October 7, 2008
9 Tishrei 5769

Dear Friends,

First of all I want to wish you a Happy and Healthy New Year. This time of year is very busy on campus, both in Cleveland and at Oberlin. We have just finished celebrating Rosh Hashanah and are about to observe Yom Kippur on multiple campuses. Hundreds of students are participating in these services and Holiday meals. In addition we have placed dozens of students who wanted to attend synagogues and temples all over Cleveland. Many of these students also were hosted by families for Holiday meals. This helps connect students to the community and we thank all the families who hosted.

There is an interesting discussion in the Talmud (Eruvin 14, A) whether, considering how imperfect we are, humans should have been created. It is unclear from the discussion what the conclusion is, but it is agreed that if we are already here we should reflect on our actions and decide how each of us can improve him/herself. As we celebrate the beginning of 5769, I think this is something each of us should contemplate and view as a personal call to action. We should be deciding, what can I do to make my community, our People, the world a better place? We think that our role as Hillel is to work with students and encourage them to see how each person can make a difference. We feel this is very important as we help to develop the leaders of the next generation.

As always, I am interested in your comments and perspectives, so please be in touch by e-mailing me at gcoleman@clevelandhillel.org or calling me at 216-231-0040.

Best wishes for a Meaningful Yom Kippur.

Shana Tova,



Gary

Since Labor Day our program staff has been very busy working with students as we have sponsored events for undergraduate students in Cleveland and at Oberlin and our graduate school programming is continuing to develop

Shabbat and Holidays:

• Tashlich services at both Oberlin and Cleveland
• Students at Oberlin went apple picking and prepared apple pies for the Holiday meal
• Rosh Hashanah sweets packages were distributed to students in Cleveland wishing them a Happy and Sweet year
• Candy apple program in residential community
• Apples and Honey Kiddush
• Jewish Law Student New Year's Party
• Weekly Shabbat services and meals both at Oberlin and Cleveland reach hundreds of students
• Oneg Shabbat program every Friday night at Oberlin
• Graduate student Friday night Shabbat meals and Havdallah program at student apartments

Community Service, Social Justice, and Hillel in the Community:

• Students participate in the Hillel booth at the Totally Kosher Rib Burnoff at Gross Schechter Day School on Labor Day
• Students attend Friends of the IDF dinner
• Students volunteer at the annual cemetery clean up project

• Students organized a PB & Jam Marathon at CWRU as part of slichot preparation. Almost 1000 sandwiches were donated to the needy
• Students at Oberlin prepare to volunteer at a soup kitchen and organize a dance marathon to raise money for AIDS relief
• Recruiting students to participate in a winter break trip to the Gulf Coast to help with hurricane relief work

Engagement Work/Meeting New Students

There are ongoing events here. Some of them include:

• First year student dinner at a local kosher restaurant
• Tabling at student activities fair and regularly at CWRU, CSU, Tri-C, and Oberlin
• Assisting in start of new Hillel student group at John Carroll University
• Weekly Hillel Meetings at Oberlin
• Residential Hall Programs at CWRU and Oberlin

Israel Programming:

Moria Shukerjoined our staff in September as our Israel Fellow. She is planning many new and innovative programs for the year including Hebrew coffee nights, Israeli music and dancing, and Israeli movie nights. During her first month she has met many students by being on campus at CWRU, CSU, and Oberlin and through a number of get to know you dinners. In addition:

• Recruiting students for Taglit-Birthright Israel:Hilleltrips
• Representatives of Arava Institute in Israel spoke with students at Oberlin
• Ice Cream for Israel at CWRU
• Stand Up for Peace at CWRU campus
• Robert Malley former special assistant to President Clinton spoke about the possibilities of peace between Israel and the Palestinians at Oberlin
• Middle East and Klezmer music performed at Oberlin
• Weekly OZ (Oberlin Zionist) meetings

Other Initiatives with Students and Faculty:

• LGBTQ Dessert reception at Oberlin
• Weekly learning at CSU, Oberlin, and CWRU
• Weekly Oneg Shabbat program, and pre Rosh Hashana gathering for faculty at Oberlin
• Lunch meeting with faculty at CWRU to discuss Hillel/CWRU faculty programming
• Student planning committee meetings in preparation for the Dershowitz event

Graduate and Professional Student Programming:

Our programming for graduate and professional students is continuously evolving and viewed as one of the best in all of Hillel. We work with Jewish Law Student Association (JLSA) at both CWRU and CSU Cleveland Marshall, Jewish Medical Student Association (JMSA) at CWRU, and other graduate or professional students at the schools they attend. Among some of the events were:

• CWRU School of Law BBQ
• Networking event at Judge Polster's Courtroom
• JLSA at CWRU held elections
• JLSA at CSU Cleveland Marshall meet and were part of the graduate student information fair
• Med student Shabbat dinner at student's apartment
• Graduate student Rosh Hashanah party
• Grad potluck Havdallah