Chanukah is a time to celebrate and share warmth with our families and after two years of restricted candle lighting it is wonderful to be able to come together again. However, Chanukah is also a reminder that the Jewish community has been facing adversity for hundreds of years with the physical threat of conflict very much a reality. For the Service community and their families this is the case all year round and for our veterans it was often their experience to find themselves in a war zone as they lit their candles.
This year our veterans are safe in the UK but that doesn’t mean they are able to share this time with the families or communities - winter can be a particularly difficult time for people, the weather makes socialising difficult, the darkness can make people isolated and feel alone and the coming together of some can make the feeling of loss of friends and relatives all the more acute. That is why AJEX is always there for our Jewish veteran community and their families: it is why we ensure that we support their morale with Remembrance Parades and services throughout the year; why we continue to fight antisemitism, through education, outreach and through the physical reminder of our participation in military events, just as they have done; and it is why we look after them throughout the hard times not just celebrate them at the good times. Our welfare activities are an important part of what we do and that outreach need is particularly significant at times of festival and celebration.
Chanukah is a time to come together and to remind everyone that we are here to help all year round. To provide that help and support is something that AJEX has a mission to do as a charity. It is fundamental reason why our Jewish service personnel created the organisation decades ago and it is a fundamental reason why our work is still so important all these years later.
Service, Remembrance and charity are part of the AJEX core all year round, especially in the dark times and we hope that you are able to help us to continue that work for many years to come.
So, we would like to wish all our members and friends in the Jewish and non-Jewish community happy holidays and remind you all that our work continues all year round. If you would like to support our work visit www.ajex.org.uk/donate Thank you.
