A fter a fellow resident of Bowen Island had a confrontation with an aggressive Holocaust denier, Matthew van der Giessen was motivated to raise awareness about the Jewish population living a 20-minute ferry ride from Van- couver, B.C.—including some children of Holocaust survivors. “Building driftwood sculptures is a bit A very west coast Hanukkah
of a thing here,” says the massage ther- apist. He was inspired to build a hanukkiah by a legendary mastodon that had been built at a secret site on a mountainside (until it became too much of a tourist attraction and was disassembled by the artist). Scouring beaches for material meant keeping an eye out for pieces of driftwood that weren’t too wet, in a wide variation of sizes and shapes: small ones were needed for filler that could be nail-gunned into the plywood template. Light Up Bowen, an annual Christmas tree–themed event, provided a stage for the hanukkiah’s 2021 public debut with the support of about 50 Jewish community members—who also gather for Friday night services on the beach, Passover seders, and High Holiday services led by van der Giessen. “We’ve framed the menorah lighting around a theme everyone can agree on,” he says. “Peace.” When not in use, the menorah is stored in a shed, with a maintenance routine that consists mostly of keeping water from leaking into its light bulbs. “With a bit of luck and a bit of inspiration,” says van der Giessen, “we think we’ve solved the problem this year.” The plan is to continue the lighting tradition on the first night of Hanukkah, which this year falls on December 25. n
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