Yet their friendship is a reflection of what they celebrated together Sunday evening at the rabbi's home. The ritual of lighting the menorah during the eight days of Hanukkah reminds Jewish people of how a tiny bit of oil was able to create light in the darkness for much longer than expected, just as the bond between the two families has continued to illuminate their lives, months after their chance meeting during a protest against the Trump administration's travel ban in February at O'Hare Airport.

At the protest, each father hoisted a child onto his shoulders - then 9-year-old Adin Bendat-Appell wearing his yarmulke, and then 7-year-old Meryem Yildirim in her hijab - and the two poster-carrying kids were captured sharing a laugh together in a Chicago Tribune photograph.

"We never did anything heroic or extraordinary," Bendat-Appell said. "It still doesn't feel heroic. It feels human."

The Bendat-Appells and Yildirims say they plan to continue regular get-togethers, bringing in friends and family to expand the relationships whenever possible.

"It's heartening to know that these things are happening, that people are doing such hard work to build bridges," she said.

To read more of Vikki Ortiz Healy's article, originally posted in the Chicago Tribune, please click here.