Chabad on Campus Sending Free Menorahs to Jewish Students Nationwide

BROOKLYN, NY — The Chabad on Campus International Foundation is offering free menorahs to any Jewish student who wants one. In the pre-Chanukah initiative, the organization will provide a Chanukah kit complete with a menorah, candles and a booklet.

Already, student response has been positive.

“I am so thankful for this opportunity to be able to have the resources to take part in this festival,” wrote one student from Beavercreek, Ohio, in an e-mail to Chabad on Campus. “I would have been unable to join-in with my people this year if not for this program.”

The program, which after its inauguration last year sent menorahs to more than 1,500 students, will see Chabad on Campus shipping kits to students on campuses not currently served by a Chabad House. By logging on to www.FreeHolidayKit.com, collegians can request a menorah by entering their school information and paying $1 to help offset shipping and handling.

“The celebration of Chanukah is all about the light that miraculously resulted from one overlooked jug in the Temple,” stated Rabbi Yossy Gordon, executive director of Chabad on Campus. “We will similarly not rest until every Jewish student, even in the most isolated areas of the collegiate world, has the opportunity to observe the holiday and appreciate the miracle.”

Rabbi Moshe Chaim Dubrowski, director of operations for Chabad on Campus – which supports the activities of a network of more than 100 Chabad Houses nationwide that serve college campuses – said that organizers expected a greater demand this year given that Chanukah occurs in the middle of the semester.

“On campuses with little Jewish resources, many students will find themselves stranded, so to speak, when it comes to the Festival of Lights,” he explained. “That’s why we’re bringing Chanukah to them through the menorah kits.”

The timing has also led Chabad-Lubavitch emissaries serving the nation’s universities to place a special emphasis on fire safety. On campuses served by a Chabad House, which will be distributing their own menorahs to students, staff are inviting students to light their menorahs there if lighting them at the dorm is not feasible or violates a school’s fire-safety policies.

“We take student safety very seriously,” said Rabbi Hershey Novack, co-director of Chabad on Campus serving Washington University in S. Louis. “As we work to increase the celebration of Chanukah, we are also working to educate students and Chabad emissaries to review applicable university policies and follow best fire-safety practices.”