The Usual

Unfortunately for many of you all, this week is probably full of mid-terms. After all of your hard work studying and preparing, you will be rewarded with a week long break with absolutely no classes. This does not necessarily mean no school work though (welcome to college!). Last year while vacationing in Miami, I was stuck writing a Communication 110 speech on God knows what! This year, I will be heading up north to New York City to participate in a program offered by the Communication Department here at the College. We will be touring various cooperate offices in the city. Some of our stops will include IBM, Bloomberg, and the New York Times. We will also be visiting various PR and Marketing firms. I am looking forward to my trip and hopefully will have some down time to upload photos!

This week at the Jewish Student Center, we will be having a Chinese food themed Meet to Eat. Our chef DeDe will be preparing some tasty Chinese food. Dinner will begin at 6:00 PM on Wednesday, and I look forward to seeing everyone at dinner before we all head out for break! There will be no Shabbat this week and also no Meet to Eat and Shabbat next week due tobreak. if you will be in town over break and would like to celebrate Shabbat, please let myself or Dara know, and we can help set you up with a family!

Just a view from where I will be staying in NYC! Anyone going anywhere fun for break? Comment and let me know!

Let’s Party For Purim!

Hope everyone has not missed me too much from the blogging world! As we all know, when classes begins to pile on the work and other commitments start to take over, it is hard to find time to sit down and write a post. So with all of that being said, here is a brand new post! 

This coming Saturday, February 23rd, is the offical Jewish celebration of Purim. The holiday is to celebrate the foiled plot of Haman who was trying to massacre the Jews a long, long time ago. As many know (or may not know), there are many things associated with Purim – Hamentashen cookies, groggers and other noise makers, and, last but not least, dressing up and partying!

The Jewish Student Union will be celebrating their 5th Annual Purim Masquerade Party at Tasty Thai, which is located on King Street right next to American Apparel. The party will held from 10:30 PM – 1:00 AM. This event is 18 to party, 21+ to drink. Ticket are currently being sold for $5 in advance and will also be available to purchase at the door for the same price. Make sure to check out the Facebook group! 

I will leave you all with a few ideas of what to dress up as…

-  Group costumes (Dressing up with friends is always fun. Think Spice Girls, M&Ms, The Four Seasons) 

-  Political candidates (You can throw on an Obama mask or even channel your inner Sarah Palin)

- Athlete (CofC basketball player anyone?, tennis player, yogi) 

-Black cat (Simple enough!)

Here’s a photo from the party last year with a few Spice Girls and a Celtics fan! 

Shout Out To My Sister

I am currently in my computer science class, and my teacher is asking us to create a web page. The easiest thing I thought to do was a blog post! My sister Amelia from colour-bloc was featured in Framework magazine! She contributed to the October issue by writing a post on “How To Transform Your Space With Artwork”. I look forward to reading it and hope everyone else does as well. I am so excited for you, Amelia and cannot wait to see you for your colour-bloc launch party super soon!

Photo credits to Amelia’s Instagram @colourbloc

New Year, New You

The Jewish New Year has come and gone. All of our sins are atoned for and I am sure we are all sick of apples and honey! Luckily, another fun Jewish holiday is already here – Sukkot . This year, we are fortunate enough to build our own Sukkah in the Steinberg’s backyard on Smith Street. The AEPI pledges helped to build the Sukkah while some of the SDT sisters created the decorations!

 

Our beautiful Sukkah for the week!

We will be meeting on Wednesday evening at 5:50 PM outside of Arnold Hall to walk over to our Sukkah for Meet to Eat. Friday evening, we will have services in the Sukkah then walk back to Arnold Hall for Shabbat dinner.

Since it is a new year and everyone wants to do something good, we hope you will join us this Sunday from 2pm-4pm when we volunteer with the Carolina Youth Development Center. We will be hanging out and doing fun activities with a group of children who have been neglected from their families or even ran away from their homes. I have gone the past two times JSU has gone and it has definitely been a great experience. Speaking of volunteering, I also went this morning with Lauren Brami, who is on the board as Social Action co-chair, Zoë Berkley-Cramer, and Jordan Mizrachi to Crisis Ministries which is a local soup kitchen here. Although we did not get to serve, we were able to prepare the lunch for the homeless. We hope to go back to prepare and serve soon! If you are interested in this event or any other Social Action events, join their Facebook group!

I was approached by one of our co – Presidents to do a little series where I would talk to some of the freshmen and hear how their experiences have been going so far at the College! Our first two up are….(drum roll please!)

Eden Katz : “I got involved with JSU because of two girls I went to high school with that are now juniors at cofc and on the board of the JSU, Elaine Prigal and Frankie Sadoun. Coming from a home where Judaism was sort of forced upon me, I wasn’t sure at first whether I would want to be so involved with the Hillel. But after Judaism became a choice rather than something my parents made me do, I found it a lot more attractive. Especially coming from a tight knit Jewish community and Jewish Day School, it was weird to me to not be constantly surrounded by Jews. I found that being involved in the Hillel is something amazing! It’s a wonderful community that just welcomes you with open arms, and that was a really comforting thing for a scared little freshman. Everyone I’ve met have been amazing, and every event I’ve been to is so fun. There’s always food, which is a huge plus!I especially love the shabbat services/dinners, because that’s something I’ve found I really do miss from home. Having a community and a place where you feel welcome is so important, and I’ve found that through the JSU.”

Ziv Agasi : “I was very active jewishly during high school. I was on the board of the youth group. I led High Holiday youth services two years in a row. I taught in the religious school. I work at a Jewish summer camp. My father is Israeli. I spent half of last year in Israel during a gap year. I speak Hebrew. It only made sense that I would be active here in college. I come to just about every single free food event that the JSU offers. Why, because I’m Jewish and I like free food. The JSU is a place where I can come at the end of the day, relax and eat some delicious food with other members of the tribe. What could be better than that?”

If you’re a freshmen and are interested in talking about your time here so far, please let me know! Look forward to seeing you all at Wednesday’s Meet to Eat!

We apologize again for the cancelation of the Pancake Bake Sale last night. We are in the process of rescheduling it to the week following this one! More details are to come.

A is for Announcements

Sorry I have taken a little hiatus from the blog. From celebrating Rosh Hashanah to trying to stay ahead on my school work, I did not have time to create a post. So this one will be extra special!

I am looking forward to visiting the Jewish Cadet’s tomorrow night at the Citadel. We will be enjoying pizza and dessert and just getting to know one another! If you are interested in coming with us, there will be cars leaving from the JSU at 6:15 PM tomorrow night  (Monday the 24th) so feel free to come and head over there with us. You can join the Facebook event here.

On Wednesday, there will be a special Meet to Eat because of Yom Kippur. This Meet to Eat will be to break the fast so come around 7:30 PM (or whenever your service is over!) for some bagels and more! Speaking of Yom Kippur, there are services Tuesday night for Kol Nidre and throughout most of the day on Wednesday. Let me know if you need a ride to the Conservative synagogue or would like to meet up with other students to walk over to the Orthodox or Reform synagogues.

Friday night services will be family oriented since it will help kick off CofC’s Family Weekend! I loved when my parents came to Charleston during my freshmen year for this special weekend. It was nice to see them and be treated to things I usually could not (or should not!) purchase when they weren’t here. Definitely look into going to some tasty restaurants including O-Ku and Basils both on Upper King, Fulton 5 on Lower King, and the Charleston Grill located in the Charleston Place Hotel!

Saturday night JSU will be fundraising by selling pancakes outside of Berry Residence Hall! We will be serving and selling them from 12 AM – 2 AM so come by after your night out and buy some! More details are to come, but join the Facebook event! 

Good luck with school work  and have an easy fast on Yom Kippur! Hope to see you at some events this week !

High Holidays and More!

It is crazy to think that the High Holy Days will be here in less than seven days! I always love this time of year because the weather seems to be changing (or trying to cool down at least!), it is a nice time to be with friends and family, and reflect back on the past year.

This Wednesday we will have another Meet to Eat! Dinner will start at 6 pm.

There will also be Shabbat services and dinner with a special program beginning at 5:45 PM  and dinner at 6:30 PM. This will be our first themed Shabbat (Bedouin theme!) so click to join the event on Facebook ! Also, if you have any decorations like tapestries or cool scarves/pillows that we could borrow for Friday , please let me know! We are setting up at 5:15 PM Friday evening so feel free to bring your stuff then (or you can leave in Marsha and Dara’s office on the second floor of the building) to help decorate!

Tomorrow is the 11th anniversary of September 11th. JSU will be showing the movie “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close” which is a movie based off the events from September 11th. The movie will be playing while pizza is served and after, there will be a short discussion led by some JSU board members. Feel free to come – it is from 6PM – 8 PM. Also click to join their Facebook event page !

Like I mentioned earlier, the High Holy Days are coming up soon which also means services are coming up. There was an email sent out regarding the three different synagogues and the times the services were starting for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. If you did not receive this email, please let me know and I will send it over! We are trying to get a count as how many people are going where each night . Walking groups will be assigned for the designated holidays/nights if needed! Hopefully at Meet to Eat you can sign up on the sign up sheets as to where you would like to go!

This coming Thursday, the 13th, there will be a “Rosh-ha-what?” table in Cougar Mall (right in front of the door going into Maybank) to give out fun facts about Rosh Hashanah and of course, apples and honey and other treats! Hope to see you all there!

There will also be a Rosh Hashanah dinner Sunday night (I believe 6 PM!) and a lunch on Monday (TBA!). There will also be a break-the-fast on the following Wednesday afternoon of Yom Kippur. More details are to come!

I know I am so overwhelmed with school work, but hopefully most of you all are not. If you are, try and push through to the weekend and Rosh Hashanah!

Evening News

Cannot believe it is already Labor Day! Luckily since we all go to school in the south, we can keep our white pants out a little longer! (In my opinion) I want to share some of the pictures from this past week’s Challah for Hunger (we raised $117 for Crisis Ministries!) and the Riverdogs game.

Some of the Challah we made! We will be making some more later this month!

The group who attended the Riverdogs game!

Here is a list of the upcoming events for this week

- On Tuesday, there will be a Meet and Greet to introduce and mingle with the three new staff members at the JSU. Mark Swick, Nora Feinstein, and Dara Rosenblatt will be in Arnold Hall starting at 5:30 PM so make sure to stop by!

- Wednesday,as usual, there will be Meet to Eat! We are venturing off to Hyman’s Seafood on Meeting Street for the evening. A group will leave from the JSU at 5:45 PM or feel free to meet us there at 6:00 PM. Hope you all can make it! (There will be a seafood option, chicken finger option, and vegetarian option so something for everyone !)

- Shabbat services will be 5:45 PM on Friday and dinner at 6:30 PM. Earlier at 5 PM, there will be a meeting about Birthright! Birthright is a free trip to Israel so I encourage all of you to come out and get more information.

- I am looking forward to our beach day on Sunday! We will be leaving for Sullivan’s Beach at 12:30 PM and transportation will be provided if you do not have a way to get there! Before we leave, there will be a bagel brunch at 11:30 PM so come for some yummy breakfast!

I want to give a specials shout out and Mazel Tov to our previous president at JSU and a friend of mine, Jill Schancupp on her engagement to her high school sweetheart Craig Wasilewsky!

Challah for Hunger & Baseball

Everyone get excited for our first Challah for Hunger event! This Thursday, from 3:00 PM to 4:00 PM, we will be making and braiding the challah! Friday from 11:00 AM to 2:00 PM we will be selling it in Cougar Mall. I know I have contacted many of you but let me know if you are interested in the baking or selling! (Spots are limited for the baking and filling up quickly so definitely contact me as soon as you can!) Amanda Kasman is leading this event and she looks forward to seeing some of you and I look forward to tasting the (I’m sure to be!) delicious challah!

Also, the Riverdogs, the minor league baseball team here in Charleston, will be playing on Thursday and everyone is invited! We will leave the JSU at 5:30 PM and transportation is provided! Tickets are $3 and if everyone could bring the money to Dara’s office as soon as possible that would be great (Preferably Monday or Tuesday). Her office is located where Marsha’s office is (second floor of the JSU, make a left, pass through the small kitchen, and you will see their office on the left hand side!) Make sure to like the event on Facebook

Free meals (Wednesday 6 PM and Friday 6:30 PM after services), baseball, AND challah….this week doesn’t seem like it could get any better!? Hope to see you all at the event this week!

Friday Funday

Hope everyone has had a great first week back! I got to meet many of you and I definitely am excited to get to know you guys better! I wanted to introduce you the members of the 2012-2013 Jewish Student Union/Hillel Executive Board. Add them on Facebook, start up a conversation with them at Meet to Eat or Shabbat, or just say hi to them on the street!

 

Carly Shevitz : Co-President

Class : Junior

Major : Jewish Studies and Exercise Science

Other activities or interest on campus : Sailing

What are you most excited about for this upcoming year at JSU? : Engaging new students!

 

Frankie Sadoun : Co-President

Class: Junior

Major: International Studies, Political Science  (Minor: Jewish Studies)

Other activities or interest on campus: Social action

What are you most excited about for this upcoming year at JSU?: New students!

 

Chantelle Berman : Israel Co-Chair

Class: Junior

Major: Political Science

Other activities or interest on campus: Volunteering at an animal shelter off campus

What are you most excited about for this upcoming year at JSU? : Clyde’s Bar Mitzvah (You will all be hearing about this very soon!)

 

Elaine Prigal : Israel Co-Chair

Class: Junior

Major: Jewish Studies, Special Education

Other activities on campus : –

What are you most excited about for this upcoming year at JSU? : Clyde’s Bar Mitzvah

 

Seth Burelle : Student Engagement Co-Chair

Class : Sophmore

Major : Undecided

Other activities or interest on campus : Student Government Association

What are you most excited about for this upcoming year at JSU? : Passover.

 

Elana Malkin : Student Engagement Co-Chair

Class : Sophmore

Major : Exercise Science

Other activities or interest on campus : Basketball

What are you most excited about for this upcoming year at JSU? : Meeting new people.

 

Caroline Eichholz – Student Engagement Co-Chair

Class : Junior

Major : Communication

Other activities or interest on campus : Athletic Communications in the Athletic Department

What are you most excited about for the upcoming year at JSU? : Meeting all the freshmen, attending services, and all the fun events! (including the weekly free meals)

 

Maryn Richter : Religious Chair

Class: Sophmore

Major: Secondary Education and Biology

Other activities or interest on campus: Starbucks aficionado, JSU Board

What are you most excited about for the upcoming year at JSU? : Interacting with new people

 

Hannah Murray: Marketing/Communication Intern

Class: Senior

Major: Computer science and Computing in the Arts

Other activities or interest on campus: Charleston 40

What are you most excited about for the upcoming year at JSU? : Passover!

 

Nicole Lubel : Social Chair

Class: Junior

Major: Communication

Other activities or interest on campus: Pro Israel group, Phi Sig (Co-ed Honors Fraternity/Sorority)

What are you most excited about for the upcoming year at JSU? : Everything!

 

Lauren BramiL Social Action Co-Chair

Class: Sophmore

Major: Anthropology

Other activities or interest on campus: Zeta Tau Alpha Sorority (ZTA)

What are you most excited about for the upcoming year at JSU? : Getting to know everyone and the new members!

 

Amanda Kasman: Social Action Co-Chair

Class: Junior

Major: Special Education

Other activities or interest on campus: Sigma Delta Tau Sorority (SDT)

What are you most excited about for the upcoming year at JSU? : All the great events and meeting new people!

 

Andrew Spector: Social Action Co-Chair

Class: Sophmore

Major: Psychology, (Minor : Jewish Studies)

Other activities or interest on campus: Alpha Epsilon Pi Fraternity, Intramural Soccer, Psychology Club, Religious Studies Club, Meditation Club

What are you most excited about for the upcoming year at JSU? : I’m excited to further immerse myself in the College of Charleston Jewish community

 

Tonight is the first Shabbat Services and Dinner! Services begin at 5:45 PM (feel free to dress up but many people will come in what they wore to school) and dinner is at 6:30 PM! Look forward to seeing you all!

 

 

 

 

Who, What, When, Where, Why…..

Today is the day! The Welcome Back Cookout will take place this evening from 6:00 PM – 7:30 PM right behind Stern Center, in Stern Center Gardens. There will be very yummy food and an opportunity to mingle with other Jewish students! I look forward to meeting you all! I came up with a few scenarios, that every freshmen is bound to come across, and what to do if…!

- You need maintenance help within the dorm (the toilet is clogged, AC not working, need bed lofted)

- Put in a work order! To do this you log onto MyCharleston then click on the Student Services tab at the top then scroll to the middle of the page where you will see Housing Work Orders

- You wake up with a fever or feeling too sick for class.

- Two options

1. Call Health Services (843-953-5520) and make an appointment as soon as you can get in

2. Walk to Health Services when they open at 8:00 AM for the first appointment of the day. No one is usually in there and you get in and out.

- Need to miss class for family emergency, medical emergency, or personal reason.

- I always just email all of my teachers as soon as I find out I will be missing class. They do like to hear from students especially in this kind of situation. I always tell them briefly why I will be missing and if there  is anything I can do (within the circumstances) to stay on top of the work. The more you express your concern about missing, the more they will understand.

- The Absence Memo Office, located between Stern Center and Glebe Street, can send a memo out to all of your teachers once you go there and fill out a piece of paper regarding your absence.

- If you visit Health Services they can give you a sheet that you fill out and they pass along to all of your teachers for you (versus going to the Absence Memo Office)

- You want to observe a High Holiday or another Jewish holiday throughout the school year and can not make it home.

- JSU/Hillel gives you plenty of options if you are staying in Charleston for the High Holidays and other holidays throughout the school year. During the High Holidays, student groups go to the different synagogues located in Charleston (whether by foot or car)

- Out late at night and need a ride home.

- Whether you are leaving the library at 1:00 AM or a bar, the Cougar Shuttle can pick you up and take you back to your dorm. Their number is 888-960-2227

-Need to add/drop class

- If you do it during the add/drop period (they will notify you with plenty of emails to let you know when it is), you will not be charged for the class you added/dropped.

- To do this you go to MyCharleston then the Academic Services Tab then down to Registration Tools

As I say good bye to my summer and Savannah, I look forward to saying hello to my junior year at the College of Charleston! I hope you all can make the Welcome Week activities! Tomorrow, there will be the first Java for Jews at a Starbucks downtown. (Location is TBA) This is another good time to come, enjoy some a free coffee drink, and catch up with other freshmen to hear how their first day went. Remember on Wednesday night starting at 6:00 PM there will be a free meal at the JSU which we call Meet to Eat. When Friday (and Shabbat) roll around, Shabbat services will begin at 5:45 PM and dinner will be served at 6:30 PM!