By Keiko Brouard Bromley Synagogue: 28th May, Suzuko Wood and Keiko Brouard of WFWP Bromley were invited to Bromley Reform Synagogue senior member’s social gathering. This meeting started 21 years ago, with the aim to take care of Holocaust refugees. First of all, the beautiful lunch held in the synagogue Dining room was prepared by the younger generation of the Jewish community. Keiko Brouard presented the aims of WFWP and the summary of international activities, followed by Suzuko Wood, who showed the amazing Origami creatures. We all tried to make a paper bird. At the end, everyone became so excited to see the results. We were therefore invited to assist with their open day. Helping Homeless starter pack: Ms A. H. Tree from our local Parish Church is organizing a homeless starter pack scheme for several years, providing bedding, cooking equipment and basic daily items for people who have been on the streets or in a hostel and are allocated a flat by Bromley Council. Faith groups, local volunteers and the private sector have been supporting this project. Household goods have also been donated by the local community. On 30th June, four WFWP Bromley members, including one youth member, joined forces to sort out the donated goods and the shelving in the parish church storage room. We were made to order the tea cups, dinner plates, cutlery and more. It became a whole morning of dusty hard work, but in the end, it was very satisfying to see the shelves clean and tidy. Ann was so grateful for our effort and we promised to return at the beginning of September.  On 1st September, three Youth WFWP members and Keiko Brouard retuned the Parish Church to sort out the bedding. We separated the bedding and towels into two sections, a wash pile and ones ready to use. We fully used our sense of smell and sharp eyes for this task! Afterwards, we made a starter pack for a mother and her children who escaped from domestic violence. Anne explained that the main reason for people to become homeless is divorce. It made us think. Keiko offered to wash nearly a car-boot load of bedding. One of the youth was really amazed by Anne’s attention to detail when caring for the homeless. We agreed to come to help this scheme once a month. Japanese fund raising cultural event for Syrian refugees : On 5th July, Bromley WFWP organized a Japanese cultural event to raise funds for the Syrian Refugees at Livingstone House in Chislehurst, Kent. We started the afternoon with a warm welcoming introduction given by Yebuny Hanna. Dawn Pollitt from Youth WFWP gave a very clear PowerPoint presentation showing the aims and the international activities of WFWP. Keiko Brouard gave a report on the refugee’s relief activity of WFWP Jordan as she visited Jordan in May 2014. A beautiful entertainment programme kicked off by a very cheerful “Souranbushi” dance by three Japanese Youth WFWP volunteers, followed by a Japanese tea ceremony. Some in the audience volunteered to taste the tea. This was followed by a graceful traditional Japanese dance, presented by Ms Ayu who is a professional performer. We concluded this entertainment by dancing together with “ Tankobushi” led by Harumi Currie. The whole audience stood up and copied the moves. We looked at each other and laughed together. We then moved to the dining room to taste some Japanese food. All food were prepared by the loving hands of WFWP volunteers. We also held Origami, Kimono wearing and Calligraphy workshops. A whole family tried wearing kimonos. They were so proud and happy to pose for us. Participants are usually excited to try out and learn new things. We raised £484.50 It was certainly a very memorable summer afternoon.
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