Michael Sachs swears he didn’t time the annual Sukkot Celebration to run close to the municipal election.
It’s simply a coincidence that The Bayit synagogue on No. 3 Road at Steveston Highway is hosting the event on Sept. 26, just a few weeks shy of the Oct. 20 election, with around 15 local politicians expected to attend.
After all, Sachs, The Bayit’s president, is governed by the Jewish calendar, not the Gregorian one many of us of live by.
The Sukkot celebration is a week-long Jewish holiday to mark the Israelites’ pilgrimage, led by Moses and at the will of God, to free themselves from slavery in Egypt.
As part of the holiday, traditional “sukkahs” are built outside, typically made of wood and bamboo and covered with palm leaves. It is a temporary shelter that signifies the time when Israelites lived in the wilderness.
At The Bayit, however, a modern sukkah is constructed out of tarp over a wooden structure, so that members can gather outside to eat and share stories.
This year, Sachs is calling it “Pizza in the Hut” and is ordering in “tons of pizza from a kosher café.”
“With a heightened political scene in Richmond right now, I believe we’re looking at having at least 15 (municipal) candidates coming to the event,” Sachs told the Richmond News.
“It’s the only time of the year we invite politicians to come join us and we’re happy to have them.
“And we’re going to have a carnival inside a schoolbus for the kids, with lots of arts and crafts.”
New this year, explained Sachs, is the inaugural presentation of the Marc’s Mensches scholarship award, which offers $1,000 towards Jewish education. “Mensch” is a Yiddish term for good person.
The award is named after Sachs’ late cousin, Marc Dwares.
“If a child is spotted doing a good deed, they are given gift cards and the kid that has made the largest impact at the end of the year gets the scholarship,” explained Sachs.
“The inaugural recipient is Taya Benson, who raised $7,000 for the BC SPCA.”
Sachs said around 200 to 250 people are expected at the Sukkot Celebration, which is astounding, considering The Bayit was close to shutting down a few years ago, with only five families in the flock.
“We’ve grown immensely over the last few years to more than 50 families and we’ve doubled our working space,” said Sachs.
“(The Sukkot) is up there with the big (Jewish holidays), but it’s not the most religious; it’s certainly more relaxed and that’s why we can invite the likes of the politicians in.”
The Bayit holds weekly services and prayers for the orthodox community and lays claim to the only kosher Mikvah (spiritual bath) in Richmond.
Richmond has a small but vibrant Jewish community. In 2011, National Household Survey showed 2,885 Jews in the city.
In Richmond, fewer folks are speaking Hebrew in their homes, according to recent census data. In 2016, only 270 people claimed Hebrew as their mother tongue in Richmond and just 120 speak it at home. In 2006, 180 people claimed to speak Hebrew at home.
