Seven years ago, Nechama Dina and I had a vision for the future of our community. As we thought about the opportunity to rebuild our Shul, we wanted to create a space to both reflect and foster our community.

We are grateful for the beautiful community we are lucky enough to be a part of and it is wonderful to see how it has grown and flourished. We wanted to do what we could to support, celebrate and nourish that.

One of the many fascinating lessons of this year has been just how important it is for us to come together. Unfortunately, too often this year we have been reminded of that lesson in difficult circumstances, when the virus has removed or limited our ability to be physically present with each other. As we have learned what it is to be socially distant, quarantined and self-isolated, we have yearned for connection, community and togetherness.

Of course this lesson is nothing new in Judaism. We come together daily when we pray, as well as for births, deaths and everything in between. The concept of a Minyan mandates the coming together of at least ten people before we can consider ourselves as constituting a community of Israel.

It is this concept of coming togetherness that is at the heart of the new Nefesh Centre. This is not only a house of prayer, although undoubtedly the Shul sits at the centre of the building and our community. It is also a home for mothers’ groups and their babies and toddlers to come together. It is a hang-out for our youth. A place of study, cooking, celebration and connections. It is a vehicle that exists to host the community in any of the ways we choose to come together.

The new Centre is your new centre – a community asset that exists to serve the Jewish community and bring us together. Which is why we are so excited to share, that the completion of this project is imminent.

We are excited to celebrate with you.