Driving through Eldersburg and Sykesville, there may not be visible signs of families celebrating a holiday other than Christmas this weekend. 

But that's not the case. Several local families in the area have joined together to find a way to show their children that they are not alone in celebrating Hanukkah this holiday season. 

"When we first moved to Eldersburg we knew that it was going to be a challenge, that we weren’t going to have a lot of Jewish families but we wanted to make sure that they had a Jewish community no matter if it meant driving to Owings Mills or Columbia," said Jewish Eldersburg member Lynda Dye. 

But they didn't have to drive far. A couple of years ago, they found a home for their faith through a group of families self-titled "Jewish Eldersburg."

"It really makes Eldersburg feel like home," said Dye. "By having these other families around we feel like we can be who we are and celebrate who we are."

Those who define themselves as Jewish by religion account for 4.2 percent of the state's population and 2.1 percent of the U.S. population, according to Census data.  

Dye says she feels Eldersburg is fairly representative of the U.S. population - small, yet dedicated.

"We're trying this year more than ever to come together as a community," said Dye.

On Thursday night, the mother of two held a Hanukkah celebration at her house for local families to feel at home this holiday season.

"There aren’t a lot of families together that are Jewish and this really helps everyone feel like they're not the only ones."

In Eldersburg, when it comes to celebrating Hanukkah, there is one thing missing from table - jelly filled donuts. 

"During Hanukkah we eat things that are fried in oil for symbolism, but for my kids we can't find their jelly filled Munchkin donuts in Eldersburg," said Dye. "Dunkin Donuts says they don't make them on site and that's not a regular order. Guess I need to think ahead next year!"

What is Hanukkah? It Isn't 'Christmas' for Jews

While Hanukkah, the Jewish festival of lights, changes dates each year according to the Hebrew calendar, it usually falls in close proximity to Christmas. That means the two are often lumped together under the ubiquitous "Happy Holidays" banner.

This year, in fact, Hanukkah's fifth night is Christmas Eve.

Rabbi/Cantor Rhoda Silverman of Temple Emanuel in Reisterstown said Hanukkah, which is not one of the holiest Jewish days, should be seen as separate from the Christian commemoration.

“We don’t have to merge them and melt them down together into one American festival in order to respect each other,” she said. “We can respect each other’s holidays and keep their integrity.”

Because of Hanukkah's proximity to Christmas, it has fallen victim to commercialization as well. Silverman says she tries to make sure her two young children understand Hanukkah's true meaning, though gifts are also part of the Hanukkah tradition.

“[We] make sure that there are other rituals besides gift giving, lighting the hanukkiyah every night, singing songs, discussing the holiday and its meaning,” she said.

The hanukkiyah, a nine-branched candelabrum also known as the Hanukkah menorah, commemorates the miracle of the oil. When the Temple in Jerusalem was re-dedicated in 165 BCE, after the Jews had gotten control of their land and temple back from the Seleucid Empire of Syria, they had only enough oil to light their seven-branched menorah for one day, but it miraculously lasted eight days. Thus, Hanukkah is an eight-day holiday, which falls from sundown on Dec. 20 to sunset on Dec. 28 this year.

Larry Singer, owner of the Gallery on Main Street, isn’t so sure that everyone lighting candles and exchanging gifts knows the true meaning of the holiday.

“I had to look it up to find out myself,” he said. “It had to do with the destruction of the temple, but it was destruction by the Syrians, not by the Romans.”

The holiday evokes childhood memories for Singer of a holiday that was for kids.

“I lit the candles, I got the gifts,” he said. As an adult now, the holiday reminds him of family togetherness.

Singer sees the association of Hanukkah and Christmas not necessarily as a bad thing. It creates a festive environment in which Jews and Christians celebrate their religious history and culture with their families.

“It makes the Jews and Christians feel somewhat compatible together, even though they’re celebrating two different events,” he said. “The end result is that they’re celebrating life.”

Like Singer, Rabbi David Greenspoon of Adat Chaim, also in Reisterstown, doesn’t worry too much about the commercialization of Hanukkah. He supports his people and their ability to adapt to different times and places.

“In any one given time or place it might have these overtones or this sort of cultural expression to it; I don’t get so bothered by it,” he said. “I don’t particularly love some of the particulars of this day and age but I don’t let it get in the way of what I believe is the essential and inspirational stuff.”

With their history of persecution, Jews can be proud that their holiday is a part of pop culture, the rabbis said.

“In this day and age, when they put together a motorized spinning dreidel and blue and white Hanukkah menorah displays and put them on their house…I think it’s great,” Greenspoon said.

Greenspoon said his family isn't big on gift giving. He asks his older children to pick a charity to donate money to. They make sure to light candles together, get together with friends and eat holiday foods.

“If, by the last night, we can each have a Hanukkah menorah on the table, that’s a really special moment together,” he said.

Traditional holiday foods are typically those with oil such as donuts and, arguably the signature Hanukkah dish, potato latkes, which are essentially potato pancakes. Hanukkiyahs are lit each night, with prayers said over the candles, and the game of dreidel is played. Dreidel, played with a four-sided spinning top of the same name, is a game of chance played with Hanukkah gelt, chocolate coins, pennies or other tokens.

Both Temple Emanuel and Adat Chaim will keep the religious heritage of the holiday at the forefront. In addition to adding Hannukah prayers to Shabbat services, both synagogues have study sessions with congregants to discuss the meaning and story of the holiday, not to exchange gifts.