I was lucky enough to know Marina for many years, first as a visitor to Beth Shalom, then as a Trustee of the Centre and finally as its Chair. What a truly remarkable woman – short in stature but a giant in the way that she lived her life! Loved by all, not just by Eddie and Stephen and James and the family, but by all whose lives she touched, especially her wider family, the survivors. When she entered the room, they all stood and rushed to hug and kiss her. They did that because of what she had done for them, opening her heart and her home to them, becoming a family for those who had none and enabling them all to tell their stories to the hundreds of thousands of visitors to the Centre. Tea with Marina in Bethany was like having tea with the Queen Mother, except that I’m sure the food was better at Bethany! People often say they will remember her/him forever when someone dies. In her case that will certainly be true, because she will live on, not only in our thoughts but in the wonderful Centre that she and her family created to try and make the world a better place. May her dear soul rest in peace, and may her memory be a blessing to Eddie, Stephen, James, her families and us all.
