August 2nd 2006     

Dear Whittingehamian,
The BRIGHTON RE-UNION was a brilliant occasion.  You can get an impression of the general happiness by visiting www.whittingehame.com to see what pictures Louis Mandel has already displayed.  For one Whittingehamian , who left over half a century ago, it was the very first  re-union  ! Every year the school except ‘41 was represented, and equally important was the geographical range. Dibo Attar and Raymond Shayo made generous contributions to cover costs,  and Jacques Safra and Farid Nonoo, who had both pre-paid but were forced to cancel at the last minute, did not want re-payment, so we balanced the books comfortably.The FIRST FORMAL EVENT was the lecture by Eli Harari, chaired by Zvi Vromen, on.Saturday. Eli had technical details on prepared illustrations, and eased his way through the many questions  which ranged  across  scientific and business elements, and displayed examples of remarkable miniaturizations   His email site (for those who want details)    is  www.Sandisk.com  The lecture was followed by a first–rate supper but some Whits had to be accommodated outside our private room, for we hadn’t expected such crowds.  ! Many were accompanied by wives and other family members, so that a total of nearly 150 enjoyed a superb Grand Hotel Sunday lunch and the post–prandial speeches, chaired by Michael Keidan   Many many suggestions were made, especially for the survival of the club and the organization of future re-unions.   .Everybody felt the time had come when the club needed a clearer base, with an annual membership fee regularly paid and accounted for  ($100 or £60 was suggested) . An informal collection produced $3280 & £600 in minutes.The following paid 1year’s subs :Messrs H. Klein, Kertzer, Tony Lev,Skopicki and Zukerman, and 2 years by Messrs J.Abraham, C Adler, George Barkhordarian, Djemal,Ebrahimzadeh, Gonczarowski,Harari, Khalife,Missri,Henri Levy, Shiff,Mann and Sutton   It was advocated by Dubi Shiff and agreed by acclamation that Ron Dee and Eddy Edelsburg should be asked to undertake major roles in organizing in the UK and Israel, and be recompensed for their work, It was strongly  felt that Michael Howard (who intended moving to Israel in the near future) had borne an unfairly large and unacknowledged part of the work in London and deserved whole-hearted thanks and praise for all he had done.

A collection of nearly £2000 was made to support Brighton Torah Academy Primary School in the name of Jacob Halevy.  This was initiated by Jack Abraham, strongly supported by Raymond Shayo and Albert Cohen, and taken to the rabbi by Mr Hatchwell. 

It was thought that re-unions in Brighton, every year or two, would be popular, and Sasha Tesler said that the Princess Hotel, Eilat, would continue to offer hospitality and facilities in October in years when no other major activity was organized, though he pointed out that it was very disappointing if only a very small number of Whittingehamians attended.

Dozens of messages of commendation and approval have been received, including these:   “It was a smashing success, and the photos and play programmes of all those years ago gave that much more ‘oomph‘ to the nostalgia. The  informal camaraderie was wistfully sweet.  I enjoyed taking the number 5 bus (formerly the 19) to see Whittingehame Gardens, as well as visiting the Duke of York’s Cinema”;     “I think the idea to present one of our many success stories (Eli Harari) was a very nice approach, and we should have one or two presenters at every meeting if we can”.    Do you agree? Louis Mandel, with his usual generous and prompt efficiency, has already put many many  pictures on www.whittingehame.com.  See them immediately, and keep looking  !

It is sad to report a death. David Barouch (1948-52), a very good-natured pupil who spent nearly the whole of his career in the precious gems industry in the Far East, died recently in Thailand. We know of no relatives, and understand he was buried in Jerusalem.

But ………  we have found Sergiu Luca ,our only brilliant instrumentalist, who is still Professor of the violin at Rice University, South Dakota, and who must be congratulated, at the age of 61, on becoming a father for the first time.  So Mazeltov to him. If you go to “Sergiu Luca” on Google you will find 1000s of references to his career and recordings.

A meeting will be convened in London in the autumn to discuss our next moves.  If you would like details please let us know as soon as possible.  In the meantime Take Care, Be Well; and Best Wishes.  Just now, as you can imagine, our thoughts are with all our friends in Israel, to whom we send our warmest and BEST GOOD WISHES

Mike Howard, 1 College Rd., Wembley, M’sex  HA9 8RL Tel 0208 904 7313  Email  minav@btinternet.com
Barclays Bank, Hampstead  20/36/16, Whittingehame Club account 00277398

I will end with a list (apologies for some possible omissions)  of those who turned up::: Jawck Abraham (58-63), Carlo Adler (58-64), Ivi Adler(62-7), Amos Afroyim (58-64), Michael Arwas (58-63),  Jacob Asnin (57-60),   Dibo Attar, (54-9).     Abram Azagury (56-60),   Gordon Bloom (61-7),David Azagury (56-64), George Barkhordarian (50-63)    Victor Barkhordarian (59-62),  Trefor Bolton (staff), Nissky Boury  (61-64),      Anthony Belford (60-64),  Martin Berger (58-60), Joe Brim (63-67),   Leslie Brown (47-58),    Edwin Clein  (42-50), Albert Cohen (53-8),  Iraj Cohen (59-62), Morris Cohen (47-54),   Robert Cohen (53-64), Stanley Cohen(53-62),  Neville Davis (33-40) .Dan Dee  (57-61), Ron Dee  (60-5),  Eric Dickman(62-7), Ralph Djemal  (59-63), Elie Dunnoos(57-9), Alex Ebrahimzadeh(59-65),  Eddy Edelsburg (62-6), Marc El Eini (61-4),  Edward Ezer (50-57)  Gerald Fine (31-34),    Jeffrey Feeeman  (48-55),  Jacob Fuchs (57-63),   Stephen Gale  (64-67),   Zigi Gonczarowski (60-64),  Anthony Glynne(52-9), Leo Gitbud (59-63),  Martin Glynne (46-57),  Barrie Goldstein(58-65),   Dennis Goodman(36-9), Martin Green (52-63),   Michael Green (57-63),  Bruno Grunfeld (60-6),  Maurice Glynne (56-65),Eli Harari (58-63),  Dan Hasssidoff (53-6),  Kirsten Hatchwell (staff) , Simon Hatchwell (staff), Michael Howard (53-5),  Barry Jacobs (51-8)   Michael Keidan (52-59),  Fabio Kertzer (62-5),  Moise Khalife (57-69), Chaim Klein (62-65), Leopold Kula (61-65 ),  Chaim Labenski (63-6 ), Colin Lee(47-55), Anton Loew (56-9), Henri Levy (61-4), Aaron Lichtschein (60-5),  Louis Mandel (59-66),  Julius Maslovat (55-60),   Edgard Mann (60-2),   Paul Marks (63-7)   Jack Melroy (51-8), Sol Missri (51-61), Jacob Morgan (58-67),   Herbert Nahmias (51-4), Vyvyan Nussenbaum (60-7),  Joseph Pinto (62-5), Philip Prashner (52-7),  Izzy Rozov (57-62),   Farouk D. Shamash(49-54),  Raymond Shayo(52-7), Dubi Shiff (59-65)     David Singerman(54-61),    Jacob Skopicki (60-5),    Zev Solomon (57-61),  Eldon Smith (staff), Ella Smith (staff),   Moshe Solel (54-8), Axel Stawsky(61-7),  Yasha Sutton(59-62),  Alan Task (56-60),  Sasha Tesler(63-7), Danny Unger (64-7), Nahum Vaskevitch(62-6), Zvi Vromen(54-7), Amnon Weiser(59-62), Sam Wine (34-37),  Andrew Wyman  (60-66),  Paul Wynblatt (49-53),   George Zaidman(57-63), Jacques Zaidman(52-4), Joseph Zaidman (52-4), Jamshid Zadeh (51-7), Haim Zukerman (61-65)

Already looking forward to seeing you in Brighton again    or sooner,   Eldon & Ella

June 15th, 2006

Dear Whit,
Our Brighton Re-union, June 2006 will start with a lecture by Eli Harari at 5.30 p.m. at the De Vere Grand Hotel on Saturday June 24^th.   It will be entitled “How to succeed in Computer Electronics ……by really trying”   - so you can expect a wonderful new career by the end of the month    (JOKE)…   Please let us know if you will be joining us.  The hotel will provide a two-course supper for £20 afterwards –again please let us know.

On Sunday coffee will be served at the Grand from 10.00 a.m., and there will be a photograph s (and a few other mementos) on display.  If you have such items please bring them along.  Louis Mandel (helped by Andrew Wyman) will have his equipment for instantaneous transmission to the web-site.

Lunch will be at 12.30 for 1.00 p.m.  After the usual post-prandial sermons  there will be tea for survivors (Second joke).  And then Au Revoir until the next time.

Let us know if you have booked at one of the sea-front hotels so that Whits can be put in touch with each other without wasting precious time  Also, please, let us know (if you haven’t done so already) if you are bringing guests, so that we can be as accurate as possible in our lunch orders.

Everybody is looking forward – so be certain to be there !
But whether or not you’ll be with us       -----Cheers   Eldon (mobile 07785 991 371).
P.S>  Please pass this information on to any Whit who doesn’t have e-mail.

May 9th, 2006

Dear Whitnik,
This is substantially an interim report and request, chiefly directed at the minority who have not told us of their plans/wishes in respect of the Brighton re-union.  As you are all aware, the more accurate our  figures are, the better the catering terms will be.  We are especially thinking of the Sunday lunch at the Grand Hotel.  Will you definitely be with us? I have sent information re payment, but if your bank presents difficulties (which would not make you unique) please let us know that you will definitely be paying at the door!     There will also be Saturday functions (we are negotiating), but numbers will not be so crucial.

By the way, Ella and I belong to an organization called Saga, which caters for holidays etc for people aged 50+.  The joke goes that the initials stand for Sex And Games for Ancients, or, alternatively, Send A Geriatric Abroad.   However I should think that all Whitniks are now entitled to be members, and the point is they have a Hilton Brighton cheap holiday scheme which is worth investigating.   
Try  http://www.sagaholidays.co.uk/hilton  Good luck

Louis Mandel will be bringing scanning equipment, so if you have suitable snaps please bring them.  I have already received some from Messa, a pre-war Whitnik who cannot attend.

I regret having to report the deaths of two Edwinsfordians   : Tony Marsh (Matz)  and Gerald Levy. I have sent messages of sympathy to the families, including Joyce, Tony’s sister, who was one of the small number of girls at Edwinsford.

We will be out of computer range next week (May 15-22), so I apologise in advance for any delay in replying to your messages   --but please send messages, all the same   ..

April 6th, 2006

THE WHITTINGEHAME CLUB

Dear Whitnik,
Greetings to you all. A few of you may not be aware that there’s to be a MAJOR RE-UNION IN BRIGHTON ON JUNE 24-25^th

At the successful Eilat Re-union in October 2005 it was agreed that the next major meeting should be in Brighton, rather than in London.  A questionnaire was e-mailed, and it was confirmed that this idea was overwhelmingly backed – with more than 100 very positive supporters.

There is to be a lunch at the De Vere Grand Hotel  (known in our Brighton days as the Grand) on Sunday June 25th.,  We can foregather for coffee etc from 11a.m., and stay until after tea to reminisce.  The charge will be £50 per person (please send cheques as soon as possible to Michael Howard, 1 College Rd., Wembley,  Middlex HA9 8RI –Tel 0208 904 7313-0 We need to pay deposits and meet other expenses, so additional loans or donations will be very welcome indeed. If cheques are impossible please arrange bank transfers to the Whittingehame Club account , no. 00277398 at Barclays Bank 20/36/16   The interests of visiting Whitts will vary: the Pavilion, the Surrenden Rd site, the Duke of York’s Cinema, the Theatre Royal, the Dome, Handcross, the piers, coffee bars,  Lanes, Black Rock (now a marina – and we half-expect one visitor by boat), etc. Please send your ideas….. We hope to arrange talks by visitors with interesting post-school experiences ( such as Dan Gillerman, or Eli Harari) or fantasies or myths. There will certainly be an evening talk on Saturday, followed by a light meal.  As you know there are many hotels on the front, so you can choose your  accommodation.  Some have already booked at the Grand or  the Hilton Metropole.

Apparently www prepaid reservations are cheaper:
The De Vere Grand  01273 224300     http://www.grandbrighton.co.uk
The Hilton Metropole      01273 775432      http://www.hilton.co.uk
The Royal Albion    01273  329203     http://www.britanniahotels.com
The Old Ship    01273  329001   http://www.paramount-hotels.co.uk  
The Thistle      http://www.thistlehotels.com ,
And there are plenty of others (perhaps not  as good) in the vicinity.  If you fail, try ohoward@hotelconnectusa.com   (attention Orlina), who will be able to help. When you have reserved accommodation please let us know, so that we can tell your friends where to find you. 

We have not had an opportunity to report on the very successful party in NY when Dan Gillerman hosted a get-together at the Israeli Embassy But look at the pictures on http://www.whittingehame.com, which Louis Mandel continues to manage so brilliantly, deserving our admiration and gratitude.Visit the site to see recent pictures of Dan Gladstone, Nisky Boury, Tony Loew, Ebu Cohen, Dan Gillerman, Itzak Djemal, Ezra  Suleiman, Izy Kogan, Charles Joory, Solomon Levy, Edgar Mann, Sami Jolles, Alex Ebrahimzadeh, Mickey Gillerman, Raphael Attar and Joseh Safra, our President, whose business landed him in New York at the right time.  There are one or two others too – and lots of wives.…………..

At the same time you can look at the pictures of the Eilat re-union of October 2005, (a wonderfully happy occasion as always) and see pictures of Victor Barkhordarian, Amos Afroyim, Arye Tenne, Leo Gitbud, Marc El-Eini,, Haim Zukerman,  Michael Alfasi, Ivi Adler, Sasha Tesler,  Chaim Labenski, Dibo Attar,   Zev Solomon, Dennis Goodman , Alfred Inselberg, Amnon Weiser, Jack Melroy, Farouk Shamash, Jacob  Asnin (and others).   And lots of wives, though grandchildren,(very welcome at the Princess) remained unphotographed..………………………And don’t forget to look  at the Announcements regularly. 

We regret having to tell you of some recent  deaths. Maurice Casket was exclusively a non-Brighton Whitnik ,1941-44, (of whom there were few). He became a much-respected solicitor and arbitrator, with whose wife Maureen we share grief and sympathy.  We have also lost. David Green and Joseph Wahba, both in their fifties.   David, in particular, had been able to attend many recent functions despite massive heart attacks, but Joseph had not complained of ill-health, and died very suddenly indeed.  We send our sympathy to their families.

IF YOU receive this by post, (especially if you are not resident in the UK), do you realise that you could have received it several days (or weeks) earlier by email, and do you appreciate it saves us time and money to communicate by email?   So if you are electronically active    -Please send us your email address.  And playing with this equipment apparently keeps you young (and romantic)!!!

BUT electronically or no     All possible good wishes

March 24th, 2006
Brighton Reunion
 

The major elements of the re-union will occur on June 24-25^th, 2006 The interests of visitors will vary enormously:  the Pavilion, the Surrenden Rd site, the Duke of Yorks cinema, the Theatre Royal, even the synagogue, Handcross, the piers, coffee bars sites, the Lanes, Black Rock (now a marina) etc. Much will depend on old cronies and wives.  Some will have limited time and will content themselves with the 24-25th in Brighton and then to London or elsewhere. We hope to have opportunities to hear Old Whitts who have interesting post-school histories (e.g.Dan Gillerman) or fantasies (WHO?)  So we cannot prepare a 3 or 4 or 5-day programme, as we could if we we were going to Las Vegas or Israel  !  But other functions will be arranged , for example a talk on Saturday evening, followed by a light meal.

The venue for the Reunion Lunch is the De Vere Grand Hotel in Brighton.  We are charging £50 per person. Please send cheques, made out to the 'Whittingehame Club' as soon as possible, (M.Howard, 1 College Rd., Wembley, Middlesex, HA9 8RI ) to enable him to pay the 50% deposit required, (Loans would also help to expedite the process).

Whitniks who have problems with sterling cheques (to pay for lunch or make loans or contributions) are encouraged to use bank transfers to Barclays Bank 20/36/16 Whittingehame Club Account 00277398

For hotel accommodation:
 

Rates for the Hilton Metropole in Brighton (Next door to the Grand),are:
(click hotel name above for more info)

PLEASE NOTE:  SEVERAL WHITNIKS HAVE OBTAINED BETTER RATES AT THIS HOTEL.   IT IS SUGGESTED THAT YOU CONTACT RESERVATIONS DIRECTLY TO DETERMINE INDIVIDUAL NEEDS

Rates include breakfast and taxes. 
Please note that the special discounted rates apply for the nights of June 25th to June 27th only. 
The higher weekend rates apply if you wish to stay the nights of June 23 and 24th.

Rates for the Thistle Hotel in Brighton (also on the sea-front, about 100 yards nearer the pier) are:
(click hotel name above for more info)

Both the above hotels should be booked through Hotel Connect by E-Mail to:
ohoward@hotelconnectusa.com  attention Orlina.

 

Rates for the De Vere Grand at Brighton, are:
(click hotel name above for more info)

Should be booked DIRECTLY with the hotel -Tel: +44 (0) 1273 224311 E-Mail -
 darren.johnson@grandbrighton.co.uk 
mentioning the Whittingehame Club Reunion.

IF TRY TO BOOK THE HOTEL DIRECTLY BY EMAIL OR PHONE
AND FAIL TO GET A GOOD PRICE CONTACT ORLINA
ohoward@hotelconnectusa.com

Other Brighton Hotels

Other functions will also be arranged - certainly an evening function on the Saturday, but possibly others as well.