Menorah Display At Booth Library

By Nancy K. Crevier

Sybil Blau has lived in Newtown for 33 years and for years has longed to put together a public menorah display for the Chanukah holiday.

Chanukah, known sometimes as the Festival of Lights, commemorates the victory of Israel over a Syrian-based empire in 165 BC. According to legend, the victors found only enough oil in the regained Temple to burn the eternal flame for one day. The flame, however, burned for eight days. In Jewish homes, Chanukah is celebrated by lighting the candles of a menorah on each of the holiday’s eight nights, celebrated this year from December 15 to December 22.

This year, with the support of the Greater Newtown Hadassah chapter, of which she is a member, and the support of Janet Woycik, director of the C.H. Booth Library, Ms Blau’s dream has reached fruition.

On Sunday, December 10, Julie Leventon of Danbury, and Susan Hersh of Newtown, co-presidents of the local Hadassah group, and Ms Blau organized a display of ten menorahs at the library. A Chanukah menorah consists of eight candleholders or oil reservoirs plus an additional candle, called a shamash, used to light the other candles. The shamash always stands higher than the other eight points of light, which are often arranged candelabra-fashion on eight up-right arms, but that can be arranged in any manner pleasing to the designer, said Ms Blau.

The menorahs collected by the women for the display vary from antique, oil-burning examples to very contemporary styles. They are collectibles, they are pieces of art, and they are bits of family history.

One of the oldest menorahs displayed is an Eastern European menorah of brass that dates to the late 1800s. It was brought to America by Ms Blau’s grandmother when she emigrated from Austria.

Other menorahs included in the library presentation include one handcrafted by a 9-year-old girl from a slab of marble with metal nuts to hold the candles, a menorah of carved wood that also cradles a candy dish for holding Chanukah geld, and a very modern menorah crafted of metal in the shape of a cat, carrying the candles down its spine. 

“The differences in the menorahs,” explained Ms Blau, “are a reflection of what the holiday means: freedom. You’re free to do what you want, and the various menorahs reinforce that idea of freedom.”

Hadassah supports many volunteer programs and is particularly well known for its cutting edge in medicine, said Ms Hersh. The local chapter is proud to be a part of this opportunity “to do something very public and for a chance to share with the public,” said Ms Blau.

The menorahs are on loan from various members of the Hadassah group and can be viewed in the display case located on the second floor of the library through December 22.