What Chanukah Means to Me

By Stacy Wintjen, JFS Development Manager

Growing up, Chanukah always brought excitement and anticipation. For us kids, it felt like it was all about the presents!

I remember the thrill of that first night of Chanukah at my grandparents’ home, where the reality of gifts often turned out to be new clothes rather than toys. That was not very exciting until I reached Bat-Mitzvah age and wanted all things from THE LIMITED (especially that Forenza cropped stonewashed jean jacket and Under the Sea Black Coral Swatch watch). As I got older, I began to appreciate those moments more—particularly the family gatherings, the big turkey dinner with latkes, and the warmth of seeing everyone around the table.

One vivid memory is of us lighting the electric menorah together and our family saying the prayers by my grandparents’ sliding glass window. My brother and I would play dreidel, gambling with the gelt Pop-Pop gave us, and eating all of our winnings afterward. There’s even a funny family story of Pop-Pop diving into the trash after accidentally throwing out a gift certificate along with the wrapping paper.

Growing up in Dover, Delaware, there weren’t many Jewish kids at school. But every December, my mom encouraged me to teach my classmates about Chanukah. I’d bring in the menorah and explain the story behind the Festival of Lights. My friends were fascinated, always asking, “Do you really get presents for eight days in a row?” It wasn’t easy explaining that Chanukah is actually a minor holiday compared to others in the Jewish calendar. Even so, it took me a while to fully grasp the deeper meaning of the holiday.

A dear friend of mine reminded me that in college I introduced her and our friends to Chanukah by lighting the menorah in my dorm room. Unfortunately, the candles kept falling over, which freaked everyone out!  I had to blow them out to avoid a fire hazard, which felt a little sacrilegious at the time. At least we didn’t burn down the dorm. The next night, we used an electric menorah (courtesy of my grandmother). We had a good laugh as we heard the squeak of each bulb being “lit”.  In those years, Chanukah became more about sharing traditions and creating memories with friends.

Once I had children, Chanukah took on a new meaning.  I loved teaching them about the holiday through fun things like Nickelodeon’s “A Rugrats Chanukah” and Adam Sandler’s “The Chanukah Song” (all four versions), which we had to catch on the radio because we didn’t have his CD, let alone an iPod!  As my children grew older, we had fun watching Adam Sander’s movie “Eight Crazy Nights” together (once they were old enough for its PG-13 humor).

For me, Chanukah is about family, tradition, and creating new memories. I treasure the joy we’ve shared over the years, and hope that my children will continue to pass down these traditions in the future.