Born and raised in Redbridge, barmitzvah boy Aryeh was among the first intake of the Clore Tikva Primary School and is now at King Solomon High. A huge fan of Pokemon and Doctor Who, he also enjoys writing stories
What was special about your simchah?
That four generations of my family read verses from the Torah. Besides me, there was my father Marc Michaels, who is a scribe and designer of the new Reform Judaism siddur; my grandfather Rabbi Maurice Michaels, of South West Essex and Settlement Reform Synagogue — where the ceremony took place; and my great-grandfather Jack Michaels. It was also special because my great-grandmother had an aliyah, something she doesn’t get in her own shul.
Tell us about the ceremony
In my dvar Torah, I mentioned how my sedra was special because it contained the Birkat Kohanim [priestly blessing]. We arranged it so that we all had a reading with my great- grandfather finishing. It was a big family event — family is important to me — and my other grandfather Joseph Gold paraded the Torah round the shul. My two grandmothers, Eileen Michaels and Brenda Gold, opened the Ark .
Tell us about the celebration
We had a nice kiddush and then lunch with lots of good food. Everyone had a really good time and I particularly liked the Dalek theme. A big cut-out Dalek greeted guests, and I enjoyed making Dalek invitations and Dalek table decorations and having a Dalek cake. I presented a gift to my grandfather Rabbi Maurice Michaels for all his help in teaching me my barmitzvah portion.