Families started their Chanukah celebrations a little bit early at Har Shalom Congregation in Potomac this week, with a Sunday, Dec. 5 “Chanukah Happening” at the temple that included dinner, activities for children, and a Chanukah concert. Chanukah began Tuesday, Dec. 7.
Religious school children made crafts and decorated cookies in their classrooms and jumped on a moonbounce before dinner convened
around 6 p.m.
Following the meal, parents and children gathered in the new sanctuary for singing and dancing led by a Har Shalom religious school teacher. The fourth grade class helped with several of the songs and paraded through the sanctuary carrying flashlights representing the lights of Chanukah.
“On Chanukah we celebrate the light of the Jewish people, a light that continues to burn brighter and brighter,” said Rabbi David Rose, speaking to the congregation during the concert.
The event drew more than 250 people, said program committee head Mady Vermut, who helped organize the event.
“It’s fun. ... It’s a happy, family and children-oriented activity. It’s the excitement that Chanukah is here and it’s a real uplifting time. It’s multi-generational also. You get parents and grandparents and children.”
Asked if the large turnout was unusual, Vermut said, “No, it’s like this every year.”