DALLAS — Did you notice a little hut in Klyde Warren Park this week?
A group of rabbis put it there, and for a very important reason.
Klyde Warren has its staples: the food, families, and yes, those little fountains.
But last Friday, a group of rabbis with the Intown Chabad added something new.
A sukkah is a hut or booth Jews build during the weeklong holiday of Sukkot, often outside their homes or synagogues.
But this Sukkot, for the first time ever, the Intown Chabad built one right in the middle of KWP.
"There's a lot of foot traffic here, lots of publicity here," Rabbi Baruch Hecht with the Intown Chabad told WFAA.
"You know, there's a lot of anti-Semitism out there," he continued. "Seeing something like this, it's a proud Jewish symbol."
The sukkah was installed in Klyde Warren on September 29th. Rabbi Hecht said he hopes it sends a message to Dallas Jews.
"You don't need to be worried," he said. "You can celebrate and practice your faith, even in Klyde Warren Park!"
Rabbi Hecht also hopes the sukkah sends a message to non-Jews and encourages them to learn about the holiday.
"Be curious, ask questions, bridge those gaps," he said. "Learn and maybe some of those things you thought about the other person would fall away."
It didn't take long for someone to take the Rabbi up on his offer.
"I come to the park every day, and I saw this over here," a parkgoer told WFAA. "I wanted to know what the holiday was about, what was the purpose?"
The young man took out his phone and got his answer.
"The sukkah's purpose is to commemorate the time the Israelites spent in the wilderness after they were freed from slavery in Egypt," he read off the internet.
"There's not one person who doesn't belong in this community," Rabbi Hecht said. "We all belong together."