A Rockin’ Rochman Chanukah
L-R: Brooke, Stacey, Juliana, Cameron and Brad Rochman
Stacey and Brad Rochman grew up in other areas of the country but were JCC preschool kids themselves. Once they moved to Indianapolis and had their first daughter, Juliana, in 2018, they knew they would find a warm home at the Indy JCC. Now they have two more kids, twins Brooke and Cameron, and they are all avid members here. Juliana is an ECE (early childhood education) graduate and Brooke and Cameron are currently enrolled, and they all love the variety of things they get to do at the J such as JumpBunch, ballet, swimming, and holiday celebrations. When asked about her favorite thing to do at CampJCC in the summer, Juliana said, “I like to do lots of stuff. They do a hot dog cookout on Fridays for lunch.” She also loves how in the summer, she gets to see all her old friends that she met here years ago.
The entire Rochman family is at the J pretty much every day, whether it be the kids at camp/school, the parents dropping them off, or otherwise using the facilities. While discussing her favorite JCC memories, Stacey said, “We’ve gone to all the Earth Day celebrations. That’s a lot of fun. I use the gym at least twice a week. I love coming in the summer for the pool. The kids all love it so much.” For Brad, the J is special because “everything that you need is all consolidated into one location, and it makes it easy to not have to shuttle the kids to two or three different places. If they all want to do different things, you can do it all here.”
Rochman Rockin’ Around the Chanukah Menorah
Enrolling their kids somewhere where Jewish education was a part of the curriculum was very important for the Rochman parents. It allows their kids to celebrate Chanukah and other holidays both at school and at home. Stacey and Brad’s Chanukah traditions haven’t really changed much from when they were kids to now: “It’s pretty similar for me,” Brad said. “That’s a lot of what you pick up growing up is the traditions, and you carry those on when you have your own kids and your own family.”
Some of those traditions include:
- The first night is always for matching pajamas. All the kids get the same PJs and “then probably wear them another seven nights in a row,” Brad said.
- Latkes (potato pancakes) are a staple during the Chanukah season. The Rochmans put their own spin on the dish, inspired by Brad’s Texas roots, by making steak and latkes. They also don’t discriminate about what latkes are paired with. They’ll have sour cream as well as apple sauce on the table, so you can use one, both, or just have them plain!
- After their meal and lighting the menorah, it’s every young kid’s favorite part, gift opening! Everyone gets to pick out a gift, and then they all open it together.
- They decorate Chanukah cookies every year, which the kids love because they get to make a mess and eat the frosting.
- Seeing your loved ones is one of the best parts of the holiday season. Stacey said, “We don’t have family in town, so sometimes family comes to visit. And sometimes, if not, we all FaceTime each other.”
Chag Chanukah Sameach (Happy Chanukah)!
Chanukah (sometimes spelled Hanukkah) is the “Festival of Lights,” commemorating the rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem after a successful revolt against the Greeks. As part of the rededication, the victorious Jews needed to light the Temple’s menorah (candelabrum), but they had only enough oil to last one day, and it would take eight days to prepare more oil. Miraculously, the one-day supply of oil lasted for eight days. The miracle of the oil is commemorated with this eight-day candle-lighting holiday.
Chanukah begins between Thanksgiving and Christmas. About half of the time, it overlaps with Christmas, but there are many years when Chanukah ends long before Christmas.
Almost all Jews light candles with their families for at least some nights of the holiday, so people like to be at home during this holiday.
The most important thing to remember about Chanukah is that it is not Jewish Christmas. Chanukah is a very minor holiday. It’s about lighting candles and playing games for chocolate coins (gelt) and eating potato pancakes. Chanukah gift-giving rarely extends much beyond one’s own children.
Words to Know:
Menorah: Eight-branch candleholder; each night of Chanukah we light an additional candle until the final night, when all eight candles are lit.
Dreidel: Spinning top with four Hebrew letters (nun, gimmel, hey, shin) which stand for “Nes Gadol Hayah Sham” (“A Great Miracle Happened There”).
Latkes: Potato pancakes, a traditional Chanukah food.
Learn more about Chanukah and other Jewish holidays at JCCindy.org/jewish-holidays.