I chose a menorah because my family is Jewish. My great grandfather owned a brass company that made brass items like candlesticks and menorahs. This menorah was made in his brass factory called Houston Brass. On the menorah there is a Star of David, which is the symbol of Judaism.  Menorahs are for Hanukkah which is a Jewish holiday that is celebrated because of the miracle of light. There are 8 candles on a menorah and 1 shamash, which means helper. The shamash is lit first, and then you light all the other candles with the shamash candle. There are 8 candles because the eternal light went out in the synagogue and it needed a special oil to light it. They only found a little bit of oil. They thought the oil would only last for one day. But instead, it lasted for 8 days which was a miracle. That is why Hanukkah lasts for 8 days. On each night of Hanukkah you light a candle on the menorah left to right.
The menorah is important to my family because it was created in my great grandfather’s brass factory. We don’t always use this menorah on Hanukkah. When we use it we have to be very careful because it is special to my family. On the bottom of the menorah it reads “HB” which stands for Houston Brass. The brass company was named that because it was located on Houston Street. The building is still there, but the company is not. We have other kinds of objects made by my great grandfather’s brass company, but I thought I would choose this menorah because it is also connected to religion.

– Francesca Montagna

Relationship:  Great-grandchild of im/migrant or more Great-grandchild of im/migrant or more