Chabad Of East Hampton Hosts 'MenorahCade' To Herrick Park For Lighting Of Menorah

There’s often hefty traffic going through Newtown Lane in East Hampton Village, but there was good reason for it last Sunday: a motorcade of cars decked with menorahs on their roofs headed down Newtown Lane in celebration of Hanukkah.

Dubbed the “MenorahCade” by the Chabad of East Hampton, which organized the event, the line of candle-topped cars led to Herrick Park on Sunday afternoon for the annual ceremony of lighting the menorah.

Musia Baumgarten, program coordinator for the Chabad, said on Friday that this is the fourth year of the MenorahCade, honoring the menorah that has been lit at Herrick Park for nearly nine years. Ms. Baumgarten said that the Chabad had lit other menorahs this year in East Hampton Town: one in Amagansett at the intersection of Atlantic Avenue and Main Street on December 12, and one in Montauk at Kirk Park on December 14.

The drivers start at the Chabad on Woods Lane and drive to East Hampton Main Beach before turning around and heading back on Main Street before turning onto Newtown Lane toward Herrick Park. Ms. Baumgarten pointed out that the two other menorah-lightings were new additions to the Chabad’s tradition.

“Three years ago, I said, ‘Why don’t we have menorahs up in the other towns?” she said. “We called the town, and it was really not difficult. It’s important to spread the light of Hanukkah, to glorify the miracle and to let everyone know about the miracle. That’s why we do all of these things in public.”

There was a hefty turnout for the lighting ceremony, with adults and kids watching Rabbi Leibel Baumgarten serve as master of ceremonies, along with Village Mayor Paul F. Rickenbach Jr.

Ms. Baumgarten said that she’s seen a strong growth in interest and attendance to the Chabad’s community events in recent years thanks to the Chabad’s strenuous effort to get the word out online and in local community calendars.

She added that she would love to have a menorah-lighting event at Bridgehampton Commons in the future.

“It’s really nice to be able to see the growth,” she said. “We always meet new people, there’s always new people that come that we’ve never met before. I think Hanukkah is one of those holidays that’s just a feel-good holiday. It doesn’t require too much work—nobody’s scrubbing their houses clean or cooking for days on end. It’s just a happy time.”