Jocelyn Shepherd
Its amazing who you meet in a steam room Michael Robinson our Head of Security met a man Geoffrey Muller in the steam room in Barkingside. While having a massage it transpired that Geoffrey had received a legacy from an insurance policy taken out in 1934 in Amsterdam by his grandfather’s brother Nico Meijer.
Nico took out the insurance policy to safeguard the future of his wife and their children. Tragically they all perished in the Holocaust. Geoffrey wanted to use the small legacy for a religious purpose and spoke to Michael about it saying he had approached one Synagogue and they had not got back to him. I immediately contacted Geoffrey and invited him to visit our Shul. He was impressed and offered me the money to purchase a number of Chumashim which I purchased and inscribed in commemoration of the following people:-
Nico Meijer who was born on 1st May 1897 in Amsterdam and died on 16th July 1943 in Sobibor; he died together with his wife Vogeltje (Flora) Emden who was born in Amsterdam on 4th December 1893.
They had three children:
Sal born 29th September 1922 in Amsterdam died 30th September 1942 in Auschwitz
Jenny born 5th February 1926 in Amsterdam died 16th July 1943 in Sobibor
Nanny born 18th January 1935 in The Hague died 16th July 1943 in Sobibor.
It is a very sad story but now the Meijer family will always be remembered by those using our payer books.
Donating a book to a synagogue is an excellent way to preserve the memory of a deceased loved one or to celebrate a simcha.
We will be gradually phasing in the MRJ new siddur over the next year and we need to buy enough for use in our services.
Please consider purchasing and presenting us with some copies in order to help out.
They now cost £21 .50 with the plastic cover.
Jocelyn Shepherd