Staten Island Borough Hall Menorah Lighting Illuminates and Spreads Light, Energy and Optimism

Staten Island Borough Hall Menorah Lighting Illuminates and Spreads Light, Energy and Optimism

Edited by: TJVNews.com

The Council of Jewish Organizations of Staten Island (COJO) convened for the 51st Annual Menorah Lighting held at the Plaza of Staten Island Borough Hall located in the St. George section of the borough. The event hosted by Borough President Vito Fossella attracted elected officials, top brass of the NYPD, community leaders and several hundred children and family. Attendees were treated to Donuts, hot coffee and chocolate and enjoyed musical presentations preformed by the students of the Jewish Foundation School, Staten Island Hebrew Academy and the Hebrew School of Congregation Toras Emes.

Mendy Mirocznik, president, COJO, opened the program by calling it to order and by thanking Borough President Vito Fossella for hosting the 51st Annual Menorah Lighting on the plaza of Borough Hall. The plaza emphasized Mirocznik, “overlooks New York Harbor and Ellis Island a point of arrival for New Americans who came to these shores fleeing persecution with the desire to live in freedom and democracy.” Mirocznik continued, “[t]onight, on behalf of COJO the umbrella organization of the Staten Island Jewish community I thank Borough President Fossella for protecting that dream of Jewish Americans by standing up for Israel and taking a tough stand against anti-Semitism.

We as a community owe special thanks to our Borough President for lighting up Borough Hall in blue lights as a statement of solidarity with Israel when organized pro-Hamas anti-Israel pro-violence agitators gathered at Borough Hall in a hate rally. It took courage and conviction for the Borough President to stand up for peace and what is right and tonight we publicly thank you Mr. Borough President and want you to know that you are a man of action and your strong leadership is deeply appreciated by the community.”

Scott Maurer, CEO and executive Vice-President concurred with Mirocznik and added, “since that bloody day of terror on October 7, freedom and democracy are under assault. The world is dealing with a situation which has only one of two choices and that is are you on the side of peace, freedom or democracy or are you on the side of terror, death, mayhem and destruction. In this situation people look up to their elected representatives for guidance and we thank Borough President Fossella for taking the stance that Staten Island stands with democracy and freedom and we side with good over evil. Thank you Borough President Fossella for setting the tone in our great borough.”

Borough President Fossella thanked COJO for sponsoring the annual Borough Hall Menorah Lighting and stated, “the lights of the Menorah affirm our moral position in standing for good over evil. Tonight, we celebrate the ancient festival of Chanukah where a band of Jewish fighters took on the Assyrian Greeks who believed and practiced the evil of persecution and destruction. The lessons of the flame of the Menorah are relevant today as it was in the days of Judah the Maccabee. Let us resolve to support good and together we will see good triumph over evil and the establishment of a true and lasting peaceful resolution to the battle of evil that Israel finds itself in with the war against Hamas.”

Also showing their support was Staten Island District Attorney Michael McMahon; Council Member Kamillah Hanks; and Richmond County Public Administrator Edwina Martin.

Mirocznik, then went onto thanking the NYPD who attended the Menorah lighting. Mirocznik quipped, “we at COJO consider the NYPD to be important partners in all of our programs. And tonight, we are honored that Chief Terence Hurson, executive officer, Patrol Borough Staten Island; Department Chaplain Victor Brown and Department Chaplain Tahir Kukai;  Lt. Rafet Awad, commanding officer, Community Affairs, Patrol Borough Staten Island; Inspector Timothy Wilson, Patrol Borough Staten Island; Captain Ron Perez, executive officer, Pct. 122; and Captain Agus Tova, executive officer, Pct. 120; as well as over a dozen police officers attended this evenings Menorah lighting.” Mirocznik, quipped, “the NYPD are our modern-day Maccabees.

They are great officers committed as was the Maccabees in standing up for what is right. They safeguard the rule of law and their focus is that public safety exists for all New Yorkers. By doing so, they deny lawless individuals and criminals from undermining public safety and they guaranty that all people are safe. For this reason alone, we are thankful and we at COJO look forward to our further collaborative efforts with the NYPD in further enhancing public safety and the quality of life for all Staten Islanders.”

Chief Hurson on behalf of the NYPD remarked, ‘that we at the NYPD appreciate our great relationship with COJO and its leadership team Mendy Mirocznik and Scott Maurer. COJO thanks to them has an open line of communication with the NYPD. Perhaps one of the greatest helps COJO gives the NYPD is the opportunity to engage the Staten Island community in their various programs and projects which cuts across the diverse communities’ resident here. This interaction helps to build community support and confidence with the NYPD which helps public safety. We at the NYPD appreciate this assistance and look forward to continuing this important work.

Rabbi Avrohom Biderman, Congregation Oorah; Rabbi Yochanan Ivry, Congregation Toras Emes and Rabbi Aharon Zeev, Aur Torah Sephardic Monyan presided over the Menorah lighting