Menorahs Draw Oohs and Ahs

Since Gwen Berger bought her first menorah after she married 23 years ago, her passion for the special candleholder used during Hanukkah has kept growing.

Now she has a collection that includes more than three dozen menorahs in all shapes and sizes, made of materials ranging from ceramic to silver.

Some are shaped like buildings of Israel and synagogues in Northern Europe, while others have more whimsical designs: a school bus, a train, Noah and his ark of animals, a musical note, Disney characters and even a triceratops.

“It’s kind of grown on its own,” Berger, 45, said of her collection. “I look for ones that are unusual or catch my eye.”

Berger, a preschool director and teacher at Temple Beth Emet in Anaheim, also has more traditional menorahs of brass and copper, including one that spells “Israel” in Hebrew letters and another made of Jerusalem stone.

The items in her collection range in value from about $60, the typical price for a standard menorah, to $250. Specially crafted models can cost hundreds of dollars more, she said.

Unlike the menorah used the rest of the year, the Hanukkah menorah has nine branches, eight branches that represent the nights of Hanukkah and a ninth that holds the “shammas” or helper candle used to light the others, Berger said.

Her favorite is an oak menorah hand-carved in the shape of a dove, symbol of peace. She took such a fancy to it, she said, that she bought duplicates of it as gifts for a rabbi and cantor who were leaving her temple.

“It’s because of the sentimental value,” she explained. “Knowing that I share it in common with two friends is very special.”

Berger keeps her collection on display year-round in her Anaheim home and usually expands it before the holiday. “I purposely make a hunt to find one or two to add to the collection,” she said.

Berger said she enjoys showing her collection, especially to children.

This week, she took menorahs to James Madison Elementary School to show and tell kindergartners about their use during Hanukkah. Next week she will be visiting other classrooms.

Berger started making Hanukkah presentations when her three children were in elementary school. She added the menorahs later, and now “it wouldn’t seem like Hanukkah without packing the menorahs up and schlepping them somewhere,” she said.

Those that look more like toys than candleholders drew oohs and ahs from her attentive audience at Madison.

Teacher Kathy Hughes said she is pleased that Berger takes time to share her collection with youngsters and explain the tradition. “It helps them to realize that people celebrate the holidays in different ways--that there are different cultures and customs,” Hughes said.