On December 30 2016, a car rammed into a crowd at the Melbourne Bourke Street Mall killing 4 people including 10-year-old Thalia Hakin, a student of Beth Rivkah in Melbourne.
 

In the weeks before her tragic death, Thalia had submitted an entry to a worldwide competition by Jewish Girls United (JGU) that is compiling essays written by girls about what lighting Shabbat candles means to them. The winning essays will be published in a book called One More Light.

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"When you light up a candle you light up your neshama [soul],” wrote Thalia. “And you light up the world. And when you light up the world you make it a better place. Like for you, me and everybody.

“Now the world is dark but soon to be bright for us. And im yirtzeh hashem [God willing] mashiach [the messiah] will come."
 

That is the incredible beauty of this girl who was only 10 years old and yet, was able to see the impact that lighting Shabbat candles can have on a person and the whole world. This is the message that Light Up The World is trying to spread. The idea that by lighting a candle, you are lighting a soul, and you are lighting up the whole world. 

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