Elyse called me to inquire if a metal menorah could have survived a fire and I responded that it could. Once I arrived at the property a few days later she told me the story of just how significant the menorah was to her family. It survived through the holocaust with her grandfather and both made it to New York by way of Ellis Island and was passed down to her. The menorah was over 100 years old and was still used by Elyse and her family to light the candles during the chanukah celebration less than a week before the Palisades fire destroyed there home. Elyse told me that out of everything that was destroyed in the fire that was the one thing that could never be replaced. During my search I needed to remove several feet of metal debris and ash. After about an hour and a half I unearthed the sacred menorah. Elyse and her husband were amazed to see the menorah hit the light of day and miraculously relatively unscathed. there were other things that I found for her like her set of sterling silver flatware and some porcelain doll furniture that belonged to her daughter. the menorah was definitely the most sentimental and religiously significant Item that I had the pleasure of reuniting with its family back were it belonged
No Comments »