Several students joined together to play in the most popular game of Hanukkah: Dreidel. “It was super exciting to see everyone participate in our traditions. Hanukkah has such a good spirit, it was really fun,” senior and president Maia Byala said.

The JSU leadership team put together a Hanukkah Kahoot for students to test their knowledge of the holiday and compete for a prize. “My favorite part of this Hanukkah party was the incredible turnout that we got…we [had] fun, eating donuts, playing Kahoot, just having a good time on Hanukkah…I think it’s nice when we have non-Jewish students who come to the club too and they can learn about Judaism and see what it’s really about,” Rabbi Sammy Beckerman said.

As anti-Semitism plagues the community, the JSU leadership team urges students to fight back and rise up above the hate. “I think it’s really important that we continue to do these [events] because it shows that we are stronger than anti-Semitism and we’re going to get through all of this if we stick together and show that we are stronger than hate. Love is stronger than hate,” senior and treasurer Brooke Levin said.

There was a very impressive turnout with students filling the entire classroom. While there was a large population of Jewish students who came out to the event, several non-Jewish students were there to learn about the holiday’s traditions and show their support for the Jewish community. “There were people of all religions and all different backgrounds, so I think that’s the best thing when you have the whole community behind you. That’s how you can really continue to make an impact and fight anti-Semitism,” senior and vice-president Beka Dychtwald said.

Rabbi Sammy Beckerman is an integral part of JSU, educating the club on the meaning of Judaism and always telling inspiring stories. “There’s a lot of anti-Semitism around so it’s important for us to publicize who we are, be happy about who we are… it’s perfect timing for Hanukkah to fall on now where right after a few of these [hateful acts] have happened, we can be proud Jews, be proud of who we are and share the light as much as we can,” Beckerman said.