Circle of Jewish Music plans Hanukkah concert

The St. Louis Circle of Jewish Music will host a Hanukkah concert at 3 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 6 at Congregation Shaare Emeth, 11645 Ladue Rd. in Creve Coeur. 

The St. Louis Circle of Jewish Music is a local performing group made up of cantors, music directors, instrumentalists and other musicians. 

Performers for the concert will be soloists, groups and choirs from around the St. Louis community with an upbeat Hanukkah theme. The program is family-friendly – children and adults of all ages are welcome.  The concert is free and open to the public with a donation of non-perishable food for the Harvey Kornblum Jewish Food Pantry.

For further information about the concert, contact Shaare Emeth at 314-569-0010, or Linda Blumenthal, President of the Circle of Jewish Music, at 314-954-4295.

JCC holds holiday events for young families in December

The Jewish Community Center has planned Hanukkah celebrations on Dec. 6 and 7 and a special family event on Dec. 25.

From 10 to 11:30 a.m. Sunday, Dec. 6, the JCC will hold Hands-On Hanukkah at Barnes & Noble in Ladue Crossing, featuring photo opportunities with Danny the Dreidel, cookies, a dreidel spin, a chance to win a holiday basket from PJ Library and more. A portion of the proceeds for purchases made that day will be donated to the JCC Early Childhood Center’s scholarship program.

From 4:15 to 5 p.m. Monday, Dec. 7, families are invited to the Marilyn Fox Building, 16801 Baxter Rd. in Chesterfield, for a Hanukkah party. Guests will enjoy the lighting of the giant Agam menorah outside, singing Hanukkah songs, hearing a story from a surprise guest, and creating unique Hanukkah crafts.  

From 10:30 a.m. to noon on Friday, Dec. 25, the JCC welcomes families to the Staenberg Family Complex, 2 Millstone Campus Dr. in Creve Coeur, for fun sports challenges and relays in the gym, followed by a healthy snack and hot chocolate bar. Then guests may head to the indoor pool for a swim.  

All of the events are free and offered for families with children ages six and under (siblings are welcome) and are coordinated by the Helene Mirowitz Center for Jewish Community Life, with support from J Associates.

For more information or to RSVP to any of the programs, contact Marianne Chervitz at [email protected] or 314-442-3454.

Chabad presents Menorah Workshop at Home Depot

Chabad of Greater St. Louis has partnered with The Home Depot for its eighth annual Menorah Workshop for families, taking place from 12:30 to 3:30 p.m. at the store located at 1603 S. Hanley Rd. This year’s event will feature a “Frozen” theme.

Participants will receive a worker’s hat and then craft their own menorah from wood and other supplies. There will be two singalong sessions with Rhythm ‘n’ Ruach (one at 1:30 p.m. and another at 2:30). The “Snowflakey Lady” will help participants craft unique holiday snowflakes. There will be a photo opportunity with “Frozen” characters, music and hot latkes. The event will conclude with the lighting of the first Hanukkah candle on an ice menorah.

Parents accompany their children during the free event. This workshop is sponsored by The Home Depot and coordinated by Chabad of Greater St. Louis. RSVPs are required and can be made online at ShowMeChabad.com/homedepot. For more information, call Chabad at 314-725-0400.

‘Diplomacy’ to screen at HMLC

 The next film in the Sandra and Mendel Rosenberg Sunday Afternoon Film Series will be “Diplomacy,” screening at 1 p.m. on Nov. 29 in the Holocaust Museum and Learning Center’s theater in the Jewish Federation building, 12 Millstone Campus Dr.

During the night of August 24, 1944, with the Allies at the gates of Paris, General von Choltitz was ordered by Adolf Hitler to blow up the city. Raoul Nording, the Swedish consul, tried to dissuade von Choltitz from moving forward. This film, based on von Choltitz’s diaries, was produced in 2014. “Diplomacy” will screen in German and French, with English subtitles, with a running time of 84 minutes.

Introductory remarks and a post screening discussion will be facilitated by Pier Marton, presently the “Unlearning Specialist” at the School of No Media. He has lectured and screened his films at Yad Vashem and other institutions, both nationally and international and he has taught at several U.S. universities. Marton’s father, photographer Ervin Marton, was in the French Resistance during World War II. Films in the Sunday series are free and open to the public, although RSVPs are requested.  For more information, call 314-442-3711 or email [email protected].