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April 27, 2001/Iyar 4, 5761, Vol. 53, No.30
Fete is three-ring circus
JESSICA BARBER
Editorial Intern
Rachel Gordon, left, and Jordana Chavin recreate life in the Mishnaic Period on the Birthright Israel trip last December.
Photo courtesy of Hillel |
From Shabbat dinners and Passover seders to public-policy internships and art programs, Hillel: The Foundation for Jewish Campus Life encourages Jewish students to explore their identity through connections to the community, campus and Israel through culturally centered programs and events.
On the campus of Arizona State University in Tempe, Hillel has a mailing list of 800-1,000 students, although regular attendance at events is 200-300 students.
To help support the Jewish community on campus, Hillel at ASU will hold a fund-raising event, "Cirque du Hillel," 4 p.m. Sunday, May 6, at the Arizona Historical Society Museum, 1300 N. College Ave., Tempe.
The event will include food, entertainment and a raffle.
Entertainment will include the ASU Steel Drum Band, mime David Barker, magicians and jugglers Robb Weinstock and Craig Davis and caricature artist Jim Mortenson. Raffle prizes include two round-trip tickets on Southwest Airlines to any destination in the continental United States, a four-day golf weekend at the Double Tree Gold Resort in San Diego, meals at Eddie Matney's and Cafˇ Terra Cotta and an adult getaway at The Club at Copperwynd.
Hillel chef Mark Vanek will prepare kosher French cuisine and Creative Cappuccino will provide coffee.
Artwork from student winners in the Joan Frazer Memorial Award contest and the Debra Goldstein Memorial Photography contest will be on display.
Hillel, founded at the University of Illinois in 1923, is now active in the United States, Canada, Israel, Europe, the United Kingdom, Australia, South Africa and states of the former Soviet Union. The organization embraces all movements of Judaism and requires no membership to participate in functions and events.
The organization began at ASU in 1970. Susan Flecker, a social worker and Hillel's first full-time professional at ASU, worked with a group of students to develop the ASU Hillel and to receive funding from the Jewish Federation of Greater Phoenix. Shortly thereafter, Rabbi Barton Lee arrived as ASU Hillel's first full-time rabbi, and now is in his 29th year as Hillel's director.
Lee explains that community and campus pressure encouraged the establishment of a Jewish campus organization.
"A Catholic chaplain at Newman Center thought it was unconscionable not to have a rabbi here to help Jewish students who might have certain needs, personal or religious," Lee says. "A priest at Newman Center counseled a Jewish kid who ultimately ended up killing himself. That was a local wake-up call."
Internationally, Hillel, in conjunction with Jewish agencies, local federations and private donations, offers programs to students who wish to become involved with the Jewish culture and community.
Hillel is the major provider of the Birthright Israel program for college students. In December, the ASU Hillel sent 26 students to Israel to explore their identity as Jews. Lee has noticed the positive impact the trips to Israel have had on students, including lifelong friendships, a new connection to Israel and Jewish culture, and a stronger interest in Judaism and their role within it.
Hillel has developed a public-policy internship this year to encourage students to learn and work in Jewish agencies that specialize in public-policy issues. Five students participate each semester and become involved with community and campus issues.
In addition, Hillel offers the Teaching Scholars program through which students study and explore Judaism with Hillel professionals, and then use their skills in local religious schools and geriatric settings.
Hillel also has two programs in the arts - the Joan Frazer Memorial Award and the Debra Goldstein Memorial Photography Contest - which stimulate students to apply their artistic talents to Jewish themes.
Lee says that Hillel is a positive and influential organization for Jewish students on the ASU campus.
"When you see that you are building leadership for the Jewish community, it says that what you are doing is valuable," he says. "It stimulates you to try to keep it moving."
The ASU Hillel is located at 1012 S. Mill Ave., Tempe.
Details
- What: Cirque du Hillel
- When: 4 p.m. Sunday, May 6
- Where: Arizona Historical Society Museum, 1300 N. College Ave., Tempe
- Cost: $90. Raffle tickets are $10 each or three for $25.
- Contact: 480-967-7563
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