What does it mean to be a part of a community? 

At Hillel, it’s one of our greatest skills- building community. Young people come to Hillel for whatever reason– sometimes it’s their parents that say, “Go to Hillel, at least once.” Sometimes it’s because we have staff on campus bribing them with good food (What? Can you blame us? Bagels always work). Sometimes they just show up because it’s something to do. But for whatever reason, once they are here, they are home. 

Last week we hosted three significant Shabbats. At SDSU we hosted a huge multicultural Shabbat where representatives and students from an array of cultural centers (Black Resource Center, Asian Pacific Islander, LGBTQ+, Women’s, LatinX) all came together to learn about each other and support each other. We danced the hora together, spoke about issues that matter, ate great food (again, a key factor in a successful Hillel event) and then the real magic happened. After the Shabbat meal was done, many stayed to hang out until one o’clock in the morning at Hillel– (keep in mind, this was a Friday night on a college campus and we are 100% alcohol free). I want to repeat that, these folks stayed at Hillel to be with each other. To be in community. 

At UCSD, we hosted our last Shabbat in our beloved Potiker Hillel House. Similar to when you are moving and you have no furniture, we had boxed dinners picnic-style on the floor. Students wrote letters to the future that will be buried in a time capsule at the new Glickman Hillel Center. Many spoke about how this place was the center of their community for the last few years. They spoke about how much having a place that was theirs mattered. They felt ownership and responsibility for how their community was going to say goodbye to one special space and welcome in a new future for Hillel of San Diego. 

And at USD, we hosted an interfaith Shabbat that allowed students to feel safe celebrating their Jewish identities with their Catholic friends. The USD administration really supports Hillel and has been an incredible partner in helping cultivate a Jewish community on campus. Students felt proud to show their friends what it meant to do Shabbat. Hillel made being Jewish feel safe and special. 

At this week’s Board Meeting, our student representatives spoke about their Hillel experiences and I was struck by a common theme. Ellie Ferd, our student representative from UCSD said,

“I didn’t come to college to be Jewish. It wasn’t a priority for me. But I came to Hillel and I found my purpose and my people. Hillel is my community.”

As we begin to think about lighting the Chanukah menorah in the next few weeks, I want to remind you of the community you are sparking through your support of Hillel. Our future Jewish community is here, and it truly shines so bright!