This Chol Hamoed, ten Sukkah Mobiles fanned out across Ocean and Western Monmouth Counties each day, bringing the lulav, esrog, and sukkah to shopping centers, senior homes, schools, and front doors.

The Sukkah Mobiles brought the mitzvos of Sukkos to Jews of every background, especially those less connected to Jewish life, many of whom would otherwise have let the Yom Tov pass without shaking a lulav or sitting in a sukkah.

In Jackson, Rabbi Shmuel Naparstek, director of Chabad of Jackson, coordinated the routes and mapped out the stops across the township each day. The Sukkah Mobiles were stationed at busy shopping centers, schools, and senior facilities, including Bella Terra, The Orchards at Bartley, and Sunrise, and made home visits around town.

At each stop, visitors had the chance to shake the lulav and esrog and hop aboard the Sukkah Mobile to make a brocho in the sukkah.

“A sukkah has room for every Jew,” said Rabbi Naparstek. “This Sukkos, we wanted every Jew in Ocean County to feel there was a place for them inside.”

At Chabad of Jackson’s home on Cross Street in Lakewood, the Yom Tov was just as full. On Monday evening, the Chabad House hosted a Sukkah Deli night. On Tuesday, its monthly Cafe Chabad luncheon for the 55+ community became Sushi in the Sukkah. The week concluded with a joyous Simchas Torah.

The Jackson effort was part of a regional push by Chabad’s regional office serving Ocean and Western Monmouth Counties. Local Chabad rabbis assigned the routes in their own communities, from the boardwalk in Point Pleasant Beach to shopping centers, senior residences, and high school dismissals across both counties. Some 25 volunteers staffed the Sukkah Mobiles, reaching nearly 5,000 people over Sukkos, with more than 3,000 shaking the lulav.

On Wednesday, Chabad centers from across both counties joined together for SukkahFest at Camp Gan Israel of Central NJ. The event drew 650 people, among them a large contingent from Jackson and Lakewood. At its center stood a 5,000-square-foot sukkah, where guests sat down to a catered barbecue. Carnival rides and attractions surrounded it, along with a comedy juggling show and the first-ever Sukkah Hayride. The night peaked with a Simchas Beis Hashoeiva concert featuring Binyomin Lerner and the Top Cats band.

The programs were organized by Chabad’s regional office in partnership with Chabad of Jackson and other centers serving the region, including Chabad of Toms River, Manalapan, Freehold, and Holmdel.

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