Campus and community members at the University of Illinois come together to build Menorah, a monument of Judaism and school pride

The chabad affiliated menorah at the University of Illinois has been vandalized four times over the course of two years. Through the funding, and active participation of community members, the construction of a durable, new campus menorah is reaching completion.

The Community’s involvement in raising money for the construction of the menorah has become a crucial piece of the undertaking. This potent willingness of the people to lend a hand in assuring the religious structure stands tall and sturdy, and void of destruction has become something the chabad house is proud of.

The campus menorah project has been in the works for years. “People want this to happen,” Chabad on Campus  Rabbi Dovid Tiechtel said in regards to the community members who have donated to the cause.

The Chabad house has collaborated with Professor Benjamin Bross, an instructor at the School of Architecture to develop a creative design for the menorah.

The strategic construction of the religious monument is what sets it apart from others. During daylight hours, a massive “I” becomes visible. The design has become an attempt to converge two kinds of pride: school spirit, layered with the Jewish presence on campus. By night, the 9 foot structure is illuminated with LED lights.

The lights that are wired into the structure represent Chanukah, the holiday of lights. Rabbi Tiechtel explains that it’s “a menorah gives light, but this menorah will be made of lights.”

While concepting what the final structure would look like, campus Rabbi Dovid Tiechtel said he wanted the menorah to be “by the people and for the people.” In addition to the efforts Professor Benjamin Bross, Chabad on Campus called upon the students to be part of the design process.

To capture a sense of university pride, it was important to involve students in every step of the design process. “A lot of this design came from the opinions of students,” Rabbi Tiechtel said.

With this creative design plan, the chabad at the University of Illinois is receiving international attention, as “it’s the only menorah that is built like this,” Rabbi Tiechtel claims. “One of a kind, something the world has not seen.”

“This gift will shine light on the campus for many years to come,” Rabbi Tiechtel is honored to say. The university chabad plans to have the menora up and working by this Chanukah holiday.