Partner Content
Repair The World Baltimore’s Hanukkah BrewHaHa
December 12, 2023
6–9 p.m.
Union Craft Brewing
After COVID caused its brouhaha—shutting down social events for a few years—the fan-favorite Hanukkah BrewHaHa made a triumphant return this year. Some 280 folks descended on Union Craft Brewing for the ninth-annual celebration of the Jewish holiday—a casual hangout that included beer, latkes, and the traditional lighting of the menorah. The event raised about $10,000 for Repair The World Baltimore, an organization that connects Jewish young adults to service opportunities in their communities.
Left to right: Rachel Franklin, BOLT volunteer; Jamie Aaron, Towson Hillel assistant director; Beth Vander Stoep, Goucher Hillel assistant director
Left to right: Sara Lapin, occupational therapist; JJ Lapin, University of Maryland Medical Center pharmacist; Sarah Hiller, Jews United for Justice program manager; Jake Simone, EBSCO regional sales manager
As owner of the Hanukkah House on Hampden’s Miracle on 34th Street, Joshua Lamont is into decorating. So when organizers with Repair the World asked him to bring a few of his decorations to create a mobile version of his Hampden abode (that also served as a photo booth), Lamont felt he had to dress the part, as well—donning Hanukkah-themed Swoveralls and a Shinesty Star of David-patterned blazer.
“There’s a warmth to being able to make other people smile,” Lamont said, “to be some sort of representation of [the holiday] is worth it.”
That representation extended into another role later in the evening, when Lamont used his skills as a professional ASL interpreter during the event’s menorah-lighting blessings.
Left to right: Repair the World Baltimore colleagues: Hannah Zinker, fellow; Josh Sherman, Baltimore City director; Adam Weingast, fellow
Left to right: Matt Adelberg, Baltimore Polytechnic Institute assistant principal; Rebecca Safron, Schusterman Family Philathropies program officer; Jacob Stern, teacher
Left to right: Bonnie Schwartz Nolan, Port Discovery vice president of finance; Gray Nolan, contractor
Left to right: Rabbi Jessy Dressin, former Repair the World Baltimore rabbi/BrewHaHa originator; Mark Dressin, Union Craft Brewing packaging manager/employee owner
Left to right: Megan Cico, Anne Arundel County school librarian; Eliana Delevie, Baltimore County teacher; Lou Fusco, Repair the World alumni fellow
Left to right: Rabbi Tyler Dratch, Beth Am Synagogue rabbi; Anna Pudder, University of Maryland Baltimore research program manager; Jay Epstein, University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law student; Susan Radov, Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management MBA student
Left to right: The Oriole Bird; Tara Nevins, baker; Tzippy Horowitz, climate organizer; Alex Petropulos, drummer/musician
