Asbury Park Press

This past week I took part in Halloween for the first time in my life. I’m from the Orthodox Jewish community so it was a big deal. While I didn’t dress up or attend any parties, I bought large bags of Hershey’s chocolates to give to my neighbors and proudly watched as my sons handed out candy to visitors.

I won’t lie and say it didn’t feel somewhat strange, but I wanted to show my new Toms River neighbors that I care enough to make sure their kids had an enjoyable holiday. And I wasn’t the only one.

The other Orthodox women who have recently moved into my area did the same. They all went out of their way to buy candy, leave on lights and encourage their kids to graciously hand out candy.

My young children were more than surprised to see our family getting ready for trick or treaters but I patiently explained that we wanted to be good neighbors. Even though it wasn’t a holiday for us, it was the right thing to make sure that the local kids had plenty of sugar to consume despite having Jewish neighbors.

This week I was proud to join my neighborhood in making great memories for their children. I hope that cavities aren’t the only thing the kids gained this week. There is a beautiful lesson in seeing Orthodox families making sure to have enough candy for Halloween.

Toms River is stronger when we’re together. Your neighbor...

Tova Herskovitz

Toms River