TORONTO — Shlomo Beldeb, program director at Sephardic Kehila Centre, says he has made major life changes about every 10 years.
Elizabeth and Shlomo Beldeb
“I left Morocco with my family when I was nine, I was in school here for 10 years, I worked in my family’s furniture business for just over 10 years, and I’ve worked at Sephardic Kehila Centre for 12 years.”
Now, Beldeb, 41, is moving to Israel with his wife Elizabeth, a flight attendant with Air Transat, and their four children.
Also secretary to chief Rabbi Haham Amram Assayag, Beldeb said he began working at the centre when the building was brand new. He was married the day it opened in September 1997.
A program for last month’s dinner to honour the Beldebs, said that “whether they were preparing our sons and daughters for b’nei mitzvot, leading youth Shabbatons or organizing countless programs, [they] were a guiding force for our growing kehila.
“Shlomo could lead a choir, a Kehila tour or a group through Morocco, always with a smile on his face. Equally as busy, Elizabeth devoted herself to many causes, including Ezrat Achim, [an organization that feeds families for Shabbat] and the Mikveh Ma’ayan.”
Beldeb, who is leaving with his family on a Nefesh b’Nefesh flight this summer, said it was always in their minds to make aliyah, “but we felt we had a mission. The job was meaningful and we’ll certainly miss it here, but our kids [ages 11, nine, seven and four] are getting older, and we want to move before it gets harder for them.”
He feels that every family is destined to move to Israel. “It is a matter of whether it is us or our children. It is a question of who will make the sacrifice.
“Too many people push the move back and back, and then, ironically, they are buried in Israel. The longer you wait, the harder it gets.”
Moving to Israel is part of a Jew’s journey, he said.
“When we were slaves in Egypt we were strong and united because others were against us. Then we spread out to the whole world, and our purpose was to spread God’s name.
“Now, the whole world knows who the Jews are, and so it is time to move back to Israel. It is our final destination, and by moving there, I am doing my part.”
The family is looking at their move as an adventure, he said. “I’ll try to find the same type of work when we get there, and my wife will continue working in the same industry. The kids are all excited.”
He is not at all worried about his family’s safety in Israel, he said. “The world is like a mask; who you think is not safe is safe, and who you think is safe may not be.”
