NOVEMBER 7 • 2024 | 25
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or the first time on this scale,
the Metro Detroit area hosted
a grand outdoor Simchas Beis
Hashoeva concert, uniting the Jewish
community to celebrate Sukkot with
music, dance and joy.
Families gathered for the festivities
organized by Chabad Lubavitch of
Michigan, enjoying arts and crafts,
where children decorated flags to
dance with, plus free cotton candy and
tours of Sukkah Mobiles, and of Oak
Park Police and Hatzalah ambulance
vehicles. Dinner was available for pur-
chase, fueling an evening filled with
lively dancing.
New York’s Chony Milecki and
Israeli singer Oria Schiff provided
energetic music, filling the night with
vibrant tunes and sparking joyous
dancing.
The Simchas Beis Hashoeva cel-
ebrations originate from the joyous
water-drawing festivities during
Sukkot in the Beis Hamikdash (Holy
Temple) in Jerusalem. In 1980, the
Lubavitcher Rebbe Menachem M.
Schneerson encouraged communities
worldwide to revive these celebrations
outdoors in the streets, for all to see
and join.
Since then, locales from New York
and Chicago to Los Angeles, Paris and
Israel have embraced this tradition,
and now Detroit joins these vibrant
communities with its own large-scale
Simchas Beis Hashoeva celebration.
In a time of challenges, this cele-
bration was a reminder of the com-
munity’s strength and joy. More than
just an event, it was a testament to the
unbreakable spirit of Detroit’s Jewish
community.
Outdoor Simchas Beis Hashoeva Concert unites
Detroit’s Jewish community in song and dance.
STORY AND PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE SHUL
A
Joyous
First
Yisroel Scheiner
dances with his
son in the center
of a large circle of
joyous celebrants.
The Beliak
family had fun
at the event.
Shaya Klyne of Southfield, Mendel
Galperin of Windsor and Eza Cohen
of Oak Park
The Rudin family enjoys the celebration.
Ellie Drissman recited one of the 12 selected Torah passages for all to
repeat after her.