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SPONSORS 2015 mAjOR COmmuNAl partner PARTNERS PATRONS CORPORATE SPONSORS OXFORD LOGISTICS GROUP EVENT SPONSORS ANONYMOUS 2015ANNUALREPORT Contents 2 President’s Message saM tatarka 7 exeCutive List Messages 10 tHe Hon. danieL andreWs MP Premier of victoria 11 THe Hon. MATTHeW guY MP Leader of the opposition Yom Ha’atzmaut Concert 2015 12 h.e. sHMueL Ben-sHMueL ambassador of israel 13 DR DANNY LaMM President, Zionist Federation of australia Ltd 14 roBert goot aM sC President, executive Council of australian Jewry inc 15 JenniFer HuPPert President, Jewish Community Council of victoria inc 16 sHLoMo Werdiger Anne Frank Exhibition 2015 President, united israel appeal victoria 17 exeCutive direCTOR’s rePort 24 saM TATARKA - 5 Years oF LeadersHiP 25 HonorarY treasurer’s rePort 27 BetH WeiZMann CoMMunitY Centre inC 30 LaMM JeWisH LiBrarY oF austraLia 32 HaBaYit Yom Ha’atzmaut Cocktail Parliament 2015 33 israeL aLiYaH Centre 34 MisHLaCHat (tHe sHLiCHiM desk) 36 Zionist YoutH CounCiL oF viCtoria 37 austraLasian union oF JeWisH students 39 HagsHaMa 40 JerusaLeM PrograM 2004 iBC in MeMoriaM Yom Hazikaron 2015 1 2015ANNUALREPORT President’s Message in this, my final report as activity in victoria, whilst promoting and communicating President of Zionism victoria, israel’s interests and victoria’s relationship with israel. until recently known as We realised that in order to continue to serve as the Zionist Council of victoria, community’s hub, we needed to provide excellent facilities i’m motivated to reflect on and services to our tenants and partners. With the the past five years – on the cooperation of our communal tenants and the capable challenges we’ve faced and the leadership of executive director Jane rapke, we worked achievements and milestones diligently and creatively to finance facility upgrades including we’ve reached during my new carpeting, window louvers and, most importantly, a new Sam Tatarka presidency. I also give voice to climate control system, all whilst maintaining and improving President a few thoughts I hope will assist financial stability. i am so grateful for the flexibility and in seeing Zionism victoria’s future growth and continued understanding demonstrated by Beth Weizmann tenants success. who bore the brunt of the upgrades. These improvements not only enhanced the work environment, they enabled us to bring new and returning tenants to Beth Weizmann. We are delighted that UJeB returned, bringing the energy of their I am beyond proud of how we students to the precinct. and our partners met these and our dreams for the newly renovated building which other challenges, all while houses the Lamm Jewish Library of Australia were to use the space it provided to establish a real Jewish Community expanding and improving our Centre in Melbourne – perhaps not a JCC in the American core mission - to lead and tradition with health clubs and sports leagues - but a centre of Jewish, israeli and Hebrew culture where people from encourage Jewish and Zionist across the community could join together to learn and activity in Victoria…. play, be entertained and inspired, and to celebrate and commemorate. i am delighted to report our community campus has indeed grown to become the gathering place for cultural, educational, ceremonial and political activity in Zionism victoria is both blessed and burdened by the our community. ownership of the Beth Weizmann Community Centre campus. Five years ago, we were in the position of having to fund and complete major work to one of those buildings and to find tenants to fill the newly renovated LJLa building. I am delighted to report Both of these issues had ramifications on our future financial our community campus has stability. Our strength as one of Melbourne’s oldest Zionist indeed grown to become the organisations and the roof body for the Zionist community was coupled with the challenges of being perceived as old gathering place for cultural, and stodgy and not always welcoming of diverse views. Over educational, ceremonial and the last half decade we have seen numerous changes in political activity in our government, both in Australia and in Israel, two wars in Gaza community. and terrible acts of terror, and an increase in anti-semitism and in the efforts of the Boycott, Divestment & Sanctions (Bds) campaign. i am beyond proud of how we and our partners met these the details of this transformation may be found in the Beth and other challenges, all while expanding and improving our Weizmann report, but I cannot resist drawing attention to core mission - to lead and encourage Jewish and Zionist the fabulous communal spirit we have seen at our Yom 2 2015ANNUALREPORT Ha’atzmaut family festivals and the success of Habayit’s school as they respectfully grapple with these important issues, and holiday camp programs, staffed by the Israeli Scouts (tzofim) i am proud of Zionism victoria for taking the lead. which attract hundreds of children and their families to the precinct over the course of the year. These activities have seen us connect with the Israeli expat community in ways I am also gratified by the that have not been seen previously. increased involvement and the building buzzes with activity from tenants such cooperative relationship we as aCCess inc, kogo and our newest addition – do good Labs, an energetic hub for art exhibitions, creative share with our youth. brainstorming and Jewish programming for young adults. Library programs include a Jewish film club (in conjunction with the australian Friends of the Hebrew university), i am also gratified by the increased involvement and scrabble club, art exhibitions and daily talmud shiur, and cooperative relationship we share with our youth. our KOOK Kosher Kitchen has become an essential component Zionist youth movements and AUJs along with their shlichim in the effort to fulfil our vision of a true communal hub. have been integral to the planning and production of our most important events, Yom Hazikaron and Yom Ha’atzmaut, From the outset, I was very keen to bring youth, diversity as well as other important communal events from rallies on and energy to our organisation, and I am immensely proud behalf of Israel to Yom Yerushalayim Trivia night to this year’s of our successes in that regard. program honouring the life of Yitzhak Rabin z”l on the 20th anniversary of his assassination. We have provided support for youth movement activities and have welcomed the I found that there was capacity opportunity to learn from them in events such as Habonim for Zionism Victoria and our dror’s program about the life and legacy of Yitzhak Rabin Zionist community to grow and which we hosted last year. We were delighted to partner with a range of Zionist young adult organisations on the evolve over the past five years. israel Birthday Bash which drew over 500 young adults to dance and celebrate israel’s independence. our affiliates represent a range of political, religious and ideological viewpoints, and it’s important that our programs and activities reflect that diversity. This has not always been ...our new name will reflect our easy, but I found that there was capacity for Zionism Victoria active, dynamic and engaging and our Zionist community to grow and evolve over the past five years. We have hosted and co-hosted events i role as a convener and centre never thought I’d see in Beth Weizmann, such as last year’s of Zionist activity... program with Dr Mohammed Al-Hadid of the Jordanian Red Crescent Society which saw the flag of Jordan join the flags of israel and Australia on the dais in the Nona Lee Auditorium. and it was youth with whom we consulted in the processes For two years, we have convened Jewish People Policy that led to our recent change of name to Zionism Victoria. institute (JPPi) workshops in which participants representing My aim in advocating for this change was see our organisation a broad spectrum of age, religious and political affiliations proudly and clearly articulate its purpose as a modern, deliberated a range of serious questions facing Israel and the engaging and all-encompassing Zionist organisation and to Jewish world in order to formulate a response for the JPPi move us out of the confusing communal “alphabet soup”. We on behalf of our community. In August, we were delighted asked executive committee member Daniel Nash to conduct to co-host JPPi Fellow shmuel rosner and an esteemed a focus group with young leaders about the proposed name local panel for a fascinating discussion about the intersection change and learned that they perceived Zionism Victoria as between religion and politics in Israel. It is always a pleasure projecting a more inclusive and welcoming attitude. With and honour to sit with a diverse group of dedicated Zionists their support and with the approval of the executive, the 3 2015ANNUALREPORT change has now taken place, and our new name will reflect our active, dynamic and engaging role as a convener and centre of Zionist activity. I inherited warm relationships We have continued to offer the community a meaningful with ministers and members space to remember and honour israel’s fallen on Yom of both sides of the house, Hazikaron, something that was especially poignant this past relationships that were year as two Melbourne families had lost loved ones to war maintained and strengthened… and terror in the previous year. We provide the community a range of options for celebrating Yom Ha’atzmaut from concerts to the family festival which in only its third year as co-convenors of the victorian Parliamentary Friends of drew over 2000 celebrants to Beth Weizmann for exciting israel, have resulted in consistent demonstrations of their israeli-style fun.