Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis revealed his family’s sporting prowess when addressing the official opening of Maccabi GB’s new headquarters in Kenton on Sunday.
Rabbi Mirvis told the 100 guests, including the Mayors of Brent and Harrow, that his wife Valerie had been an outstanding athlete in her native Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe).
“But that’s nothing compared to her mother and her sister, who both got medals at the Maccabiah.”
He speculated whether his mother-in-law, “who is well into her 90s”, was the oldest living Maccabiah gold medallist.
Directing his audience to the array of large images sited behind him, he said they demonstrated the three things Maccabi was about — “sport for all, Israel and Judaism.
“Sport for all, regardless of how able or disabled one happens to be; our pride in Israel, our connection to Israel.”
As for Judaism, Rabbi Mirvis highlighted an image of kippot-wearing Maccabiah participants at the Kotel, “a beautiful photo. I hope they didn’t put kippot on just for the sake of the photo! But certainly that image for me encapsulates the power of Maccabi.
“To strengthen our Jewish identity, to enable people of all ages to be proud of their Jewish roots and, through playing sport together, through socialising together, through their connection with Israel, to be proud of what it means to be a Jew today.”
Rabbi Mirvis also affixed a mezuzah to the new premises, the Stanley S Cohen Centre, which Maccabi GB moved into after a ten month refurbishment.
CEO Ashley Lerner told the JC that the building had been administered by the Kenton Youth Aid Trust, also known as Maccabi Kenton and latterly Kulanu.
It had also been used for overflow services for Kenton Synagogue, located opposite.
However, with a diminishing local Jewish population, the youth trust had merged into Maccabi GB to gift the building, rather than sell it outside of the community.
Mr Lerner said that despite having been “a happy tenant” at the organisation’s previous home at Shield House in Hendon, it had been a relatively small space.
“For us to have our own home is significant. There is the financial benefit and we can bring a lot of activities in-house,” not least because of the impressive upper level sports hall.
“It’s our objective to have as much activity as possible. We can rent out space to communal organisations and we’ll be opening our doors to the wider Kenton community, from local choirs to the school next door.”
Sunday’s event also featured a tribute to the organisation’s former chief executive, Martin Berliner, who was visibly moved by the surprise dedication of a meeting room in memory of his parents.
