A Manchester-based charity which encourages children to give to others on special occasions has spread its message of goodwill to the capital.
The Big Barmitzvah Appeal, an offshoot of the Big Birthday Appeal, is funding a sensory garden for blind children at the new Bayis Sheli residential and respite home in Stamford Hill.
Big Birthday Appeal co-founder Jude Moryoussef said the £10,000 project was a natural progression for the charity, which was established 13 years ago. As Bayis Sheli wanted to attract young supporters who would also give practical help, "it seemed like an obvious fit".
The appeal assists barmitzvah or birthday celebrants to raise money for children's charities.
"We started the appeal when [co-founder] Suzy Glaskie and I had small children," Ms Moryoussef recalled. "I went to buy a birthday card for £2.50 and thought: 'This is ridiculous. The money could be given to charity.' We saw our kids tearing apart wrapping paper and quickly moving on to the next present. We wanted to instil in them how lucky they were and make them charitable people of the future. We now want to empower barmitzvah kids. It's a prime time to do so, at the start of their adulthood."
We want to make them charitable people of the future
The barmitzvah appeal's first London participant is Haberdashers' Aske's pupil Ben Goldstein, whose ceremony was at Hampstead Garden Synagogue.
Ben said a visit to disabled Jewish children had made him "want to do whatever I could to make their lives better. So when I heard about the Big Barmitzvah Appeal, I knew this was where I wanted to give my money to."
Bayis Sheli co-founder Leah Stern was "touched that there are so many boys and girls out there who think of others during such a special time in their lives". The home will offer temporary or permanent accommodation to children when it opens next month.
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