On Thursday, December 15th, local kids did a big Mitzvah (Hebrew for good deed) by providing for those in need this holiday season.
The Chabad of Coronado hosted their annual Kids Do Kindness night to kick off Hanukkah, the Festival of Lights, which started on December 18th and is celebrated for eight nights. It is celebrated with a nightly menorah lighting, special prayers and fried foods.
This event brings together local families with a mission of adding a little extra light for those in need. Over 25 Coronado families gathered to wrap presents for kids in the hospital and assemble snack bags for San Diego kids experiencing houselessness.
While the holiday season can be a joyous time, for many, it can be a time of despair and loneliness.
Chabad of Coronado’s Rabbi Eli Fradkin shares, “When we use the flame of our candle to light a candle in someone else’s life, our light is not diminished. It grows, because there is now more light in the world.”
The two organizations that benefitted are Chai Lifeline and the Monarch Schools. Chai Lifeline provides critical support to thousands of brave and inspiring children around the world living with serious illness. The Monarch School, located just over the bridge in Barrio Logan, is a trauma-informed and strength-based community which provides a safe place for unhoused youth to learn and heal.
Zaira Martinez, Volunteer and Community Engagement Coordinator, welcomed the donation. She says, “Our after school program always needs snacks to help meet our students’ hunger needs. Some students might miss a meal at home and they can get some nourishment from the snacks we try to have readily available.”
Rabbi Fradkin says, “If I share my knowledge, or faith, or love with others, I won’t have less; I may even have more. That’s one of the lessons we think of when we celebrate Chanukah, and that is how Chabad of Coronado tries to live every day of the year.”
If you want to participate in the celebration of Hanukkah this year, the Chabad will be lighting a candle on the life-sized menorah at the Hotel del Coronado each night at sundown.
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