Hanukkah, the Jewish festival of lights that begins tonight at sundown, is a celebration of freedom filled with the joy of family gatherings and gift giving.

But that joy is dampened this year as thoughts turn to the violence and unrest that have engulfed Israel.

So the Jewish community in Baltimore is reaching out to fellow Jews touched by the uprising -- Israeli soldiers and victims of violent attacks -- by sending them gifts of music and messages of solidarity.

Inviting people to "put a new spin on Chanukah," local Jewish organizations are holding a CD drive, soliciting donations of new or used compact discs and encouraging donors to write a message on a specially designed paper sleeve. At the conclusion of the drive Dec. 8, some of the CDs will be mailed to Israel and others will be taken there by Baltimore-based delegations.

"We wanted to do something during the Hanukkah season, to share during this time of giving by bringing Israel closer to our hearts and minds, and letting the people of Israel know that the people of Baltimore care," said Lynn Katzen, Israel Outreach coordinator for the Baltimore Jewish Council, which is co-sponsoring the drive with The Associated: Jewish Community Federation of Baltimore.

Many of the personalized messages include e-mail addresses, enabling those who receive the CDs to start a correspondence with a new friend in Baltimore.

"We want to personalize what's happening in Israel," said Michael Hoffman of The Associated. "We want to put a face behind the names. That way, the next time that unfortunately something tragic happens, the person in Baltimore can send an e-mail saying, 'Are you OK? I'm thinking of you.'"

Organizers said they have received a wide spectrum of discs, from hits from the charts today to classic rock, Broadway show tunes, classical offerings and Jewish folk songs. All they ask is that "music genres would be appropriate and appeal to all different audiences: children, teen-agers, adults, etc."

In addition to individual donations, several religious schools and other Jewish organizations are holding drives and will pass on what they collect. Barnes & Noble bookstores are collecting CDs among their employees as well.

At three drop-off centers -- the Jewish Community Centers in Park Heights and Owings Mills, and at The Associated offices in Mount Vernon -- adults are bringing treasures scoured from their CD collections, as are the children.

At the Owings Mills Jewish Community Center, Debra Plant watched as her 7-year-old son, Morgan, wrote messages from him and his two siblings to accompany discs from The Smithereens, INXS and The Cure. "You are doing a great job. Thank you," he scrawled in blue marker on one sleeve.

Megan Levey, 8, said giving such gifts is a mitzvah, Hebrew for "good deed," which she and her 5-year-old sister, Dana, do every year at Hanukkah. "It's a family tradition," she said.

"Anything we can do to help support people in Israel is wonderful," said her father, Ben Levey. "As is anything to help my kids feel they're making a connection."