centres, Clic Sargent and The Prince & Princess of Wales Hospice. I am so thrilled to play a small part in such an amazing organisation and I am really looking forward to sharing more about what we do and the lifechanging stories we make.
1st Floor Elscot House, Arcadia Ave N3 2JU
020 8446 8804
www.jcd.uk.com
Registered charity 209266