Mesila organized a gathering for representatives of shuls in London
Shul reps meeting
A meeting of representatives was held last Monday, organised by Mesila UK Executive Director, Benji Landau. The meeting was attended by 20 people from various shuls around North West London. The aim of the meeting was to make sure as many shuls as possible were aware of what Mesila does. By doing so, this ensures the shuls are better equipped to signpost members of theirs who may be struggling through the ongoing cost of living crisis. There were a number of people at the meeting who manage shul gemachim and are responsible for dealing with requests for loans and grants. Those who attended had an opportunity to discuss some of the issues, such as how to deal with the increase in requests due to the crisis. In addition, they discussed issues such as how to carry out due diligence without being too invasive or insensitive. Also in attendance was a Mesila UK coach who gave a case study of a coaching client. He described their situation before coming to Mesila, what they discussed as part of the process, and what the outcomes were. The aim was to make it clear to the shul reps how Mesila can help those with long term financial stability. Those who attended the meeting were very enthusiastic about the outcomes and a commitment was made to keep an open channel of communication so people could discuss best practice. Additionally, Mesila is now speaking to a number of the shuls represented with the aim of delivering a workshop on how to manage through the crisis.
Workshops
Over the last few weeks Mesila UK have delivered workshops in a number shuls and community organizations. The aim of the workshop is to give some helpful information and inspiration to guide those who may be struggling to maintain financial stability through the cost of living crisis. The focus of the workshop is to highlight the fact that although it’s clear we might need to streamline at this time, it’s vital to do so in a way that has the biggest impact. Often, people can go to lengths to streamline but in ways that don’t have the kind of impact that will help. Sometimes it can also lead to complacency. We then had one of our coaches give step-by-step instructions on how to create a snapshot of one’s current finances. The workshop also described why this is such a useful process; clarity creates control and having a concrete number helps to have a goal to work towards. There are more workshops planned in two other shuls and a number of other shuls have also requested similar events.
