On 2 July 2017 Chabad Lubavitch of Islington hosted the Big Jewish Summer Fete. Around 1000 people joined for a family fun summer Sunday at Highbury Fields for a celebration of Jewish culture, from bagels to klezmer, from circle dancing to stand-up comedy. To the soundtrack of live klezmer music by the funky Tantz band, participants were able to explore the wealth of Jewish culture with a series of talks at the ‘speakers corner’ on everything Jewish, from art and dance, to comedy and literature. Learning Krav Maga tactics or Israeli Dance moves, havdala candle making by the Jewish Museum or testing your knowledge in the custom made Jewish Escape Room were among the many activities for young and old. People indulged in kosher ice cream or grabbed a bagel, brought their little ones for a jam-packed programme of hands-on workshops, rides, Arsenal penalty shootout and storytelling. The Mayor or Islington, Una O'Halloran said ‘I really want to thank the rabbi because a lot of work has gone into this and I hope next year it is an even bigger success’. Leader of Islington Council, Richard Watts said ‘What a fantastic use of Highbury Fields to bring all our local Islington communities together on this Sunday afternoon. It’s brilliant that we at the Council can support the Jewish community in this way’ One of the participants shared ‘It’s a great event and it’s really good for Islington to have something so public like this’ ‘We put a lot of focus on planning the event with a wide range of activities to engage all ages and interests, from fun to educational, active to entertaining’ Said the organiser and Rabbi of Islington, Mendy Korer of Chabad Islington ‘It was a tremendous celebration for our community, we have been steadily growing over the past 5 years and look forward to welcoming many more people to our diverse and cohesive Chabad House.’ A big thank you goes to the event sponsors: Islington Council, Islington Square, Gelbergs LLP, Chabad Young Professionals, Carlton Estate Agents and Co-Op. And to the many partners: Jewish Museum, Israeli Dance Institute, Access to Sports, Jerusalem the Golden, Arsenal in the Community, Tzivos Hashem, Prime Krav Maga Institute, London Fire Brigade, NHS, Funzing, Luckylink, George Irvin’s and to the security, CST and Islington Police.
