COLUMBUS, Ohio — Since the beginning of October, Jewish communities having been finding ways to come together.

What You Need To Know

  • Hanukkah is from Dec. 7-15

  • The holiday celebrates the ancient story of a small group of Jews reclaiming the Holy Temple in Israel
  • Jewish community members are asking people to be positive and sensitive during the Israel-Hamas war 

Candy dreidels, a helicopter and a skydiver were the main events at the Lori Schottenstein Chabad Center’s Hanukkah celebration. While they have hosted events for the holiday in the past, they wanted to make this year extra special.  

“We love to start off Hanukkah with a bang,” said Rochel Kaltmann, who serves as a coordinator at the Lori Schottenstein Chabad Center. 

Hanukkah commemorates the story of the Maccabees. Judah Maccabee led his people to defend their land in Israel, despite having a much smaller army. Kaltmann said that the story is eerily reminiscent of today’s times.

“All it took was one voice, one leader to galvanize a few brave men to defeat an enemy that came into the land of Israel,” said Kaltmann. 

Spectrum News 1 first met Kaltmann a few months ago. She was headed to Israel to deliver supplies to Israeli soldiers during the early days of its war with Hamas. She said that her time over there inspired her to keep her faith alive.

“They hear that no, we support you, we're here for you, that means everything to them,” said Kaltmann. “That gave them more strength and more hope and more faith to continue their fight of light against darkness.”

One of her favorite parts of Hanukkah are the chocolate coins called gelt. They are integral in the ancient game of dreidel. The game traces back hundreds of years as a way to keep Jewish hope and history alive. 

“Children were taken to caves to study Torah, but if soldiers were coming, they would hide their Torah scrolls and take out the spinning top and play dreidel,” said Kaltmann. 

Tensions are still high and fighting continues between Israel and Hamas. Kaltmann said that this Hanukkah season they want to focus on spreading light wherever and however they can. 

“Especially now in the darkest of times, we need to celebrate even more,” said Kaltmann. “We need to embrace our Jewish identity. We need to be proud of who we are and that is actually a universal message that we all need to find the light inside of ourselves and make sure to do one more active goodness and kindness, specifically in spite of all the darkness.”

Kaltmann will return to Israel after Christmas and stay until the New Year. She hopes that 2024 will bring peace and understanding between Israel and Hamas.

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