A major charity dinner was among the casualties of Monday’s heavy snow in London.
Camp Simcha, supporting children with life-threatening illnesses, had to alert the 650 guests expected at the Wembley Stadium event when it became apparent that many could not travel because of road conditions.
The good news was that Camp Simcha managed to reschedule the dinner for next week and that caterer James Zimmer agreed to donate the food for Monday to Gift, assisting vulnerable members of the community.
Camp Simcha chief executive Neville Goldschneider said: “We are obviously concerned about the impact of the dinner postponement on the charity. If at the same time, however, we can work to help needy families and avoid unnecessary waste, it makes us all feel a lot better.”
The travel disruption also affected charities working with the elderly and disabled. Jewish Care’s Redbridge Community Centre was shut on Monday but clients were contacted and offered emergency food. Staff and volunteers ensured that meals-on-wheels were delivered.
At Jewish Care homes, night staff stayed on to cover for colleagues unable to get to work. At Ella and Ridley Jacobs House in Hendon, Natasha Carson drove night staff home and collected day staff living too far away to walk to work.
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