Cadbury at Cherry Hill to Celebrate Sukkot

As the leaves start to change from green to gold, days become shorter and the air becomes a little more crisp, many of us turn our thoughts to the fall season. For Jewish families, this natural transition is the “Season of our Joy” or Sukkot, pronounced “Sue COAT.” The holiday officially begins at sunset on Oct. 8 and ends Oct. 15 at nightfall. Sukkot is a traditional Jewish holiday to remember the 40 years that their ancestors spent wandering from Egypt to Israel in the dessert—all while living in temporary shelters. This seven-day celebration is a joyful holiday rich in traditions and many look forward to the holiday throughout the year, including residents at Cadbury at Cherry Hill.

Thanks in part to Cadbury at Cherry Hill Corporate Controller Michele Goldstein, everyone at Cadbury at Cherry Hill is invited to celebrate Sukkot together on Monday, Oct. 13 at 1:30 pm. Rabbi Kahan from the Chabad Lubavitch in Cherry Hill will be in attendance, along with his mobile Sukkah. Rabbi Kahan will explain the holiday, perform a traditional Sukkot blessing and provide his sukkah for anyone who wants to join him.

Goldstein said, “I celebrated Sukkot as a kid growing up and enjoyed it. Now I celebrate it with my own children. This brings the celebration to the seniors.”

“Sukkot” means “booths” and is a reference to the temporary shelters associated with the holiday. In observance of Sukkot, Jewish families are commanded to dwell in a sukkah (singular form of sukkot) as much as they can, even if the structure is only modestly constructed. In fact, a sukkah is only required to have 2 1/2 walls. Many Jews construct their own sukkah in their home, visit one in a synagogue or are invited to a friend’s.

In addition to celebrating the wandering past of their Jewish ancestors, Sukkot is also a harvest festival. Biblically, Sukkot marked when fruit and grapes were to be harvested. In modern times, this is symbolized with fall, Thanksgiving-type decorations. Jewish families adorn their homes for Sukkot by hanging gourds, cornstalks and enjoying meals made with local produce. The harvest portion of Sukkot would not be complete without the traditional blessing of the lulav and etrog.

The lulav and etrog, commonly referred to as the Four Species, are four different plants: citron/etrog, palm/lulav, myrtle/hadas and willow/arava. The palm, myrtle and willow are tied together and held on one hand, while the citron (an Israeli citrus fruit similar to a lemon) is held in the other for the traditional Sukkot blessing. The Four Species are then waved in all directions to symbolize that God is everywhere. This year, residents at Cadbury at Cherry Hill will be able to celebrate this unique holiday close to home!

No matter whether you have fond memories of Thanksgiving, Chanukah, Rosh Hashanah or Sukkot, it’s always a joy and a comfort to revisit the holidays of our youth. We hope that you will join us in celebrating Sukkot at Cadbury at Cherry Hill. It will be a pleasure to share this unique holiday with friends and family in our community.