Millbrook Menorah aglow once again

MILLBROOK — Sunday, Dec. 5, was the last night of Hanukkah, and it was celebrated in the village of Millbrook this year with the lighting of all eight candles of the Menorah.

There were two Menorahs set up on the front lawn of the Thorne Building on Franklin Avenue for the holiday; one fully lit. Rabbi Hanoch Hecht, from the Rhinebeck Jewish Center, officiated as he has for many years as part of the holiday tradition. The event did not take place last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Rabbi Hecht and his family brought doughnuts, latkes (potato pancakes) and applesauce to share with those who attended the ceremony, along with Hanukkah necklaces that lit up with tiny blue lights.

The joyous last night celebration, held at 4 p.m., also featured traditional Hanukkah songs and a brief telling of the story behind the holiday, of bringing light into the world and how it honors the oil that should have lasted only one day but miraculously lasted eight — until more consecrated oil could be brought to the Temple in Jerusalem.

The celebration is made possible each year by Adele and Sheldon Lobel and the Millbrook Chanukah Committee. Among the celebrants were Mayor Tim Collopy, Deputy Mayor Mike Herzog and his wife Mary Anne; Village Trustee Vickie Contino and Millbrook Business Association President Kevin McGrane.

The festivities continued afterward at Babette’s Kitchen with free hot drinks, latkes and doughnuts, as it has for years as part of the village’s Hanukkah celebration.

— Judith O’Hara Balfe

Rabbi Hanoch Hecht of the Rhinebeck Jewish Center, left, and local resident Sheldon Lobel sponsor the lighting of the Menorah in the village of Millbrook every year, along with the Millbrook Chanukah Committee. Photo by Judith O'Hara Balfe

One of the two Menorahs set up on the lawn of the Thorne Building; this one stood during all eight days of Hanukkah. Photo by Judith O'Hara Balfe

Rabbi Hanoch Hecht of the Rhinebeck Jewish Center, left, and local resident Sheldon Lobel sponsor the lighting of the Menorah in the village of Millbrook every year, along with the Millbrook Chanukah Committee. Photo by Judith O'Hara Balfe