Time to Celebrate Israel!

Adee Drory grew up helping her dad, Itsik Glazer, set up the annual Israel festival back when it took place in Van Nuys and he was the chairman. Now she’s asked him to return the favor.

This year, Drory, four-time director of the Celebrate Israel Festival that will be held in Rancho Park on May 17, convinced Glazer — a designer who works with sheet metal and fabrications — to build a replica of the Ahava (“love” in Hebrew) sculpture from the Israel Museum in Jerusalem.

Artist Robert Indiana originally created the iconic image with the red letters “LO” stacked over “VE” and later developed a Hebrew version out of Corten steel in 1977. The “Ahava” replica was made with sheet metal and stands 12 feet tall and is 12 feet wide, the same dimensions as the original.

“It’s a masterpiece of the museum, overlooking Jerusalem. It symbolizes the love of Jewish people for Jerusalem,” said Drory, who visits Israel every year looking for ways to transport a little bit of the city back to Los Angeles for the festival.

This year’s Celebrate Israel Festival will take place on Jerusalem Day, so the theme — Jerusalem of Gold — is especially fitting. There will be replicas of some of Jerusalem’s most famous landmarks, including a 32-foot-long Western Wall and its tunnels as well as the Machane Yehuda Marketplace, known as “The Shuk.” The latter will feature 14 Israeli artists and local vendors selling jewelry, art, Judaica and other handcrafted items.

The festival, hosted by the Woodland Hills-based Israeli-American Council (IAC), runs 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., with an official ceremony at 3:30 p.m. Tickets are $6 in advance (celebrateisraelfestival.com) and $10 at the door.

The daylong celebration of Israel’s 67th Independence Day will begin with a 1-mile “Salute to Israel” walk at 9:30 a.m., organized by Stand-
WithUs.

Families can enoy Jerusalem-themed arts and crafts projects, including contributing to a community mural alongside famed Los Angeles-based Israeli artist Tomer Peretz. The Create Lab will be open all day with activities such as making your own tie-dye kippah, mosaic coasters, sand-art mezuzah and Jerusalem stone picture frames.

There will be a DJ competition for high school students and the winner gets to open for this year’s headliner, Israeli vocalist and former “The Voice Israel” judge Shlomi Shabat.

“We are bringing my 35-year career on stage — from the first song I wrote to the latest. My full band will be with me and it is going to be a big party, a celebration of the music and sounds of Israel,” Shabat told the Journal in an email. “I want it to be a happy atmosphere and I want the audience to join me and sing with us and make it an amazing show.”

Regarding the theme, he added, “Every time you mention the word ‘Jerusalem,’ it is very emotional. More than once it’s been said about Jerusalem, ‘Without you, I’m half a person.’ ”

There will be no shortage of entertainment for kids at the festival, with Israeli children’s entertainers Sportuly, Dod Haim and Naama Atal set to perform. A puppet theater, exotic animal show and amusement rides — including a Ferris wheel — will be there as well.

As for the all-important food options, visitors can enjoy several glatt kosher vendors; the festival will serve only kosher meals this year, including falafel, shawarma, pizza and ice cream, according to Drory.

“We want to engage the Orthodox community as well as the youths. We want it to be for the entire community,” Drory said, regarding the kosher foods as well as a teen pavilion with digital entertainment.

The IAC has hosted the festival at the Cheviot Hills Recreation Center in Rancho Park (2551 Motor Ave.) since 2011, when the annual Israel Independence Day Festival held in Van Nuys’ Woodley Park was canceled.

There were an estimated 15,000 people in attendance last year, and IAC Regional Director Dikla Kadosh anticipates the number will grow to 20,000 this year.

“We should all come together to celebrate the incredible fact that we have a Jewish homeland — a country that is teeming with history, culture, innovation and passion,” Kadosh said. “Celebrate Israel is the culmination of our year-round efforts as a community to instill a strong Jewish identity for generations to come.”

For tickets and more information about the festival, visit celebrateisraelfestival.com.