Rabbi Zalman Levitin, co-director of the Chabad of Northern Palm Beach Island in Palm Beach, Fla., is thrilled that Chanukah falls over winter break for schools this year. That means his crowd will multiply as children and grandchildren head south to visit their grandparents over the holiday, which starts the night of Dec. 24 and runs through Jan. 1.
The rabbi notes that he has siblings who serve as Chabad-Lubavitch emissaries in northern climates who are grappling with cold weather and families on vacation. Heâs got the opposite situation on his hands as droves of people make their way south for the week.
Levitin is expecting more than double the usual crowdâsome 400 instead of 200 because of how the holiday falls. âInstead of them coming by themselves, each oneâs telling me theyâre bringing five people, six people with them,â he says.
As far as new events this year, they will host a Chanukah celebration for the Russian American Jewish community on Dec. 27 in Palm Beach, with a menorah-lighting, sushi station and DJ. There will be separate entertainment for adults and children. âWe want to bring everyone together, the different generations, so they could have a place to call home as well,â he says.
Chabad will also be partnering with a hospice facility so that families with terminally ill relatives can celebrate Chanukah and meet other families in similar circumstances.
Levitin will also be returning to Publix, an area supermarket, for the fourth year now to greet shoppers during Chanukah with a buffet station serving hot potato latkes, doughnuts, babka and hors dâoeuvres, complete with Chanukah music and a menorah-lighting in the store. He affirms that âwe find it a great way to meet peopleâweâre meeting them where they are, bringing Chanukah pride to them.â
Chanukah by the Numbers
That pride will be evident throughout the world, as Chabad representatives in big cities, small towns and everything in-between work to spread the light of the holiday with other Jews. From sand and even shell menorahs in warm-weather places to ice menorahs in chilly climatesâand one in nearly every window throughout IsraelâChanukah will bring much-needed light into the world.
The Chabad-Lubavitch movement is planning worldwide Chanukah campaigns expected to reach an estimated 8 million Jewsâmore than half of the worldâs Jewish populationâthrough menorah and candle distributions, public menorah-lightings, events and advertising in more than 90 different countries on six continents.
In terms of sheer numbers, Chabad emissaries and rabbinical students will distribute more than 700,000 menorahs, 30,800,000 candles and 2,500,000 holiday guides (in 13 languages) around the world, with more than 15,000 large menorahs to be erected in public places. Additionally, 5,000 menorah-topped cars are expected on the roads this year, creating holiday awareness in cities, towns and rural areas around the world. Events and menorah-lightings in shopping malls, home-goods stores, sports arenas, outside town halls and inside city administration buildings will shine throughout the eight-day holiday. University students who will be on winter break are gearing up for online contests and rafflesâtheyâll be posting photos of themselves lighting menorahs wherever they may beâmade accessible by Chabad emissaries using social media.
Some 250,000 menorahs, 11,000,000 candles, 380,000 Chanukah guides and 200,000 packets of chocolate gelt coins will be distributed throughout the United States and Canada alone. In Israel, Chabad will distribute 270,000 sets of menorahs and candles to the public, as well as 400,000 traditional Chanukah doughnuts (sufganiyot). A whopping 1,375 giant menorahs will be placed in Israeli city and town centers, and 4,950 menorahs will be featured in shopping malls, stores and offices there. Add to that 1,750 menorah-topped cars that will travel during the course of the eight-day holiday on roads throughout the Middle Eastern country.
Similar lightings, events, car-menorah parades and Chanukah-item distributions will take place in Russia, Eastern and Western Europe, South and Central America, Mexico and the Caribbean, Central Africa, Asia, Australia and everywhere else Chabad has a presence on the globe.
The initiative began more than four decades ago in 1973, when the Lubavitcher RebbeâRabbi Menachem M. Schneerson, of righteous memoryâlaunched the worldwide campaign to create awareness and promote the observance of Chanukah.
âCelebrate as Oneâ
Rabbi Mendel Krinsky, who co-directs the Chabad Jewish Center in Needham, Mass., with his wife, Chanie, helped children make robotic Lego dreidels last week at the Chabad House. This Sunday, theyâre bringing families, singles and seniors together for a âChanukah Bowlâ at area lanes, followed by a stroll to town hall to light the menorah.
And it isnât just any menorah.
As they have done before, theyâre going to construct an ice menorahâmade of hundreds of pounds of ice that takes hours to carveâin front of the town hall as they promote the message of light over darkness and good over evil. âItâs a public event for the entire community and a beautiful thingâto share the message of Chanukah, to spread the miracle to the outside not only in the home, but also in the street,â says the rabbi, who will hold two other menorah-lightings in nearby towns.
Rabbi Raphi Steiner and his wife, Mussie, will make history on Dec. 27 with the first menorah-lighting and Chanukah celebration at Guelphâs City Hall in southwestern Ontario, Canada. Mayor Cam Guthrie is scheduled to light the shamash, the helper candle used to ignite the others. âIâm looking forward to seeing the community come together to celebrate as one,â says Steiner.
Young people have been moving back to the area, many for jobs and in search of affordable housing outside the more pricy Toronto. As the local Jewish community continues to grow, the Steiners are doing more and more to accommodate their needs.
They are expecting as many as 100 people to attend the event, co-hosted by City Hall and the local Jewish community, which will feature a nine-foot menorah, video presentation, latkes, doughnuts and a bubble show for kids. âWatching our mayor for the first time get up on a ladder and light the menorah will be a meaningful moment,â says the rabbi, âespecially for the older folks in town to see Judaism come alive here.â
That same day, thousands are expected to join together for the 37th annual Chanukah festival in Southeast Florida, says Rabbi Levi Tennenhaus, youth director of Chabad of South Broward in Hallandale, Fla., as well as co-director of the Friendship Circle of South Broward with his wife, Dassy. The Dec. 27 event will feature music by Chassidic singer Avraham Fried, as well as the popular Jewish rock band 8th Day. The festival honors the local Friendship Circle, which pairs young people with special needs and teenage volunteers, who spend time together on a regular basis.
Given its timing this year, the event (which will be broadcast live on Chabad.org) is expected to draw even more tourists than usual. More teens have also expressed interest in attending because of the live performances, according to the rabbi. Arts-and-crafts will entertain the younger set, in addition to face-painting, food and more.
A car-menorah parade of a few hundred vehicles will also make its way that day from Miami up to Hallandale Beachâabout 20 miles awayâwith Chanukah and its message of light on display for all.
âWe want people to get excited about their Yiddishkeit,â Tennenhaus says, adding that over the years, he has witnessed the menorah-lighting often serving as many peopleâs first touchpoint to their heritage. âWhen they see such a massive event, they get inspired. People who have never before attended a Chanukah event and those who havenât attended one in a while will go home charged . . . and then want to light a menorah of their own.â
To find a Chanukah menorah-lighting or celebration, click here. The directory features events in 490 cities around the world and is updated throughout the eight-day holiday.
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