| As we enter the final days of Hillel of San Diego’s year-end efforts to raise $500,000 by December 31, our family is proud to stand with this community and publicly join this effort to strengthen Jewish life on San Diego’s campuses. We do so while holding two truths at once. We are celebrating the light and resilience of Hanukkah, even as we grieve the tragedies and violence that have shaken Jewish communities in recent days. Joy and heartbreak coexist. For Jewish students, that tension is not abstract but rather something they are navigating every day on campus. And it is precisely why Hillel’s presence has never mattered more. |
My parents, Elaine and Peter Chortek z”l, believed deeply that the future of Judaism lives in our youth. Hillel was always a priority for them, not simply as an organization, but as a promise that Jewish students would have a place to feel safe, supported, and proud during their most formative years. I am honored to carry that legacy forward, and to see my children doing the same, as you saw earlier this week.
What makes Hillel of San Diego so essential right now is the way it meets students where they are, and helps them grow into who they will become. Across four campuses, Hillel supports nearly 20 student-led clubs, all built by students themselves. From the Hillel Business Initiative and Russian-speaking student groups, to Queer Kehilla and identity-based communities, students are creating spaces that reflect who they are and what they care about. In leading these clubs, students are building real confidence and leadership skills they will carry into synagogues, community organizations, and Jewish life for decades to come.
At the same time, Hillel of San Diego is responding urgently to the realities students face today. Across the globe, we are witnessing antisemitic rhetoric escalate into real violence, and that climate is being felt on our campuses as well. Jewish students are increasingly being asked to defend their identity in classrooms, residence halls, and public spaces. Hillel of San Diego has chosen to meet this moment head-on by investing in a full-time role dedicated to education, case management, and coalition-building, and ensuring students have the tools and support to respond with Jewish pride. And as the emotional toll of this moment grows heavier, Hillel’s new wellness programming ensures students have a place to feel supported, grounded, and genuinely cared for.
My father often said that with good fortune comes responsibility. Supporting Jewish students – their safety, their wellbeing, and their future – is one of the most meaningful ways we can honor that responsibility
With just days left in the year, I invite you to join me in sharing that responsibility. In a moment when light and loss exist side by side, your gift to Hillel of San Diego ensures Jewish students have a place to gather, to feel safe, to lead with pride, and to move forward together now, when they need it most.
Shabbat Shalom,
Susan Chortek-Weisman
Pictured above: Susan Chortek-Weisman, Elaine and Peter Chortek z”l, Eric Weisman, Shana Weisman, and Sammy Weisman
