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Marc Sternberg z”l: A champion of Cape Town’s Jewish community

The sudden passing of Marc Sternberg z”l has left a profound sense of loss across Cape Town’s Jewish community – a community to which he gave generously, energetically and, very often, quietly.

Marc’s contribution extended across numerous communal organisations and initiatives. Rabbi Pini Hecht of the Marais Road Shul described him as someone who did not simply talk about what could be done differently or better – he acted. His generosity was consistent, but his contribution was about considerably more than financial support. He gave his time, shared ideas and offered direction, particularly when organisations were navigating difficult periods.

One organisation especially close to him was the Simcha Fund, a communal organisation that helps financially struggling community members celebrate joyous life milestones and occasions (simchas) with dignity. He worked closely with Rabbi Matthew Liebenberg of the Claremont/Wynberg Congregation in the work of the Fund, serving as vice-chairman. He was also its most generous and regular donor for many years. His support helped dozens of children celebrate their bar and bat mitzvahs, enabled couples to have modest weddings, helped Grade 12 pupils attend their Matric Dance with confidence, and assisted families in celebrating a brit milah with dignity. 

Bringing a wealth of business experience and knowledge, Marc was deeply involved with the Fund, and had in fact started working on the financial documentation for the Simcha Fund for 2027 just prior to his passing. 

He also played an important role in the development of Jewish student life in Cape Town and Stellenbosch. Rabbi Nissen Goldman recalled that Marc became the first person in Cape Town to commit to a monthly donation towards the establishment of Chabad on Campus – volunteering his support before he had even been asked.

His involvement continued as the programme grew. He sponsored welcome braais and mezuzot for students in Cape Town and Stellenbosch and encouraged Rabbi Goldman to establish a full-time Chabad presence in Stellenbosch. When Rabbi Goldman hesitated, Marc urged him: “Just go for it, the money will come.” Today, more than 150 Jewish students in Stellenbosch have access to Jewish social events, shiurim, Shabbat meals, friendship and support. And, continuing the vision started by Marc, Rabbi Goldman hopes to purchase a permanent property for the Chabad House dedicated to Marc’s life and legacy.   

Marc’s giving reached many more organisations, including the City of Cape Town. One example is his involvement and support of the Cobras Mountain Protection Team, an initiative to provide safety to hikers on Table Mountain. This contribution was recognised by the presence at Marc’s funeral of the Executive Mayor of Cape Town, Geordin Hill-Lewis. 

Yet, much of what Marc did went without acknowledgement. Rabbi Goldman recalled Marc enthusiastically showing him a spreadsheet he had devised to allocate his monthly tzedakah across an extensive list of causes. “At his core,” he said, “it’s who he was – a giver.”

But Marc could also be challenging. He had strong views about how things should be done and was unafraid to voice them. Those who worked closely with him experienced his advice, mentorship and sometimes ‘tough love’ – driven by a desire to see people and organisations succeed.

Underlying it all was a strong sense of Jewish identity and communal responsibility. He wanted Jewish life in Cape Town to flourish – and believed in taking responsibility for making that happen.

Marc leaves his wife Tanya, children Zoe, Aaron and Liv, his parents Michael and Leora, his sister Lauren and her family – as well as a community immeasurably enriched by what he gave to it.

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Court victory affirms limits of protest and harassment

A judgment by the Western Cape High Court has affirmed that the constitutional right to protest does not extend to defamatory, intimidating or unlawful conduct, following a legal challenge brought by Cape Union Mart against the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) and its supporters.

The judgment, handed down on 4 September, orders protesters to stop making defamatory statements about Cape Union Mart, its brands and Philip Krawitz, the company’s executive chairperson. For almost three years, the PSC and its supporters have staged protests outside Cape Union Mart stores and made allegations concerning the company’s relationship with Israel and its alleged complicity in the war in Gaza.

The case has attracted particular attention within the Jewish community because of the intersection between political protest, Israel-related activism and the targeting of a Jewish-owned business and its leadership.

Krawitz said the company had gone to court because it believed it was necessary to defend its constitutional rights and those of its employees. While acknowledging that the right to protest is a fundamental democratic right, he said that protests must remain within the law and be based on fact.

The judgment, he said, vindicated the family business’s decision to seek legal recourse rather than respond to the protests outside the legal framework.

The Cape South African Jewish Board of Deputies (Cape SAJBD) has welcomed the judgment, describing it as an important affirmation that political disagreement cannot justify harassment, intimidation or conduct that unfairly targets individuals or businesses.

The Board said the ruling was particularly significant in the context of Jewish individuals and businesses being targeted because of their identity, religion or beliefs. Constitutional rights to equality, dignity, freedom of religion and security, it stressed, apply to all South Africans.

The case also highlights the distinction between legitimate political protest and conduct that crosses legal boundaries. The court’s order does not remove the right to protest, but places limits on how that right may be exercised.

The judgment comes amid continuing protests at some Cape Union Mart stores and in shopping centres where the company’s outlets are located. Krawitz said the company would engage with landlords and shopping centres regarding the implications of the judgment.

He also paid tribute to Cape Union Mart employees for their handling of the protests, noting that the workforce includes people from a range of religious and cultural backgrounds.

For the Jewish community, the case has broader significance beyond the individual parties involved. It provides an example of the legal avenues available when political activism moves into allegations or conduct that a person or organisation believes is unlawful.

Daniel Bloch, Executive Director of the Cape SAJBD, said the PSC is entitled to seek leave to appeal, as any litigant is. If it does so, he said, Cape Union Mart will continue to defend the matter through the legal process.

“A court order is not optional,” Bloch said. Anyone who knowingly breaches the interdict risks being held in contempt of court, with sanctions potentially including fines and, in serious cases, imprisonment. “Our hope, however, is that the judgment will be respected and that no further enforcement action will be necessary.”

Bloch said the judgment was also a reminder of the role of the judiciary in South Africa. “South Africa’s courts are not swayed by political pressure, public noise or popular sentiment. They decide cases on evidence and law. That is exactly what happened here.”

He encouraged members of the Jewish community who face intimidation or defamatory allegations because of their Jewishness or Zionism not to assume that they must simply accept unlawful conduct.

“We encourage people to document what is happening, including keeping screenshots, messages and other evidence, and to approach the Cape SAJBD for advice,” Bloch said. The Board can explain available avenues of recourse, including through workplaces or other relevant bodies, and advise when legal advice may be appropriate.

“This is one of the reasons the Board exists: to protect the rights, dignity and interests of our community and help people navigate situations where those rights are undermined or at risk.”

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A new Torah for the Sephardi community

Rabbi Emeritus Suiza with the sofer, Rabbi Tarab

A joyous celebration at the Cape Town Sephardi Synagogue marked the donation of a new Sefer Torah to the congregation by Ohad and Beverly Gabay – bringing together community members, rabbis and guests for a significant moment in the life of the synagogue.

The donation was the culmination of a journey that began several years ago, when Ohad Gabay discussed the mitzvah of writing a Sefer Torah with Rabbi Naftali Silver, the incumbent leader of thesynagogue.

“One of the final mitzvot in the Torah is the mitzvah to write a Sefer Torah,” Rabbi Silver explained. “We had spoken about it some years ago and Ohad began the process of making it happen. He is tremendously grateful to have been able to complete it.”

The occasion was celebrated by a large gathering at the synagogue, with Chief Rabbi Dr Warren Goldstein among those attending. 

“It was a phenomenal event,” said Rabbi Silver. “What was particularly special was seeing so many people coming to experience our community and to share in the celebration.”

The new Sefer Torah also reflects the distinctive traditions of Sephardi Jewry. Rabbi Ruben Suiza, Rabbi Emeritus of the Cape Town Sephardi Congregation, who is himself a sofer (a person with the traditional skills needed to hand-write sacred texts) explained that it will “enhance and reinforce our congregation and the unique traditions of our customs and history”.

Unlike the Torah scrolls familiar to many Ashkenazi congregations, a Sephardi Torah is housed in a metal case or a rigid, upright wooden case, often beautifully decorated in silver or gold colours, with rimonim – bells – on top. An inscription inside records the names of donors and those in whose memory the Torah may have been donated.

The wooden case, with its inner velvet lining, helps protect the Torah from the elements and can preserve its integrity for decades – and sometimes centuries. In keeping with Sephardi tradition, the Torah is read while standing upright on the bimah, which Rabbi Suiza described as giving it “greater dignity and elevation”.

There are also differences in the writing style. The traditional Sephardi script, known as Vellish, is ancient and follows specific requirements of Halacha. Often written with a reed quill, although a feather may also be used, its letters have a distinctive, more rounded appearance.

Yet Rabbi Suiza emphasised that these differences in tradition do not alter what lies at the heart of the Torah. “All Sifrei Torah, whether Sephardi or Ashkenazi, contain the exact same text, mitzvot and number of words and letters,” he said. “This confirms that Bnei Yisrael are and will always be one.”

For the Gabay family, the donation also carries a strong connection to both South Africa and Israel. Beverly is originally from Cape Town, while Ohad is Israeli and lived in Johannesburg for many years before the family made their home in Cape Town.

Rabbi Silver believes occasions such as this provide an opportunity to celebrate the diversity and vibrancy of Jewish life in the city.

“The Sephardi synagogue is unique in many ways, and this community is an incredibly important part of Jewish life in Cape Town – particularly for those with Sephardi heritage,” he said.

For congregants and visitors alike, the celebration was a reminder of the continuity represented by a Sefer Torah – linking generations through Jewish learning, tradition and communal life.

“We must continue to complete Sifrei Torah and celebrate each one,” said Rabbi Silver. “Each celebration reminds us that our work is never finished. We must keep growing in Torah and mitzvot, creating more joyous moments like this.”  

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International leadership award for Helen Lieberman

By KAREN MILLER

This September, Helen Lieberman received the 2026 Stephen R. Covey Principle-Centered Leadership Award, an international recognition of a lifetime of leadership. 

There is something particularly appropriate about the award coming to someone whose idea of leadership has never been about standing at the front of the crowd.

For Helen, leadership has always been about enabling other people to take responsibility for ensuring their own and their communities’ futures.

More than 60 years ago, as a young Capetonian newly graduated, at the height of apartheid and without any awards to her name, Helen went into Langa. There she joined women who were already working to improve their communities. The commitment she made to them formed the beginnings of Ikamva Labantu, the NGO that she founded. It was a model of community work based on a deceptively simple idea: ordinary people can create extraordinary change when they decide to take responsibility for their communities.

That principle has remained at the heart of Helen’s leadership. The Covey award, established in 2019 by the Stephen R. Covey Leadership Center at Utah State University’s Jon M. Huntsman School of Business, recognises leaders who demonstrate character, competence and service-oriented leadership.

Helen herself is quick to move the spotlight elsewhere: “This award may carry my name, but the story has never been about one person.” It belongs, she says, to the women who opened their communities and their lives to her and showed her what could happen when people stepped forward and took responsibility for one another. That instinct, to recognise the people who are often overlooked, is one of the most distinctive features of her leadership.

Today, Ikamva Labantu continues to work in precisely this way. Its Early Childhood Development (ECD) programme trains and supports principals and practitioners in under-resourced communities, strengthening the quality, leadership and sustainability of community-based early learning centres.  Helen has consistently argued that such community leaders should not be regarded as marginal figures. She has particularly highlighted the women running township early childhood centres, insisting that they are not simply ‘volunteers’, but professionals, educators and guardians of the future. They need training, funding, infrastructure and dignity.

It is a philosophy that reaches beyond early childhood development. Ikamva Labantu also supports older people in township communities, reflecting the organisation’s broader commitment to strengthening the people and structures that already exist within communities. Its work also looks to the future, providing safe and stimulating havens for children after school.

“Across Cape Town’s township communities, remarkable people are stepping forward every day,” said Ishrene Davids, Director of Ikamva Labantu. “They are opening early learning centres, supporting neighbours and building stronger communities. Helen’s story reminds us that the future is in our hands.” 

The Covey award is not simply another honour in a long list. It is specifically about principle-centred leadership:  the character, competence and service-oriented principles that shape the way a person leads. In Helen’s case, that makes it an especially fitting recognition, because her particular form of leadership has always been about bringing other people into the work rather than placing herself at its centre.

The visit by representatives and Fellows of the Covey Leadership Center to Ikamva Labantu’s ECD training centre in September therefore had a satisfying symmetry. The people coming to honour an internationally recognised leader met another generation of local changemakers, the principals and practitioners who are quietly building stronger beginnings for children in their own neighbourhoods.

Helen is no stranger to awards. Over the years, her work has been recognised with an impressive array of South African and international honours: the Order of the Disa; an honorary doctorate from the University of Notre Dame; the 2008 Roger Joseph Prize for her humanitarian work through Ikamva Labantu; the 2008 Absa Jewish Achiever Humanitarian Award; and, in 2017, France’s Officier de la Légion d’Honneur.

Each recognised a different aspect of a remarkable contribution to humanitarian work, service to disadvantaged communities and the building of community-based organisations.

The Stephen R. Covey Principle-Centered Leadership Award adds something different. It honours not only what Helen Lieberman has achieved, but how she has led: by recognising ability where others might not see it, by giving grassroots leaders the tools and support to develop their own communities, and by understanding that leadership is ultimately about service.

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Is Cape Town as welcoming as we think?

Cape Town has won its fair share of international accolades – for its extraordinary natural beauty, its lifestyle and, most recently, Time Out magazine’s Best City in the World award. But there’s one title we may struggle to claim: the world’s friendliest city.

That thought occurred to me at Limmud in August, when I found myself chatting to two women I had never met before. Both had recently semigrated from Johannesburg and both spoke enthusiastically about their new lives in Cape Town. There was, however, one disappointment they shared: they had found the local Jewish community surprisingly unfriendly.

Their comments stayed with me, perhaps because I understood exactly what they meant.

I grew up in Cape Town and lived here as a young adult before moving to Johannesburg, where I discovered how easy it was to meet people and make friends. After a year or two, I also realised how much I had changed. In Cape Town, I had seldom invited people into my home for a meal – it was far easier to suggest a walk on the Sea Point Promenade.

Johannesburg was different. People seemed to make a greater effort to build relationships with new friends. Perhaps, without Cape Town’s beaches, mountains and endless outdoor attractions, people invest more deliberately in one another. Whatever the reason, friendships seemed to require – and receive – more effort.

This matters when we consider the demographic realities of Jewish Cape Town. As the Chronicle reported in last month’s bumper edition, our Jewish population numbers continue to decline, although more slowly than previously thought.

If attracting people from elsewhere is one way of strengthening and growing our community, simply saying “Welcome to Cape Town” is not enough. We need to help newcomers feel that they belong – inviting them in, including them and extending genuine friendship. In doing so, we make Jewish Cape Town an even more appealing place in which to put down roots.

It is, after all, something deeply rooted in Jewish values. The Torah repeatedly instructs us to love the stranger and to treat the stranger as one of our own.

So, the next time you’re at a communal or social event, look around. If there’s someone nearby you don’t recognise, introduce yourself. Start a conversation. Invite them for coffee – or perhaps even for a Shabbat meal.

You never know – the stranger sitting beside you today could become a close friend tomorrow.  

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September 2026

Inside our September edition: Rosh Hashanah greetings, the revival of Jewish life in Paarl and Stellenbosch, a new chapter for the Cape Town Holocaust & Genocide Centre, and one family’s remarkable journey across continents. Read more inside.

Choose your favourite format below:

PDF – September 2026
Flipbook – September 2026

A new chapter for the Cape Town Holocaust & Genocide Centre

By Jakub Nowakowski, CTHGC Director

Twenty-five years after the Cape Town Holocaust & Genocide Centre (CTHGC) pioneered Holocaust education in SA, its permanent exhibition is set for a significant transformation. Director Jakub Nowakowski tells us more.

Why does the Centre need a new core exhibition?

Our current exhibition was created when the Centre was established 25 years ago and was updated in 2016. It was groundbreaking – the first permanent Holocaust exhibition in South Africa – and helped pave the way for Holocaust education to become part of the national curriculum, as well as for the establishment of centres in Durban and Johannesburg.

But scholarship, technology and the way we teach difficult histories have changed considerably. Our exhibition also does not deal with other genocides as extensively as our sister centres do, particularly the Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda. We need an exhibition that reflects current research and responds to the educational challenges of today. 

Does this mean the Holocaust will have a reduced role?

The Holocaust will remain the central narrative. What will change is the way we place it in conversation with other histories.

Traditionally, museums have tended to present different genocides in separate spaces. Our approach will instead create ‘bridges’ between them.

Alongside the Holocaust, we will explore the genocide against the Herero and Nama in present-day Namibia and the Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda.

The intention is not to equate these events, but to examine both their similarities and their differences, and understand the processes that can make mass violence possible. 

Why is this comparative approach important?

I have been influenced by the concept of ‘multidirectional memory’, coined by scholar and author Michael Rothberg: the idea that remembering one history does not diminish another. Different histories of suffering can be brought into dialogue without creating false equivalences.

This can actually deepen understanding of the specificity of the Shoah. At the same time, visitors can recognise recurring patterns – prejudice, propaganda, dehumanisation, discriminatory laws, exclusion and, ultimately, violence. 

How will visitors experience that approach?

Rather than simply moving chronologically through three separate histories, visitors will encounter themes and processes. The proposed exhibition begins by introducing three histories through three objects, before exploring the origins of hate, stereotypes, ideologies of elimination, organised exclusion, the unleashing of violence, and mechanisms of destruction.

It will also examine acts of defiance, the aftermath of genocide, justice and recon-ciliation, before considering apartheid and the broader question of how we understand genocide. 

Will the exhibition look and feel very different?

But technology should never overshadow the human story. There will also be tactile and analogue elements that encourage visitors – particularly young people accustomed to experiencing the world through screens – to slow down and engage more personally with history.

Yes. We want to combine new technology with the power of physical objects, photographs, documents and testimony. Digital elements such as interactive maps, large screens and technology will enable visitors to engage with recorded survivor testimony.

What place will survivors and their descendants have in the new exhibition?

A proposed Gallery of Survivors will foreground survivor voices, while the Repository of Living Memory will take remembrance into the second, third and fourth generations.

Through testimonies, personal objects and memoirs, we want to show not only what was destroyed, but what endured. Jewish life continued. Families rebuilt themselves, identities were reclaimed, and memory was passed on. It is a story of loss, but also of dignity, continuity and resilience. 

Who is the new exhibition primarily for?

One of our most important audiences is the thousands of Grade 9 and 11 learners who come here through their school curriculum. Most are not Jewish, and for many this may be their only opportunity to engage deeply with Holocaust and genocide history.

The Jewish community is equally fundamental to the CTHGC. The exhibition must remain a place of remembrance and mourning, but also one of learning, healing, resilience and hope – and a place where younger generations can take ownership of this legacy. 

What do you ultimately hope the renewed Centre will achieve?

We want people to leave understanding that genocide does not begin with mass killing. It develops through processes: through language, prejudice, propaganda, exclusion, laws and institutions.

The Centre should give visitors the knowledge and critical tools to recognise dangerous patterns in the present. 

The renewed exhibition will build on what the Centre has achieved over 25 years, while ensuring that its work remains relevant to the generations who will walk through its doors in the decades ahead.  


See this video produced by the CTHGC that explains more here.

Lunch with Danny

By KAREN MILLER

I arrived at Ladles of Love’s warehouse in Epping Industria expecting to interview the founder of one of South Africa’s most remarkable hunger-relief organisations. Instead, I found Danny Diliberto standing over a stove.

It was a Monday, and Mondays have their own ritual at Ladles of Love. Everyone – warehouse staff, packers, sorters, administrators and Danny himself – sits down to lunch together. The meal is cooked on a rotating basis by a member of the team. That day it was Danny’s turn.

I was invited to join them. The menu was simple: curried beans and vegetables with rice, made from the very ingredients distributed to Ladles of Love’s beneficiaries. It was delicious, but more than that, it felt symbolic. There was no separate table for the founder. No executive dining room. Everyone ate together.

The vast warehouse itself surprised me. Warehouses are often noisy, frenetic places. This one radiated order, calm and purpose. Those qualities, I soon realised, reflect the man at its centre.

Most readers will know what Ladles of Love does. Its websitetells the story well enough: nutritious meals for preschool children through Early Childhood Development Centres; the Dignity Kitchen in Roeland Street serving people facing hunger every day; thousands of volunteers, partnerships with farmers, and an organisation, driven as much by data as by compassion. In just the first six months of 2026, more than 13 000 children received nutritious meals through 165 Early Childhood Development Centres, over 51 000 meals were served at the Dignity Kitchen, more than 15 000 volunteers gave their time, R3.8 million supported local farmers, and 330 tonnes of food
were diverted from landfill.

Statistics, however, don’t explain Danny Diliberto.

The day before our meeting, Cape Town had been bracing for an anti-foreign-national march. Friends had collected money to provide food for people who might have to flee violence. I asked Danny whether Ladles of Love could use the donation. He politely declined. The money, he said, should go directly to the organisation co-ordinating relief, and he referred me to the Mensch Network instead. It was a small moment – but it revealed something important. For Danny, partnership matters more than ownership. Helping is not about receiving the credit. His philosophy surfaced repeatedly over lunch.

He talks about creating partners rather than beneficiaries; about relationships rather than transactions. Donors, volunteers, staff and those receiving meals all become part of the same ecosystem. Again and again he returned to the importance of keeping ego in check. As he puts it, things happen “through me, not because of me.”

Danny was born in Zimbabwe. His father came from an Italian background, while his mother is Sephardi, born in the Congo before the family eventually settled in Zimbabwe and later South Africa. His childhood memories are filled with tables groaning under abundant food. Food was associated with generosity and joy. His lunchbox was famously overfilled, and he remembers happily sharing it with classmates.

At eleven he was sent to King David High School in Johannesburg, boarding in the hostel. It was a difficult transition, but one that taught him independence. He remembers one teacher in particular, a Mr Garb, whose consistency and calm left a lasting impression. Those same qualities still underpin the way he leads today.

After school he knew that academia was not his calling. At eighteen he left home, shared a flat with friends and entered the hospitality industry, where food remained at the centre of his life.

Today, his daily routine reflects the discipline that is woven through everything he does. Meditation is non-negotiable. So is exercise, whether running, hiking or going to the gym. Inner peace, he believes, has to be cultivated deliberately. He speaks candidly about letting go of emotions from a turbulent childhood and becoming “comfortable in your discomfort”. Growth, he believes, often comes through challenge.

Underlying his outlook is the Eastern concept of seva – selfless service – which resonates strongly with the Jewish idea of tikkun olam – repairing the world. They come from different traditions, but both insist that spirituality is measured less by belief than by action. A bowl of soup offered with dignity can embody both.

Perhaps nothing illustrates Danny’s intuitive nature more than the early days of the COVID pandemic. Just three days into lockdown, sensing the food crisis that was coming, he posted a simple appeal on social media asking for support. Donations poured in almost immediately. Opportunities seemed to arrive when they were needed, including the warehouse that eventually became Ladles of Love’s home after its temporary base during Covid at Grand West Casino.

The real story of Ladles of Love is not simply about millions of meals. It is about the quiet power of consistency, humility and service. Danny Diliberto has built an organisation that feeds thousands every day, but perhaps his greatest achievement is creating a culture in which dignity is served alongside every meal.

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A new season, a new beginning

WIZO South Africa

By Shelley Trope-Friedman, President, WIZO SA 

How is it Rosh Hashanah already? There is something about this time of year that makes us wonder where the months have gone. Somehow, here we are at Rosh Hashanah again. It feels as though the year has flown by, with all the highs, lows, surprises and ordinary moments that make up our lives.

Rosh Hashanah gives us an opportunity to slow down and reconsider our actions.

The Jewish calendar is built around cycles: the year, the changing seasons, the rhythm of work and rest, beginnings and endings. Yet every cycle brings us back to a familiar place, while giving us the opportunity to begin again. A new year is not simply about turning the page. It is about deciding what we wish to carry forward and what we are ready to leave behind.

As we enter 5787, I find myself thinking about what it means to usher in a new season. What do we want to cultivate? Where do we want to grow? What kind of community do we want to build? Most importantly, how can we turn our hopes for the year ahead into action?

This is also a good time to think about our own purpose. We need to consider what it means to be a blessing to the world around us and how we can be a little kinder, more generous and more present. We need to consider what we would like people to experience because we were part of their lives. And what does that look like in practice, in our families, communities, workplaces and the wider world? We don’t need grand answers, but we do need to answer these for ourselves.

All of this sits at the heart of what WIZO does. For more than a century, WIZO has created opportunities for people to turn their values into action, to build, support, educate and strengthen communities. It is a reminder that purpose does not always have to be something we find; sometimes it is something we create through what we choose to give. Each new season is an invitation to participate. Rosh Hashanah reminds us that a new beginning doesn’t simply happen because the calendar says so. 

It asks us to look at the year behind us and be honest about what we’ve learnt. If we want the year ahead to look different, what are we prepared to do differently? We can choose where we put our energy, who we make time for and what we contribute. So, as we gather together, hear the shofar and wish one another Shanah Tovah, I hope we will all ask ourselves how to do things differently this year.

May 5787 be a year of renewal, purpose and possibility for us all. With love and purpose, may we have the courage to help make it so.

Shanah Tovah u’Metukah. With love and warmth, Shelley Trope-Friedman 

Website: WIZO South Africa

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Art bursaries changing lives

Lona Ndzimande, Ilanga Elibukayo

“Cape Town is the best place in South Africa for anyone interested in art.” That is the view of SAFIM Art Collaborative Executive Coordinator Lisa Truter, who points to the city’s wealth of world-class institutions, including the Zeitz MOCAA, the Norval Foundation and leading art schools such as the Ruth Prowse School of Art.

SAFIM (South African Friends of the Israel Museum) Art Collab’s partnership with the Ruth Prowse School has become one of its most meaningful initiatives. The organisation sponsors talented students whose financial circumstances might otherwise prevent them from completing their studies.

Originally, SAFIM Art Collab funded South African art students to attend a curatorial programme at the Israel Museum. Following the events of October 7, 2023, and the resulting security concerns, that programme was paused and resources redirected to bursaries in South Africa.

“There is no question about the value of this focus,” says SAFIM Art Collab Co-Chair Suzanne Ackerman. “There is so much need in our country, and we feel we should be giving back to South Africa in whatever way we can.”

The bursary programme is designed to be both aspirational and inspirational. Students are considered only after completing at least one year of study, allowing SAFIM Art Collab to assess both talent and commitment.

“We want to motivate students to give their very best during the remainder of their studies and ensure they complete their qualifications,” Suzanne explains.

The support is substantial. Annual tuition can cost around R70 000, while art materials, transport and other expenses add significantly to the financial burden.

Working with the Ruth Prowse School has been particularly rewarding, Suzanne says. “Because it is a small institution, each student’s unique needs are well understood. That allows us to tailor support to their individual circumstances, giving them the greatest chance of success.”

The results have been impressive. SAFIM Art Collab’s first bursary recipient, Lona Ndzimande, who creates layered portraits using a range of media, graduated in 2023 and has already established herself professionally. After winning the WORLDART10 competition, she earned a solo exhibition at WORLDART and was selected to exhibit at the 2026 Investec Cape Town Art Fair.

“Art is giving Lona the opportunity to build a commercially viable career, which is no small achievement,” Suzanne says.

In 2024, SAFIM Art Collab expanded the programme to support two more students, Celine Ndzana and Zoliswa (Zollie) Ngxongo, both of whom graduated from Ruth Prowse last year.

Celine, who specialises in pencil, pen and charcoal drawings, is training as an art teacher while running her own studio part-time. Last year she was commissioned by Cape Town Tourism to create Waves of Pride, a mural on the Sea Point Promenade recognising the resilience of Cape Town’s LGBTQ+ community.

Zollie’s journey into the profession may take longer, but SAFIM Art Collab remains committed to helping her succeed. “We hope to find an established artist who can mentor her or take her on as an assistant,” Suzanne says. Having overcome an exceptionally difficult childhood, Zollie found stability with foster parents who encouraged her artistic ambitions. Suzanne believes her final graduation project reflected not only artistic growth but also growing confidence and self-belief.

The talent of all three bursary recipients was recognised at this year’s SAFIM Art Collab Gala & Art Auction, the organisation’s principal fundraiser. Each sold a work, with Zollie’s Reclaimed achieving the highest price of the three at over R60 000. The painting explores a woman’s ability to reclaim her strength and identity after suffering harm.

Reflecting on the experience, Zollie says: “I could never have anticipated the success of my piece Reclaimed at the auction. Meeting the couple who bought my painting and witnessing what it meant for them to own one of my pieces made everything come full circle.”

“It was an emotional moment for both audience and artist when the students’ works came up for bidding,” Suzanne recalls. “Having a work on auction is itself an achievement for a young artist, and a sale gives the kind of affirmation a budding artist has been hoping for. I believe that the sales will serve as stepping stones to even greater things.”

The auction raised around R1,6 million. A notable portion of the proceeds from the sale of the three graduates’ work was paid back to them, as an investment in their studio practice. The balance has been invested directly back into the bursary programme, in order to support future aspiring artists. Other funds raised on the evening will support an upcoming local curatorial programme, as well as an educational initiative for Ethiopian-Israeli children at the Israel Museum, Jerusalem.

For SAFIM Art Collab, the success of its bursary recipients demonstrates how purposeful financial support can unlock exceptional talent and transform lives through art.

Celine Ndzana with her BIC pen drawing which was sold on the evening
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