The End of Hanukkah House?

For years, our local Reform synagogue here in Binghamton, New York housed a Hanukkah museum called Hanukkah House in part of the building once occupied by the Jonas M. Kilmer House. 

Here are some of my previous posts about Hanukkah House.

Hanukkah House, Binghamton (showing some of the mansion's detail)

The Dolls of Memory (honoring Roberta King, who died in a mass shooting event in 2009).  Madame Alexander dolls and dollhouses were two of her passions.

Figurines of Hanukkah.

I had been going to that museum even before I started this blog in 2009.  Each year it had a different theme.  Some were fun posts, about Jewish cuisine around the world.  Some, though, were grim.  Grim but necessary.  One had artifacts of the Holocaust.  I can't seem to find that post, but I intend to look for pictures I took at that 2012 visit.

One year, Hanukkah House asked this question:  Would you help a neighbor?  Its theme was the Righteous among Nations, spotlighting non-Jews who helped Jewish neighbors or members of their community being persecuted.  Many died.  Others lived.

It's a humbling question to think about, in these times.

But one thing is missing from the discussion.  Hanukkah House.

It didn't open in 2020 or 2021, due to COVID.  I went to the Kilmer mansion in 2022 (there's a small Judaica gift shop in there) to buy some Hanukkah gifts for my son, and talked to someone.

In 2022, the mansion (the part not occupied by the synagogue) was in the process of renovation.  It's now an event venue.  The people there doubted Hanukkah House would ever reopen. It didn't reopen this year.

We need it more than ever.  We need to educate our young about the price of violence and hate. No, not just our young.  Everyone. Recent polls show alarming numbers of people who think the Holocaust never happened, just for starters.

You may have heard of the synagogue in Albany, New York where shots were fired outside earlier this week.  One of my late aunt and uncles lived in the Albany area. 

This was their synagogue.

A Facebook friend lived for years in Charlottesville, Virginia and attended the synagogue targeted by the infamous protesters in Charlottesville in 2017.    Things have gotten much worse since then.

I mentioned Roberta King briefly at the beginning of her post.  She was a volunteer at Temple Concord.  I have reason to believe I had spoken to her for a few minutes during one of my visits to Hanukkah House.  She loved to educate, and died in a mass shooting doing what she loved - educating.

I wonder what she would have thought about the ending of Hanukkah House.  At the very least she would have been saddened.

I'm saddened, also.

Figurines of Hanukkah

One more Hanukkah post for this year.

The last of the eight candles that are lit (not counting the shamash, the helper candle that sits slightly above all other candles) for Hanukkah, the Festival of Lights, will be lit tonight.

Let's take one more peek at Hanukkah.  These figurines were on display at Hanukkah House, the seasonal museum in Binghamton, New York, several years ago.  Because of COVID-19, the museum did not open in 2020 or this year.

 

This is my favorite one.  The man playing with a yo-yo- the woman crocheting.  This is so joyous.\

Curious about the backgrounds of these pictures? This museum was located in a historic mansion, the Kilmer Mansion, and these are being displayed on the fireplaces.   Here's a blog post I wrote about the mansion, back in 2018.

A couple celebrating Shabbat (the Sabbath).

 I want to close with a Hanukkah menorah decorated with a different family figurine.

We all have an obligation to illuminate the world - to chase away the forces of darkness and evil with the light of truth and wisdom.  

Especially in these times.

The Dollhouses of The Pandemic

You don't have to be Jewish to love dollhouses.

It's that time of year - Hanukkah, the Jewish Festival of Lights. 

I have blogged about Bobbie King time and again, usually every December when Hanukkah rolls around.  This year, Hanukkah is early, and my post about Ms. King is going to be early, too.

The dollhouses I am about to show you were owned by a woman, Bobbie King, a mother of 10, and the member of the congregation that runs Hanukkah House, a museum open every December in the city of Binghamton, New York.  Sadly, Hanukkah House was not opened in 2020, and it won't be open this year, either, due to COVID-19.

But we must remember the connection of these dollhouses to a tragedy.

Bobbie King, a woman who taught English to immigrants as one of her post-retirement careers, died on April 3, 2009, along with 13 of her students, gunned down in cold blood by a former student of the American Civil Association (ACA) organization where she taught.  She was the oldest of the 13 victims of that mass shooting in Binghamton, New York.

This tragedy was one of hundreds of mass shootings in our country, both before and after 2009.  It's not only shootings, either. More recently, it is also car attacks, such as the one in Waukesha, Wisconsin several days ago, when a SUV plowed through the community's annual parade.

Mrs. King's family has permitted a display of her dollhouses and dolls each year since the shooting.  Until COVID, it had become a tradition.  I'd like to carry it forward this year with pictures from previous years.

Mrs. King's dollhouse (and doll) collection were well known in the community.  She would sometimes give dolls to the children of the community.  

Enjoy these dollhouses.

Bobbie King knew well that we must remember the lessons of history.  There are many lessons in the life and death of Bobbie King, and the others who died at the American Civic Association on April 3, 2009.  

Today, I remember a woman who gave much to this community.  I hope you enjoy this collection.

Lighting a Candle in the Darkness (With a recipe)

 Today, at sundown, the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah starts.

This is a simplified explanation of the holiday, as told to a 12 year old modern boy. 

Darkness comes in many forms.  The original rebellion against the Greeks in the Hanukkah story was partially a rebellion against a religion being forced upon a people.  I love a quote from the story I linked to:  "We make light and tell stories when we are long on night and short on hope."

Today, religious intolerance is on the rise across our country, and the world.  We must never take our right to light our lights over eight nights for granted.

Some of our ancestors lit their Hanukkah candles or oil at a time knowing that if they were caught, there would be a severe penalty.  

But we are fortunate, in these times, that the Jewish people of the United States can still celebrate Hanukkah openly.

Where I live, near Binghamton, New York, Temple Concord has hosted a Hanukkah museum called Hanukkah House.  Unfortunately, for the second year in a row, Hanukkah House has been cancelled, but I wanted to share some photos from previous years.

The museum, as it appeared in 2017.  This is located in a historic mansion once owned by a patent medicine manufacturer.

Hanukkah menorahs come in many shapes and sizes.  Historic...

Whimsical...

...and traditional.

Tonight, I will think of the holiday as lighting candles or oil in the darkness.  My spouse is roasting a turkey, and we will enjoy potato latkes.  No parsnips this year, but here's a recipe spouse has made in the past.

Happy Hanukkah for those who observe.

Madame Alexander Dolls and Hanukkah

 On this, the last full day of Hanukkah, and a day of record snow, I would like to blog a little about dolls.  Madame Alexander dolls, to be exact.

Madame Alexander (or to be exact, Madame Bertha (later changed to Beatrice) Alexander Behrman) was the daughter of Russian Jewish immigrants and was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York.  Her father ran the first doll hospital in this country.  She founded her doll company in 1923.

Madame lived to the age of 95 - and had a hand in the business she founded until she was 93 years old.

The company is still located in the United States - its home is in New York City but the dolls are made overseas.   At one time Madame Alexander employed some 650 people to make her dolls, here in the U.S.A.  Apparently, this is no longer the case.

So, what is the connection with Hanukkah?

In Binghamton, New York, there is a Hanukkah museum called Hanukkah House, located in a former mansion.  Every year (except, apparently this year, because I haven't been able to find out if they are open) they feature various exhibits of Jewish life and culture.  One of the exhibitors is the family of the late Roberta King, who was murdered, along with 12 other innocents, in a mass shooting in Binghamton on April 3, 2009.

I apologize for the reflections in some of these pictures.

Mrs. King was a collector of dolls, and I'd like to show you some of them (photos taken in past years, mainly 2016).  I am not sure if all of these are Madame Alexander dolls but I know some of them are.  Many reflect the immigrant experience of the early 20th century.

These are so beautiful.

One more.  This cabinet is part of the mansion that Hanukkah House resides in.  I'm not sure I've ever done a post devoted to the Kilmer Mansion - I should.

I hope you've enjoyed today's posts.  If you enjoy dollhouses, you may enjoy this post, too.

A happy holiday season to all.

The Dollhouses of Memory

Tonight, at sundown, I will light candles for the third night of Hanukkah, along with millions of others throughout the world.

Today, I remember an educator, Roberta King.

Roberta King was a member of the congregation that runs the museum Hanukkah House which has become a place I visit each year (except this year when it is, apparently, closed). She was a mother of 10 who taught English for immigrant adult education classes at Binghamton, New York's American Civic Association - until the day she was murdered, with 12 of her students and co workers. April 3, 2009 is a day no one in Binghamton will ever forget.

Her family refused to surrender to hate.  Instead, they continue to permit Hanukkah House to display her dollhouses (and extensive doll collection) each year for the community to enjoy.

Here's one of them.

And another.  I've posted some of these pictures (taken in 2016) before and I'd like to show you some of these dollhouse scenes today.  Let's go in, shall we?

The rooms are so detailed - wallpaper, curtains, even cut "flowers".

Wicker furniture on a patio.

The lady of the house in her bedroom.

A servant on the left?

It's time to leave.  Farewell for another year.

There are details (not necessarily visible in the pictures I took) showing that these dollhouse occupants are Jewish (such as a menorah on display). 

I may show more from Hanukkah House later in this holiday, which ends sundown on December 18.

The Festival of Lights 2020

If you are looking for my Thursday Tree Love post, you'll find it HERE.

But I hope you'll also stay for this post.

The Jewish holiday of Hanukkah starts tonight at sundown.  This is a Jewish festival of celebration - a celebration of the 165 B.C.E. (what Christians call "B.C.") victory of the Maccabee rebels against the Seleucid (Greek Syrian) Empire, who had tried to force the Jews to adopt their religious practices.  The Temple of the Jewish people was desecrated during the Seleucid reign.  

Now, freedom won, the Temple was to be rededicated, and its hanukiah (seven branched candelabrum) lit, but there was only one day's worth of untainted olive oil available to fuel it.  By a miracle, it remained lit for the eight days it took to get more oil, or so the story goes. 

What we call a menorah could be a hanukiah, but more commonly has nine branches, one for each of the eight days of Hanukkah and one "servant" candle, raised higher than the other eight, used to light one candle on the first night of Hanukkah, and one more candle on each successful day.

Binghamton, New York, where I worked until I was sent home to work due to the pandemic, has a Hanukkah House museum inside its Temple Concord.  I haven't found any evidence that the museum will be open this Hanukkah, so I wanted to show you some menorahs they display from previous years.

Menorahs can be of all sizes and shapes.  

This display almost looks like a Zoom screen.

Some are designed for children.

Some have words.

Beautiful ceramic menorah.

The front menorah is a religious type design.  The one in back is using beeswax candles.  Menorahs can use candles, oil, or even electricity (electricity only for display) here in modern times.

In the coming days, I will have a couple of more posts with pictures from my years of visiting Hanukkah House.

May the lights of Hanukkah illuminate our nights, for all peoples on Earth, during these times of the pandemic.

Jewish Foods from Hanukkah House

It's time to eat!  Hanukkah begins tonight.

I will say up front that my blog post name may be a little misleading.  Although these recipes were displayed in Hanukkah House, a Hanukkah museum in Binghamton, New York in December of 2017, they aren't really Hanukkah specific recipes.  But, why not mix and match?

Since the miracle of our Festival of Lights occurred with oil, it is traditional to eat a lot of fried foods.

Some of these, like the Mexican Chilaquiles, are more a Passover food (a Jewish holiday which takes place around Easter time), but would be quite suitable because they are fried.

Jews live all over the world, and our cuisine reflects that.

Here are foods from:

Mexico: fried matzo and eggs.

India Aloo Makalla are a type of fried potatoes, enjoyed by the Bene Israel Jews of Mumbai.

Argentina.  It may surprise you to know that the Jewish population of Argentina is the fifth largest in the world.

I wrote an entire post on egg creams, a traditional New York City refreshment back in 2017.  I don't consider them a Hanukkah food, but why not?  We can even get the traditional U-Bet chocolate syrup where I live in the Southern Tier of upstate New York.

Although this says borscht originated in the Ukraine, it is fondly remembered from my childhood during Passover.  In a kosher household, however, a meat based borscht would never have been served with sour cream. I remember most borschts served by my mother as being meat free, and served with potatoes.

How about this one?

This one isn't a true Hanukkah dish but I love it.  Because my spouse doesn't like the combination of meat and fruit (a combination I usually love), we don't put dried prunes in our version.  I was suprised to find its origin was in France.

Last but not least - Arkansas, by way of Germany.

The entire selection.

I chose this memory of Hanukkah House because this year's display is on the owner of the mansion the museum is located in, rather than the holiday itself.

Hungry yet?

The Ordinary Nature of Hate

Is it the most wonderful time of the year?

This holiday season is not the usual type.  While many celebrate with wonderful traditions, fear has come to certain populations of the United States.

It's become a holiday tradition on my blog, when the Jewish holiday of Hanukah draws close, to blog about an annual museum in Binghamton, New York.

Hanukah House is located in a historic mansion now owned, and part of, Temple Concord.

Here is an outside picture.

During late November and into late December (days vary each year), Hanukah House operates as a museum dedicated to the Jewish holiday of Hanukah.  It's the Festival of Lights, a celebration of rebellion and religious freedom (and a miracle).  Each year its exhibits change.

Here are some of my previous posts.

From 2012

From 2015 

Would You Help a Neighbor? (from 2016)

And then there's this:  The Ordinary Nature of Evil (from 2016)

That was only the beginning, that ordinary nature of evil post.  Times have changed, my reader friends.

At one time you could just walk up to the door and open it, and walk into the museum/synagogue.

No more.

Now, the door to Hanukkah House is locked.  You have to ring a bell, and there is a security camera where the volunteers inside can view you, and decide if they will let you into the building.

Hatred has become so ordinary.  Someone with a gun, a car, a knife, could decide to put their hate into action at the mall, at your church, at your synagogue, at your mosque, at your local big box store, at your local TV station, at a concert, a movie, a grocery store, or even at an office Christmas party.

Just because.

It's so ironic that a woman whose dollhouses and dolls are part of Hanukkah House's exhibits was herself murdered in a mass shooting on April 3, 2009, in an adult classroom in Binghamton, New York.

We all pay the price of the haters among us.

Each and every day.

Even in a museum celebrating a fight for religious freedom.

The Mansion that Swamp Root Built

I've blogged about the Hanukkah House museum in Binghamton, New York each Hanukkah season, but I've never shown you the building it is located in.

This is the Kilmer Mansion which is now owned by Temple Concord in Binghamton, not that far from where Rod Serling of Twilight Zone fame grew up.  It was built in 1878 by a family who manufactured a patent medicine called Swamp Root and were hated and feared.  For those interested in architecture, though, it is a gem.

The front has a chanukkiyah which stands all year.

Some detail of the floor inside.

An overview of one of the rooms.

And a tribute to the past.


There are several Kilmer properties in Binghamton, but this one has special meaning.  If you are ever in our area in December, do visit.  Admission is free to the Hanukkah House museum, although a donation to our local food pantry would be most welcome.

Dollhouses - #WordlessWednesday

Every year I pay tribute to Roberta King, who was murdered in a mass shooting at the American Civic Association in Binghamton, New York on April 3, 2009.  She was a collector of dolls and dollhouses that represented Jewish life, and her family generously allows the Hanukkah House museum (open for a month each year in Binghamton, New York) to display some of her dollhouses and dolls.

When someone passes on, what remains are the memories.

A room.

This museum is in what used to be a mansion belonging to a patent medicine maker who became quite wealthy.

Memories of the past.

Join Esha and Natasha each Wednesday for #WordlessWednesday.

Hanukkah

Tonight  is the first night of Hanukkah.

While most of us in the United States are preparing for Christmas, the Jewish people of this country celebrate Hanukkah.

In Binghamton, there is a wonderful museum in a historic mansion that opens for a month every year, this year from November 27 to December 27.  Run by volunteers, Hanukkah House is free (but donations to a local food pantry are accepted).

I have blogged about Hanukkah House before:

Hanukkah House Binghamton
The Dolls of Memory

And, about Hanukkah
A Hanukkah potpourri
Latkes

Tonight, families gather to light candles, eat traditional foods, sing songs, and play the game of dreidel.

But this year, with the tragic synagogue shooting in Pittsburgh and the continued rise of anti-Semitism in this country (right now New York State leads the nation), many Jews find themselves living in fear.

Can you imagine having to light candles in secret, or hide menorahs away from the public.  But that has been necessary at various points in time.

It is a wonderful thing when communities band together to fight anti-Semitism, as at least two communities in Montana have done in past years. 

But, for Jews, these remain scary times.

If you know of an anti-Semitic incident, feel free to report it here. 

We can not stay silent, during this festival that tells the story of a struggle for religious freedom.