Menorah Lit in Slain Teen’s Honor

Ezra Schwartz embodied the spirit of Chanukah, his mother said last night as she took on the emotional task of lighting a community menorah in honor of her son, the Sharon, Massachusetts, teen slain in Israel less than a month ago.

From the Boston Herald:

“I miss his smile. I miss his humor. His silliness. His love,” Ruth Schwartz said. “It was difficult to light the menorah and we were able to do it because of our friends and family and the need to bring light into our house. … The program was really beautiful. It made me really appreciate all the love and support from our community and friends.”

Ruth Schwartz said Hanukkah’s root word means “in favorable regard.”

“I related that to Ezra,” she said.

“Everybody he touched, he felt favor in everybody’s eyes. He was a friend to everybody, and he was the light in our lives. … He really touched a lot of people and Hanukkah is about finding light.”

Schwartz and two other men were killed Nov. 19 by a Palestinian man who opened fire with a submachine gun at cars stuck in a traffic jam in the Gush Etzion area of the West Bank before intentionally ramming his vehicle into a group of pedestrians, according to a statement by the Consulate General of Israel to New England’s office.

Click here to continue reading at the Boston Herald.