Menorah graces Main Street Square
A large outdoor menorah will grace Main Street Square during theeight nights of Hanukkah that begin today.
The Synagogue of the Hills will host a 5:30 p.m. public lightingceremony tonight using the oversized electric menorah that wasoriginally built for use at the Ellsworth Air Force Basenon-denominational chapel.
Col. Meyer Garber of the 28th Bomb Wing requested that aHanukkah menorah be displayed at Ellsworth, according to state Sen.Stan Adelstein, R-Rapid City. the menorah was used there from 1983until 1995, when it was moved to the front yard of Adelstein’s WestBoulevard home each Hanukkah.
Hanukkah, also called the Jewish Festival of Lights, is a Jewishholiday that celebrates the victory of the Maccabees over a muchlarger Syrian army in the second century before Christ when a smallamount of lamp oil miraculously lasted eight days.
Each day of Hanukkah, which typically falls in early tomid-December, is commemorated by lighting another of the menorah’seight candles until all are lit.
Given its unique history, the Rapid City menorah commemoratesthe officers and airmen of the cold War era, Adelstein said.
“Many times during this period, crew members mentioned theirstrong emotions when they glimpsed the Hanukkiah (a Hanukkahmenorah) shining like a beacon of freedom as they approached theirhome base here in the center of our great country,” he said.
Menorah graces Main Street Square
