A Bronx rabbi continues to actively support the annual menorah lighting events all across the Bronx, amid the celebration of the Jewish festival of Hanukkah while, together with members of his own Morris Park congregation, the annual festival is marked by feeding senior Jewish residents from all across the borough.

 

Canceled last year amid the pandemic, a public gathering for Hanukkah returned this year to the Bronx Jewish Center, located at 1969 Haight Avenue in Morris Park, once again. The center has been holding gatherings for the Jewish celebration, annually, since 2013. On Sunday, November 28, the congregation returned once again for the “CAN-orah,” a giant “menorah of giving” made up of several candles that rested atop donated cans of food.

 

Rabbi Saadia Pewzner had been busy collecting the 200 donated cans of food for the occasion, and distributed them to local families and soup kitchens, before hosting his own hot buffet lunch, accompanied by a musical performance by guitarist, Bobby Doowah. Pewzner said of the canned food giveaway, “We’re distributing it to local Jewish people that are in need to bring the message of giving to everybody.” Pewzner said leftover cans of food were given to local food pantries.

 

During the luncheon, which catered to approximately 170 people, Pewzner was asked if the need for food had increased within the Jewish community amid the pandemic. He replied, “A different type of need, yeah, but definitely more of a need.” He added, “More calls…..a lot of people are asking us to visit them because they have a lot less opportunities to socialize and to interact. People are not just looking for food, but they’re also looking for company.”

 

“Janet,” who traveled from Bronx Park to enjoy the lunch and celebration, said Doowah’s music was “beautiful.” In terms of the luncheon itself and gathering, she added, “The food is the best and this couldn’t be better.”

 

Before lighting the “Can Orah,” District 13 councilwoman-elect, Majorie Velázquez, who will succeed incumbent councilman, Mark Gjonaj, told the crowd, “We’re going through some tough times. These last few years have been difficult. Let’s be the light for our neighbors, remind folks that this is about community, that we are stronger together.”

 

Velázquez, a Democrat, won the November general election with 51 percent of the vote share, accumulating 10,201 votes, and beating off Republican runner-up, Aleksander Mici, who secured 7,893 votes. Velázquez won more than double Mici’s vote in Assembly District 87, securing 45 to his 22.  It was a similar situation in A.D. 80, where she won 4,415 to Mici’s 2,181. The race was tightest in Assembly District 82, with 5,741 votes to Mici’s 5,690. Meanwhile, no votes were cast for any candidate in A.D. 83.

 

Meanwhile, over the seven nights of the Hanukkah festival, Rabbi Pewzner would also attend menorah lightings in Hunts Point, Pelham Parkway, Throgs Neck, Fordham Manor, Westchester Square, Pelham Gardens, Allerton and Co-Op City.

 

The Menorah lighting in Fordham Manor, was held at an orthotic and prosthetic business located next door to, and owned by, Medi Serve Pharmacy, located at 2611 Webster Avenue and East 194th Street. Alex Baba, the supervising pharmacist, said they had just completed a turkey giveaway, distributing 1,000 turkeys to neighborhood residents for Thanksgiving, when they held the Menorah lighting for Jewish residents of the community.

 

Baba said of Rabbi Pewzner, “He’s been in the neighborhood about ten years and he’s just doing so much for the community, for a lot of the people, especially the elderly who really don’t have a congregation to go to, don’t really have a person to be there for them, spiritually, so we support him because we feel he does a great job for the greater Bronx community and yeah, I feel like businesses need to support one another and we need to give to charity.”

 

On Tuesday, December 14, Rabbi Pewzner was asked more about his active support of the various menorah lightings across the borough. He replied, “There is a wealth of people around here and there’s an overwhelming need for more and more, that’s not enough. There’s a huge Jewish population over here and it’s being way underserved, unfortunately, at all these different places –  no question about it.”

 

For more information on the Bronx Jewish Center, residents can visit the website: www.bronxjewishcenter.org.

 

*Síle Moloney contributed to this story.