“The real spark for our inspiration happened December of last year, when our youngest daughter was married, and we attended her sheva brachos in Houston, where her husband is from,” explains David, who has lived in their 116-year-old home for 31 years. “Our mechutanim wanted to show us around their neighborhood, specifically the Chanukah House of Houston, which is world-renowned. I photographed and videotaped it, and when we came home, we started to put our idea into play.”

The Hefters began by approaching the Fleischmans, who had carried on the Chanukah House tradition on Greenspring Avenue, which they assumed from the Cohen family. Within a few days, a deal was worked out to resume the custodial honor of hosting the Chanukah House. Many of the displays that have decorated their home since their soft opening on December 4^th, are a combination of both previous displays incorporated with newly purchased ones.

“David was also inspired because right after we got back from the sheva brachos, we hosted a 6-foot menorah lighting here for a new Chabad House that is opening shortly by Rabbi Shneur Zalman and Sara Marshall -- Chabad of West Pikesville” mentions Wendy, who notes that a lot of people don’t realize that there are Jewish people living in their Ralston neighborhood. “David decided, ‘We’re doing this [Chanukah] house, and I’m building my own menorah!’ He started right away on the menorah, and some other things that he made, and from there it just took off. It’s really been a lot of fun.”

David built their approximately 7-foot-tall, 5-foot-wide menorah -- made from PVC pipe and other restored materials – after watching a YouTube video. The lights kindled will be oil-filled tiki torches.

Why do the Hefters feel it is important to host the Chanukah House?

“A lot of us 55+ people have been brought up with a Chanukah House in Pikesville,” says David, “and remembering what the Cohens and the Fleischmans did, I think it is our time to continue that tradition. It brings so much joy to children and families.”

The Chanukah House display will run until the end of December, and will be aglow each evening from 4 to 9 p.m. During Chanukah, the menorah will be lit:

December 18-21: 6 p.m.

December 22: 5:30 p.m. – hosted by Rabbi Shneur Zalman and Sara Marshall, it will feature a special appearance by the Pikesville Volunteer Fire Company.

December 23: 4 p.m.

December 24-25: 6 p.m.

The Backstory

David & Wendy Hefter (Credit: Margie Pensak)

“We really have been wanting to do something that would welcome the Jews on this side of Pikesville,” says Wendy, a member of Suburban Orthodox Congregation Toras Chaim. “So, I made an appointment to speak to Rabbi Kaplan of Chabad of Maryland. He didn’t know me, but after I explained to him what I wanted - and our many experiences with Chabad houses around the world - he asked me to tell him about myself.

“I told him about myself and my family,” continues Wendy. “I even went back a couple generations and told him about my grandparents, Sidney (who was the principal of Beth Jacob) and Rose Esterson. It stopped him in his tracks; he asked me to follow him, next door into the beis hamedrash. There, he showed me a plaque on the wall with my great-grandfather’s name – Yosef Esterson – as one of the founders of the Chabad of Maryland. When I mentioned that my grandmother's father - Avraham Nachman Abramowitz - was the first mohel in Baltimore, Rabbi Kaplan said, ‘That's why they were a good shidduch -- her father also learned at the first Chabad here."

A couple weeks after this meeting, we heard from the Marshalls. They said, ‘We’d love to meet you; we’ve been looking to do more for Chabad.’ We planned a Chanukah event together, three weeks later - as we were planning our daughter’s wedding!”

Concludes Wendy, “We’re just going to sit back and watch to see what happens. We’ve gotten a very big response and it’s so much fun seeing people so excited. It is just something that we are doing for the community; it has no benefit for us – other than people stopping by and saying things…. Like the little girl who was here, last night, holding my hand, who said to her mommy, ‘I don’t want to go home now!’