Did you help #RaisetheBar?
CTTH recently ran a unique 24-hour fundraising campaign which was entitled #raisethebar.
The way it worked was that for just 24 hours all donations were quadrupled by three generous benefactors, making every R1 worth R4. But the catch was, as per the agreement with the matchers, it was all or nothing. If the school did not reach its campaign goal within the allotted time, all donations were to be returned.
The campaign succeeded beyond any expectations, and within just a few hours the entire amount was raised! The school then launched a bonus round, and by the end of the 24 hours, it almost doubled the campaign total!
“The outpouring from the local community was overwhelming and humbling,” says Rabbi Avi Shlomo, of CTTH. “Over 450 people in total contributed to the campaign, proving to us that the school has a much greater community impact than just the sum of its parts. In addition, parents, students, and even alumni, all threw themselves into this initiative, spending hours in the operation room, calling friends and family, posting on social media, and creating a tremendous vibe and awareness that was just as valuable as the campaign itself. Volunteers from across the community came in and helped organise the call centre, local restaurants provided food, drinks, and snacks for the callers, and so many people created and shared images and videos for online and over social media, and this all set up the project for success.”
Greg Gelb, executive director of CTTH, concurs. “We had tremendous feedback from donors. One person told us he was glued to his computer screen watching the campaign totals tally up rapidly, and does not remember being so transfixed by his screen since the moon landing! Another person wrote to us that the campaign proved to them that the public recognises the unique need for such a school in the town, and a past student wrote that he was unsurprised by the outpouring as he also felt the school generates an inexplicable need to get involved.”
Yedidya Opert places second in The White Rose Art and Writing Competition
Cape Town Torah High is proud to announce that Grade 9 student Yedidya Opert has won second place in the Cape Town Holocaust Museum’s White Rose Writing Project, in the junior essay writing section.
The White Rose Art and Writing Project is an annual event hosted by the Cape Town Holocaust Museum. The Project takes its name from a group of German University Students who resisted the Nazis during World War II. Led by Sophie Scholl and her brother Hans, they were known as the White Rose Movement. Each year, learners from schools around the country are invited to submit entries in either essay, poetry or art format.
The theme of this year’s White Rose Project was ‘Recognising and Resisting Injustice’. Yedidya wrote a fascinating essay called ‘Resistance Through Commitment to Jewish Law’. The essay is based on the writings of Rabbi Ephraim Oshry, who miraculously survived the Holocaust. During this time, many Jews asked him questions about how to maintain keeping Jewish law despite the hardships they faced.
In the essay, Yedidya explores how the Jews still practiced their faith, even through these unimaginable hardships. The simple act of maintaining human dignity and keeping Jewish law was a powerful act of resistance against the oppressive Nazi regime.
