With Lights Aglow, the City Celebrates Chanukah
by Maxine Dovere
Mayor Michael Bloomberg welcomed several hundred leaders of the New York community to the Mayor’s annual Hannukah party, this year, 2011/5772, celebrated at the Museum of Jewish Heritage at Battery Park. The festive event was “high-lighted” with the blessing of the candles of the second night of the holiday.
Dov Aharon Bloom, a student at Yeshiva Darchei Torah in Queens and Rachel Ordan, at SAR’s Academy in the Bronx, joined the Mayor for the lighting of the Menorah. Cantor Lipa Schmelzer, resplendent in turquoise brocade and sable streimel, added blessings and songs to the evening. The Mayor acknowledged the generosity of the gathering, including Rabbi Elie Abadie of the Safra Synagogue and Isaac Gindi of Century 21.
Mayor Bloomberg reminisced about both his immediate family and his larger Jewish family, noting that Israel, although perhaps distanced by thousands of miles, was “home” for every Jew. He spoke of his most recent visit to Israel in October, “six hours on the ground” during which a medical center honoring his father, William H. Bloomberg, was dedicated.