Boys mark Jewish Founders' Day with UJIA JAMS at Manchester Grammar School

Eighty five boys from The Manchester Grammar School (MGS) held a special Jewish Founders' Day service on Friday 15 October to mark the establishment of the school nearly 500 years ago. The event was organised by UJIA Jewish Activities in Mainstream Schools (JAMS) together with the school and included prayers in Hebrew and English, as well as a sermon by Rabbi Amir Ellituv. Founders' Day is a major event in the calendar at MGS, one of the largest independent day schools for boys in the UK.

Rabbi Ellituv spoke about the value of living each day as if it's our first and last, comparing ourselves to the Chilean miners. He talked about how to prioritise what is important in the context of one's education and developed the MGS Founder's Day theme of education with godliness.

Aaron Searle, J-Soc chair, The Manchester Grammar School, said:

"It's great that a Jewish Founders' Day takes place at MGS even though it is a non-Jewish school. Each year all the boys thoroughly enjoy the service that we run."

Rabbi Amir Ellituv of the Sha'are Hayim Sephardi Congregation said:

"I am always grateful to see how MGS allows Jewish pupils to express their Jewish identity within the school context, especially on Founders' Day. It shows the contribution that the Jewish pupils make to the school, which gives us great pride."