Page 18 - Kol Bogrei Habonim - September 14

BARUCH (KOFFY) KADMON
Born - Liverpool 1937; Liverpool Peleg; Machon -Jerusalem 1957-
58; Movement work in Manchester and London prior to Aliyah to Bet
Haemek in 1961; Shaliach to northern UK – 1980-1982 ; moved to Kibbutz
Matzuva in 1975 ; now retired after a career in freelance technical
translation

M passed away in Canada). Michael Shieldhouse
y introduction to Habonim occurred
(Mike Magen) was also in the same Garin and
sometime in 1947 and was prompted
by my late older brother Gerald
Kauffman who was nicknamed “Koffy.” He was today lives in Newcastle upon-Tyne and has a
daughter living in Israel. Sue was replaced by
6 years older than I and I was at the time 10 Peretz Nadel who was unable to halt the
years old. When he left the Movement, his downhill trend. Vic Sieve and I attended most of
nickname somehow stuck with me! Prior to the national Habonim activities and both of us
joining Habonim, I was into sport and, at that spent a year at the Machon in Jerusalem as did
time, I was part of the athletics group at Harold Mike Shieldhouse a few courses later.
House, a Jewish youth club in Liverpool.
Although the Liverpool Jewish community was
At that particular time the Habonim bayit was numerically smaller than the Manchester
located in Croxteth Road close to Sefton Park. communities, I had two opportunities to compare
Habonim had been very active in Liverpool in them. The first encounter was, after Machon, as
the past, led by leading chaverim including quite Rosh Peleg/Ken in North and South Manchester
a number of Scousers who made it to the and, 20 years later, as a Movement Shaliach
Promised Land (Tony Berris and the late Sammy located in the same city also covering other
Greenhill from Bet HaEmek, Gila and Henry centres in northern England. During the first
Cohen from Amiad, the late Irene Davidson- two-year spell in Manchester, I worked with
Goodman and many more). All I knew is that, at some interesting and talented chanichim
the time, Habonim was at a low ebb in the including Mike Leigh and Les Blair (both film
Liverpool Jewish community for many wrong directors), Barry Coleman (Amiad) and many
reasons and I was too young to know all the others in Habonim such as the late Pamela
reasons why. After being in the Gedud, I moved Kersner-Ben-Porat (Matzuva) and of course
up to the Pluga that was very limited in numbers. Bobby Lewis, Dennis and Yvette Gouldman and
The Bayit had meanwhile been sold and the last Michael and David Bernstein, who all
Rosh Peleg there was Sue Birkenruth-Har from contributed to the Movement in Bury Old Road
Bradford now living at Kibbutz Tzora. Activities and in Didsbury in the south. A lot of the
continued at Zion House, a bus ride away, but success was also down to the background work
numbers dwindled. My Liverpool and support by the Vaad Lemaan chaired by the
contemporaries were Vic Sieve now living in father of the Bernstein brothers. The same was
France and the late Pamela Mass who married a the case during our shlichut with the Vaad being
Hashomer Hatzair shaliach. A year or so later, I chaired by Joe Simons.
was the Madrich of the Gedud at Zion House
with the Sheridan sisters (the Late Ros Sheridan Although my football allegiance has always been
and Joy Sheridan who both joined Garin Vav and and will be to the red-half of the city with a
made Aliyah to Bet HaEmek - Gila (Joy) Blitz "Ferry across the Mersey" I must confess my
now lives in Tel Aviv and Ros later lived and admiration for the Manchester Jewish
community that really supported youth activities

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