Now in Its Fifth Year, Wisconsin’s Largest Public Chanukah Celebration Returns to Bayshore

Kicking off with the lighting of a massive menorah at sundown, the Chanukah Festival of Lights at Bayshore claims to be the largest public celebration of the Jewish holiday in Wisconsin. The lively evening features Jewish music, dancing, kosher treats, activities and the highly anticipated gelt drop – when kids catch chocolate coins falling from a fire engine ladder.

The festival, now in its fifth year at Bayshore, is one of the largest events for Lubavitch of Wisconsin , an Orthodox Jewish non-profit organization that supports all Jews across the state. Director of events Lauren Balda says that although Chanukah is a traditional Jewish holiday, the festival is open to people of all backgrounds. Because of this, one mission for the festival is to educate those who may be unfamiliar wi