2024 Chanukah Events

December 20, 2024

Community Chanukah Events

Chanukah Cooking Adventure | December 22 | 10:30AM | $5/child

12 Pleasant St., Brunswick

Kids will peel, grate, and fry delicious latkes, pour, mix, and craft scrumptious doughnuts, and enjoy even more fun holiday surprises! Reserve your spot now and join the fun! Let’s unleash your child’s culinary superpowers, create lasting memories, and transform them into MiniChef stars! 🌟
🕎WHO: Ages 3-12
🕎WHEN: December 22 @ 10:30 AM
🕎 WHERE: Brunswick Jewish Center
🕎RSVP: 
JewishBrunswick.com/familybake

For more : Draizy Lefkowitz, please contact draizy@jewishbrunswick.com


Grand Menorah Lighting at City Hall | December 25 | 4PM

389 Congress Street, Portland

REGISTER

Join us for the annual Grand Menorah Lighting in front of City Hall, this year with Music, Donuts, light up Dreidel necklaces, and Hot Chocolate! Followed by a Community Chanukah Party where all are invited to a delicious Chanukah themed dinner, music with a DJ, hot latkes and chocolate gelt, and a Mad Science show to delight all ages!!

For more information: Contact Rabbi Moshe Wilansky at Info@chabadofmaine.com


Etz Chaim's Hanukkah Party | December 25 | 4PM

267 Congress Street, Portland

REGISTER

Come join us for a festive celebration at Etz Chaim Synagogue! This in person event is the perfect way to enjoy the warmth and joy of Hanukkah together! Lighting the menorah (you can bring and light your own!), Songs and a story, Chinese food dinner and sufganiyot, Dreidel games and board games for all ages


This event is free of charge (donations are welcome!)

Kindly RSVP by Dec. 20th


Wise Ventures Hanukkah Potluck Dinner | December 28 | 5:30PM

65 McAuley Way

RSVP

Join Wise Ventures for a Hanukkah potluck dinner in the Community Room at Steven's Square Condo, 65 McAuley Way. Due to limited space we will cap participation at 20 people.


Chanukah Celebration & Public Menorah Lighting | December 29 | 3:30PM

191-195 Maine St, Brunswick

REGISTER

Our Annual Community Chanukah Celebration and Public Menorah Lighting. This year, more than ever! An evening of light! Celebrate Jewish pride and unity this Chanukah together with local dignitaries community leaders! Brunswick's annual Public Menorah Lighting will be a SPECTACULAR night out with family and friends. Enjoy hot potato latkes, fresh donuts and chocolate 'gelt' thrown from the Fire Truck! Children will have a blast with the bounce house and Chanukah crafts. Jewish songs and music! This event is for all ages. Fun for the entire family!

Event: 3:30-5:00pm. The Menorah will be lit at 4:15pm
*Strong Security Presence*

For more information: Please contact Rabbi Shmuel Lefkowitz at info@jewishbrunswick.com


Community: Chanukah Chinese Luncheon | January 1 | 1PM

12 Pleasant St., Brunswick

REGISTER

Grand Chanukah Chinese Luncheon- 7th Day of Chanukah
✨ Fun for the whole family and all ages! Celebrate Chanukah with friends and family!🕹️ Bring your own game to play or choose one of ours.
🍴 Enjoy:
-Delicious Chinese Dinner
-Crispy Latkes
-Sweet Donuts


For more information: Contact Rabbi Shmuel Lefkowitz at info@jewishbrunswick.com

Other Articles

July 9, 2025
The Jewish Community Alliance of Southern Maine (JCA) announced today that following the passing of Suzi Osher, a long-time Maine resident and philanthropist, on Saturday, June 28th, the organization will be receiving a transformative gift from an Alfred Osher trust. The gift, to be received in the newly-established Alfred and Dorothy Suzi Osher Charitable Fund, will be held in a new entity under the auspices of the JCA. The fund is to be used explicitly for Jewish education, Jewish social and welfare programs, and outreach programs to promote Jewish traditions and values. According to Leslie Kirby, the JCA’s Chief Executive Officer: “This gift, the largest donation in our organization’s history, will make possible incredible growth throughout our community and region. We are fortunate that Dr. and Mrs. Osher made their Estate intentions clear to the JCA in a way that allowed us to anticipate this transformational moment over the course of time. More information regarding the specifics of the bequest will be shared within the coming months.” This is not the first time the Oshers have extended their generosity to the JCA. Mrs. Osher was the lead benefactor of a 2015 capital campaign, which allowed the organization to build its state-of-the-art center on Congress Street in Portland. In gratitude, the facility, which opened in 2017, is known as the Alfred and Suzi Osher Campus of the Jewish Community Alliance of Southern Maine. This gift is in furtherance of the spirit of philanthropy both within and beyond the Jewish community that animated the Oshers’ lifetime of giving. The couple’s philanthropic endeavors have benefited numerous educational and healthcare institutions, including Maine Medical Center, the Children’s Museum and Theatre of Maine, the YMCA, the Dr. Alfred and D. Suzi Osher School of Music at the University of Southern Maine, and Tufts Dental School. Long-standing JCA Board of Directors member Rachael Alfond has been selected by the board to chair the committee overseeing the formation and management of the Fund. “An opportunity like this only presents itself once in a lifetime,” Alfond said. “I am honored to carry on the legacy of the Oshers and their mitzvot - good deeds - that will have a ripple effect for generations.” Dr. Osher, who passed away in 1999, was an oral surgeon and orthodontist who practiced in Biddeford, Maine. Supporting their community was always top of mind. In Suzi’s words: “When I make a gift, I always follow it.” Suzi established the Dr. Alfred Osher and D. Suzi Osher Scholarship at Tufts University School of Dental Medicine to honor her late husband, a long-term clinical faculty member. Suzi Osher was the daughter of French-Canadian immigrants, who faced substantial hardships weathering the Depression as a child in Biddeford, Maine. Mrs. Osher learned to value education and hard work. “My first job was playing the piano at a local music store when I was just 10,” she once recalled. “At 15, I was working for the government Census Bureau.” After high school, she worked as a bookkeeper for Alfred Osher, a local oral surgeon. Several years later, she completed a course in anesthesiology at Boston City Hospital and began assisting with procedures. In 1962, Dr. Osher completed the Tufts postgraduate program in orthodontics and became the first board-certified orthodontist in Maine. After the couple married, Suzi Osher pursued her interests in business and fashion, opening a specialty clothing store in Biddeford, a venture she called “my real career.” Even as she managed her own successful business, she stayed involved in her husband’s growing dental practice. “We were one of those rare couples who enjoyed working together,” she said. The JCA is honored to have been chosen and entrusted with this ultimate act of generosity from the Oshers, and we look forward to facilitating its continued impact over the coming years. For more information about Mrs. Osher’s life and philanthropy, please read her official obituary . Rooted in Jewish values, history, and our connection to Israel, the JCA cultivates and sustains a welcoming and thriving Jewish community in Maine, and strives to build a better world for all. Formed in 2000, the JCA is the result of a merger of three institutions: the Jewish Community Center, the Jewish Federation of Southern Maine, and Jewish Family Services, which combined the programming and fundraising arms of the Jewish community.
July 3, 2025
The Jewish Community Alliance of Southern Maine (JCA) announced today that following the passing of Suzi Osher, a long-time Maine resident and philanthropist, on Saturday, June 28th, the organization will be receiving a transformative gift from an Alfred Osher trust. The gift, to be received in the newly-established Alfred and Dorothy Suzi Osher Charitable Fund, will be held in a new entity under the auspices of the JCA. The fund is to be used explicitly for Jewish education, Jewish social and welfare programs, and outreach programs to promote Jewish traditions and values. According to Leslie Kirby, the JCA’s Chief Executive Officer: “This gift, the largest donation in our organization’s history, will make possible incredible growth throughout our community and region. We are fortunate that Dr. and Mrs. Osher made their Estate intentions clear to the JCA in a way that allowed us to anticipate this transformational moment over the course of time. More information regarding the specifics of the bequest will be shared within the coming months.” This is not the first time the Oshers have extended their generosity to the JCA. Mrs. Osher was the lead benefactor of a 2015 capital campaign, which allowed the organization to build its state-of-the-art center on Congress Street in Portland. In gratitude, the facility, which opened in 2017, is known as the Alfred and Suzi Osher Campus of the Jewish Community Alliance of Southern Maine. This gift is in furtherance of the spirit of philanthropy both within and beyond the Jewish community that animated the Oshers’ lifetime of giving. The couple’s philanthropic endeavors have benefited numerous educational and healthcare institutions, including Maine Medical Center, the Children’s Museum and Theatre of Maine, the YMCA, the Dr. Alfred and D. Suzi Osher School of Music at the University of Southern Maine, and Tufts Dental School. Long-standing JCA Board of Directors member Rachael Alfond has been selected by the board to chair the committee overseeing the formation and management of the Fund. “An opportunity like this only presents itself once in a lifetime,” Alfond said. “I am honored to carry on the legacy of the Oshers and their mitzvot - good deeds - that will have a ripple effect for generations.” Dr. Osher, who passed away in 1999, was an oral surgeon and orthodontist who practiced in Biddeford, Maine. Supporting their community was always top of mind. In Suzi’s words: “When I make a gift, I always follow it.” Suzi established the Dr. Alfred Osher and D. Suzi Osher Scholarship at Tufts University School of Dental Medicine to honor her late husband, a long-term clinical faculty member. Suzi Osher was the daughter of French-Canadian immigrants, who faced substantial hardships weathering the Depression as a child in Biddeford, Maine. Mrs. Osher learned to value education and hard work. “My first job was playing the piano at a local music store when I was just 10,” she once recalled. “At 15, I was working for the government Census Bureau.” After high school, she worked as a bookkeeper for Alfred Osher, a local oral surgeon. Several years later, she completed a course in anesthesiology at Boston City Hospital and began assisting with procedures. In 1962, Dr. Osher completed the Tufts postgraduate program in orthodontics and became the first board-certified orthodontist in Maine. After the couple married, Suzi Osher pursued her interests in business and fashion, opening a specialty clothing store in Biddeford, a venture she called “my real career.” Even as she managed her own successful business, she stayed involved in her husband’s growing dental practice. “We were one of those rare couples who enjoyed working together,” she said. The JCA is honored to have been chosen and entrusted with this ultimate act of generosity from the Oshers, and we look forward to facilitating its continued impact over the coming years. For more information about Mrs. Osher’s life and philanthropy, please read her official obituary . Rooted in Jewish values, history, and our connection to Israel, the JCA cultivates and sustains a welcoming and thriving Jewish community in Maine, and strives to build a better world for all. Formed in 2000, the JCA is the result of a merger of three institutions: the Jewish Community Center, the Jewish Federation of Southern Maine, and Jewish Family Services, which combined the programming and fundraising arms of the Jewish community.
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