It sure was Double the Fun for 2025! Yep, twice Hanukkah, twice latkes, twice gelt. Because 2024 Chanukah wrapped up on January 2nd… and here we are again with the first night landing next week on the 14th! Who decided one Chanukah a year was enough?!
Spell Hanukkah or Chanukah? In ASL, it’s simple. Just ONE sign. On paper? Choose your adventure. “Chanukah” is for those who enjoy bonus letters. We tried a few spellings just to be sure we covered all bases!
This luncheon supported the JDC (Jewish Deaf Congress) and IJDF (International Jewish Deaf Festival), with a portion of the proceeds going to CSDR. To help raise funds, we had a Chanukah “store,” four raffle prizes, and both a silent auction and a live auction. We even sent everyone home with party favors, and one lucky person at each table won the centerpiece in a special drawing!
And the meal? Absolutely delicious! Big thanks to the FEAST program at CSDR for preparing food that everyone raved about!
Meet the crew (besides myself):
- Becca Gleicher – Publicity & flyers mastermind (received more messages from everyone than Gmail could handle)
- Sharon Wilson – Food guru & auction pro (her latkes should be trademarked!)
- AnnMarie Strom – Decorations & party favor queen (owns more glitter than a craft store)
- Frank Lester – Treasurer & meal-order master (the keeper of The Numbers)
- Lindsay DeHoyas – PowerPoint wizard (can make charts and menorahs glow)
Chanukah teaches us a universal truth: Calories don’t count when latkes are involved. And this day was filled with laughter, light, and lots of latkes, guided by our emcee, Joe Dannis who ran the show with flair!
Huge thanks to all 106 attendees and to our fantastic presenters:
Doug Ellis for the Trivia Table Game
Alyce Reynolds for the sale of raffles
Donalda Ammons for leading the live auction
and Brian Strom for the photo sessions.
We also revealed our exciting new cookbook in the works: The Jewish Deaf Kitchen: Recipes, Culture, and Pride from Our Hands. Keep an eye out. It’s coming soon!
The best lesson of the day? Straight from the dreidel:
“A GREAT MIRACLE HAPPENED THERE.”But for us, “A GREAT MIRACLE HAPPENED HERE.”
Actually… twice! Bonus miracles for 2025.
Here’s to a bright, joyful, double-blessed Festival of Lights!
-Tina Jo Breindel, Chair
