The Chabad of Monroe hosted its annual public menorah celebration with the lighting of a 32-foot tall menorah at State Park on Perrineville Road, at the corner of Prospect Plains Road in Monroe.
The menorah in Monroe is a replica of the National Menorah lit across the street from the White House in Washington D.C.
Rabbi Eliezer Zaklikovsky of Chabad Monroe usually needs a forklift to get up to the top of the menorah. This year, with the help of the Monroe Township Fire Company Station 51, Zaklikovsky along with Monroe Mayor Stephen Dalina made their way up to the top of the menorah.
The Hanukkah Jewish Festival of Lights is celebrated for eight days by lighting an eight-branched candelabrum known as a menorah. The celebration began on the evening of Dec. 18 and concludes on the evening of Dec. 26.
Since its inauguration in 2002, the 32-foot tall menorah in Monroe has become an iconic staple of central Jersey holiday scene.