This year marks forty years since the Bill Graham Menorah was first erected by Chabad-Lubavitch in San Francisco. It was the first massive public menorah that ushered in a new era of Hanukkah awareness. The menorah is dedicated in memory of Bill Graham—a child survivor of the Holocaust and a well-known music promoter—who donated the construction of the 25–foot-tall, 3 ton, mahogany menorah. Throughout the eight-day holiday—which begins this year on the evening of Sunday, December 6th—thousands are expected to join the nightly lightings of this historic menorah in Union Square.
The annual event is part of a worldwide Hanukkah campaign set into motion in 1973, by the Lubavitcher Rebbe—Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson, of righteous memory.
Today, the unprecedented public display of Hanukkah has become a staple of Jewish cultural and religious life, forever altering the American practice and perception of the festival. This year, Chabad-Lubavitch will set up more than 15,000 large public menorahs in more than 80 counties around the world, including in front of landmarks such as the White House, the Eiffel Tower, and the Kremlin.
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Chabad-Lubavitch Rabbi Chaim Drizin (second from left) stands with others at the first lighting of the Bill Graham Menorah in Union Square in 1975. The menorah a 25-foot-tall, 3 ton mahogany structure, was the first massive public menorah, built with funding from the late rock impresario Bill Graham. It was part of a worldwide Hanukkah campaign set into motion by the
Lubavitcher Rebbe—Rabbi
Menachem M. Schneerson, of righteous memory—in 1973. Credit:
Chabad.org
Chabad-Lubavitch Rabbi Chaim Drizin, kindles the
Hanukkah menorah at a public menorah lighting ceremony in Union Square in San Francisco in 1975. This year marks forty years since the Bill Graham Menorah was first erected by Chabad-Lubavitch of San Francisco with funding from the late rock impresario. The annual event is part of a worldwide Hanukkah campaign set into motion by the
Lubavitcher Rebbe—Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson, of righteous memory. Credit:
Chabad.org
VIDEO: The Bill Graham Menorah, a project of Chabad-Lubavitch of San Francisco, is erected in Union Square on December 2, 2015. This year marks forty years since the Bill Graham Menorah was first erected by Chabad-Lubavitch of San Francisco with funding from the late rock impresario. The annual event is part of a worldwide Hanukkah campaign set into motion by the Lubavitcher Rebbe—Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson, of righteous memory. Credit: Chabad.org
