LEYTONSTONE and Wanstead Synagogue (LAWS) are delighted to be organising a Leytonstone Menorah street party and candle lighting on Sunday 18 December at 5:30pm.

Free latkes, doughnuts and hot chocolate will be served as Leytonstone rocks to foot-tapping live Klezmer music and the Mayor of Waltham Forest lights the first Chanukah candle.

All are welcome at the event, which will take place just opposite Leytonstone underground station at the junction of Fillebrook Road and Grove Green Road.

The Leytonstone Menorah was made using funds granted by Waltham Forest London Borough of Culture 2019 and with support from the Highways Agency. The street party is supported by the London Borough of Waltham Forest’s Leaders Fund.

For further information, please email info@lawsynagogue.org.

Chabad will be hosting their popular Chanukah lightings all across North East London and Essex throughout the festival – with everyone invited to come and take part.

The dates and times are below:

Sunday 18 December – Buckhurst Hill – Lighting ceremony at 6pm

Monday 19 December – Barkingside – Lighting ceremony at 3.45pm

Monday 19 December – Epping – Children’s entertainment at Epping Town Hall at 4pm
Lighting ceremony on Epping High Street at 5.30pm

Tuesday 20 December – Loughton – Lighting ceremony at 6pm

Wednesday 21 December – Woodford – Lighting ceremony at 6pm

Thursday 22 December – Chigwell – Lighting ceremony at 6pm

Saturday 24 December – Gants Hill – Lighting ceremony at 6.45pm

In Southend, the entire Jewish community and wider public are invited to the lightings at the Cliffs Pavilion Plaza – with free doughnuts for all!

The dates/times are:

Sunday 18 December – 5.30pm

Monday 19 December – 6.45pm (Gala Night)

Tuesday 20 December – 6.45pm

Wednesday 21 December – 6.45pm

Thursday 22 December – 6.45pm

Friday 23 December – 2.15pm

Saturday 24 December – 6.45pm

Sunday 25 December – 5.30pm

The post Essex Menorah Lightings – dates and details appeared first on Essex Jewish News.

The event, which was held at City Pavilion in Collier Row, was part of Nissim’s ‘Bright Lights Tour 2021’ and attracted 600 people of all ages and backgrounds from across London who all came together to enjoy his music.

Although Nissim has visited and performed in London before for small private events, this was Nissim Black’s first ever full concert in London, and Chabad were honoured to have had the opportunity to organise this special event.

Rabbi Odom Brandman, of Chabad Buckhurst Hill, who oversaw the concert, said “Nissim has an amazing story, he is a unique and special character and was both a total pleasure and professional to work with and was inspirational and uplifting to everyone at the concert”.

African American Nissim grew up in the US where he was not only a rapper, but a gang member.

He became religious around ten years ago converting to Judaism in 2012 and moved to Israel with his family in 2016. He has since built up a large fanbase for his music including in the UK.

Finding the right venue and securing everything needed to pull such a huge event proved extremely challenging, but the spiritual investment into the community and the hard work of Brandman and the rest of his production team was the driving force behind getting it done.

The venue was transformed by the amazing talent of CVS International complete with a star cloth backdrop, lights, huge screens and spark effects.

On the night, Brandman along with his team -Adrian Silas, Adrian Lee, Esther Joseph and their youth workers Sonia Beame and Morrisa Schuler – were blown away by Nissim’s energetic and inspiring performance throughout his 90 minute set.

Rabbi Brandman added: “The night was an amazing experience from start to finish for everyone and without a doubt the big highlight of Chanukah in Essex 2021”

During a quick costume change for Nissim, Rabbi Brandman of Chabad Buckhurst Hill and Rabbi Sufrin MBE of Chabad Gants Hill and Head Shliach to North East London & Essex, took to the stage to light a huge Menorah and share some words of inspiration with the crowd.

Rabbi Sufrin spoke amount the amazing growth of Chabad across Essex now with 9 public Menorahs and Rabbi Brandman spoke about the tremendous effects our positive displays of Jewish Pride can have on our communities. 

This event builds on the success of last year’s Drive-In Concert which was attended by nearly 1,000 people and once again makes Chabad Essex stand out as a leading force when it comes to Community.

One of the Chabad Team heard a little boy tell his mother on the way out that it was ‘the best day of my life!’  Whilst a teacher from a London Jewish school who brought a group of 23 teenagers to the event, felt that the positive Jewish effect of the concert was ‘worth more than 6 months of Jewish Studies lessons in the classroom’

Rabbi Odom Brandman added, when you hear things like this, it makes it all worth it! 

After the concert Nissim came back to Chabad Buckhurst Hill where Rabbi Odom Brandman presented him with an inscribed book, the Tanya printed in the Chabad House and one of the last remaining bottles of Chabad Buckhurst Hill’s famous Menorah Whisky from 2009.

The post International Superstar rocks Essex appeared first on Essex Jewish News.

Following last year’s tremendous successes, there will once again be a large public menorah in Southend this Chanukah – the 17th year it has been a feature of seaside life.

The Menorah will be situated by the Cliffs Pavilion theatre, and there will be a daily lighting, to which everyone is invited to attend.
Attendance is free, all are welcome and there will even be free donuts to enjoy!

If you have attended before, you will remember the excitement we all experienced – so please don’t miss out.

See the below image for full details.

The post Southend Public Menorah Lighting is back for 17th year appeared first on Essex Jewish News.