WILLIAMSBURG — More than 250 people attended a menorah lighting on the William & Mary campus Thursday, the first night of Hanukkah.
Chabad Williamsburg, a Jewish outreach organization, along with student group Hillel and Jewish fraternal organization Alpha Epsilon Pi, hosted the 35-minute ceremony in the Sunken Garden at William & Mary. Chabad Williamsburg’s Rabbi Mendy Heber officiated.
The lighting had been scheduled to take place as a student event on the campus since Sept. 20, according to Heber and William & Mary spokeswoman Suzanne Clavet. But when 2nd Sundays Art and Music Festival officials denied Heber’s request to host a second menorah lighting as part of the lineup of events on Dec. 10, Heber decided to invite the Williamsburg community at large to Thursday’s service.
Heber implored attendees to consider the meaning of the menorah and the light it brings to the world. “Every person here is a standing, shining light. Everyone here is a menorah,” he told the crowd.
The ceremony also included several speakers from the Jewish community along with Williamsburg Mayor Doug Pons, who read a proclamation declaring Dec. 7, 2023, “Menorah Illumination Day.”
Numerous students were among those in attendance, including Daniel Shpigel, a junior from Boston. Shpigel said this was the third year he’s attended the menorah lighting and that he was there to celebrate Hanukkah with his campus community.
Jewish community members who were not students also attended as a way to honor their heritage. Williamsburg resident Josh Erlich, who brought along his 10-year-old son Alexander, said he first heard of the menorah lighting when news broke that the event would not occur at 2nd Sundays.
Richmond artist Amy Mendelson, who identifies as a reformed Jew, drove from her home near Richmond to attend the event with her son, a William & Mary student. “The idea was to come and support the community, and to show how the menorah brings light to the world,” she said.
Other attendees said they came because they regretted events that led to Chabad Williamsburg not hosting a menorah lighting at the upcoming 2nd Sundays event.
John Youngstrom, of Williamsburg, said he was “a believer in Yeshua, who was a Jew.” According to Youngstrom, principle brought him out as much as anything. “Sometimes you have to put your foot down and do what you do, and be who we are in America,” he said.
David Oroshnik, who recently moved to Williamsburg from San Jose, California, said he was not religious but came out in support. He went home with a menorah, which organizers gave out after the ceremony and which Oroshnik said he would gladly place in his home.
Before the ceremony, about 40 students gathered in front of the Sadler dining hall — about 1,000 feet from the menorah lighting — to show support for Palestine. The protestors chanted “free Palestine” and “long live Palestine” and displayed the Palestinian flag. The chants could be faintly heard as organizers were preparing for the ceremony across campus, but were not audible once the event began.
William & Mary police kept a loose perimeter around the Hanukkah celebration. Clavet said that the department regularly assesses security risks and takes appropriate measures.
Pons called what unfolded between Chabad Williamsburg and 2nd Sundays unfortunate and a missed opportunity for engagement between the festival, the Jewish community and the Williamsburg area. He said that he was nevertheless “glad the community has come together to celebrate Hanukkah.”
Heber said it is more important now than ever to support the Jewish community and that he is looking forward to mending the relationship with 2nd Sundays organizers.
“We are just going to get bigger and better,” he said. “The light of the menorah will persevere.”
Ben Swenson, ben.swenson05@gmail.com
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