Chabad of Alameda hosted their seventh annual Menorah Lighting in celebration of Hanukkah on December 10 at Washington Park. The late afternoon event featured lots of fun activities for the happy children in attendance—crafts, a bounce house, and a magic, fire-eating, unicycle-riding clown. Rabbi Meir Shmotkin, Mayor Marilyn Ezzy Ashcraft, Councilmember Trish Herrera Spencer, and Alameda Police Chief Nishant Joshi all spoke at the event.
In Rabbi Meir Shmotkin’s words, Hanukkah “marks two miracles. One is the military miracle of a small band of Jewish Maccabees that stood against a much stronger army and against all odds they were victorious,” he explained. “The second miracle is, when they came back to the temple to rekindle and rededicate the space, all of the oil was destroyed, on purpose, by the Greeks. They finally found one jug of oil that was only enough to last for one day. Miraculously, it lasted eight days. And we celebrate that miracle today.”
At the welcome table next to the stage, Dr. Beth Glick was handing out dreidels, Jewish calendars, finger lights, and mini-menorahs.
“Jews played dreidel because they couldn’t study the Torah,” Glick told the Alameda Post of the history of the game. “So when the Greeks came they would pretend they were playing a game so they wouldn’t get killed. And, of course, they led a rebellion against the Greeks. The letters on the dreidel stand for ‘A great miracle happened here.’ Here being Israel.”
Glick went on to say she was glad to be celebrating Hanukkah with her community at the beachside park. “It’s really nice to see so many people out, especially because of the war,” she said. “We feel very isolated and alone because of the war. I have a daughter in college and it’s very frightening. The college campuses are very antisemitic.”
Glick has lived in Alameda for 42 years. She said she hasn’t experienced much antisemitism here on the island. But right now, she said, she knows “a lot of people who aren’t wearing Jewish stars and they’re kind of hiding because there’s a lot of antisemetic sentiment.”
Now, more than ever, Glick feels celebrating Hanukkah is fundamental.
“You really need to celebrate the good times and show that we’re here and we’re not going anywhere,” she said.
Rabbi Meir Shmotkin told the Post he was pleased with the great turnout for the Menorah Lighting.
“We never had a question as to whether we should be celebrating this year,” he said. “We know that it’s important to be proud, to celebrate being Jewish and stand up strong and tall. The turnout speaks for itself.”
Leading up to the event, the rabbi received several questions about security. “We’re very appreciative to the City of Alameda and the police department for being here and being visible,” he said.
Once the kids’ festivities wrapped up, Rabbi Meir Shmotkin took the stage.
“There’s a lot of darkness out there, and when darkness rears its ugly head, sometimes we can get paralyzed,” he told the crowd. “But how are we supposed to respond to darkness? Some people asked, ‘Are we having a public menorah lighting this year?’ And I think the lesson to be learned, to be taught, is exactly the lesson of the menorah. We stand tall and strong like the menorah. And the light will push away the darkness.”
After the Rabbi concluded his remarks, he welcomed Mayor Ashcraft to the stage.
“In Alameda we have a slogan: This is a place where everyone belongs,” she said. “And we mean everyone belongs. You will always have a home here. You will always be safe and secure here. It just makes me so happy to see—here we are in a public park and look at this big crowd, and especially all of these beautiful children. This is our future. I love coming to this event every year and welcoming you all. You’re right, Rabbi, in a time of darkness we need light. And that’s what I know about the community of Alameda. They shine their light on others.”
After Mayor Ashcraft spoke, Councilmember Spencer thanked the APD for being there and keeping everyone safe. When Police Chief Joshi took the stage, he assured those in attendance that they can always “count on the Alameda Police Department to support and protect the community.”
Following the lighting of the menorah, the children danced on stage to “I Have a Little Dreidel” while the crowd clapped along.
It was a happy scene. The evening was cool—no more than 58 degrees. But the palm trees stood still in the absence of the wind. In the light blue twilight, the five lanterns of the menorah burned a fiery yellow.
Kelsey Goeres is a contributing writer for the Alameda Post. Contact her via [email protected]. Her writing is collected at AlamedaPost.com/Kelsey-Goeres.
