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On the page below, I have 10 engagement stories from my year. Five of the stories directly relate to an individual student, while the other five stories relate to students in a group setting. I have many more stories that I could have written about, and a lot of great memories regarding all of the students I intereacted with at the New Orleans Hillel. I want to thank all of the students I met for giving me the opportunity to do my job!
Jeremy Epstein
I met Jeremy Epstein at Tulane some time during the fall semester while I was tabling for a program. Jeremy is Hillel's version of a typical engagement student. He's a junior at Tulane, a member of a fraternity, and he has rarely attended any Hillel functions in his previous two and a half years of college. Jeremy and I spoke about sports, and he let me know that he does rock climbing at an indoor gym a few times a week. I told him that rock climbing could make a great JCSC event, and he offered to help out. Jeremy was happy to show us the ropes as a number of freshmen and myself climbed to heights that we had never been before.
During the second semester, Jeremy was a star cast member of the Murder Mystery Shabbat. He also attended a few Friday night events, and a Passover Seder. I recommend getting Jeremy to help plan a rock climbing event for next year!
Adam Ross
I met Adam Ross for the first time in the Sharp lounge, (freshmen residence hall) because he was there to watch the Monday night football game of the week. Adams distinguishing feature is his curly Jewish fro which would make any African-American proud. I realized after a few minutes of talking with Adam that he has a vast amount of sports knowledge. Adam lived in the Patterson residence hall (substance free), but heard that I would be giving away a free ticket to the 49ers Saints game so he decided to make the trek down the quad to watch some football. Being a football fan from Kansas City, Adam always wanted to see a football game played indoors at the Superdome.
Adam became one of my biggest success stories. Second semester, he became a regular at Tuesdays at Hillel, and he attended a great deal of Friday night services. As I got to know Adam better, I realized that he has an extensive amount of Jewish knowledge that he gathered while attending a Jewish high school. Adam loves to play basketball, baseball, and he likes to write. He attended my coffee hour and smoothie hour religiously, and we worked out together at the gym. He has a great deal of leadership potential as long as he's doing something that interests him!
Murder Mystery Shabbat
The Murder Mystery Shabbat Dinner took place on January 24th at the Tulane Alumni House. This event became my favorite evening of the year because my theater group students performed in an original murder mystery that I wrote. The theme for the evening was Who Killed JFK, and the Alumni House was transformed into the White House during the beginning stages of the Johnson Presidency. The cast of characters included the following 1960s and 50s icons: Lyndon Johnson, Lady Bird Johnson, Elvis Presly, Marilyn Monroe, Fidel Castro, Liz Taylor, Lee Harvey Oswald, J. Edgar Hoover, Jackie Kennedy, and Earl Warren.
This was a great engagement event because three students who hadn't been to my theater group participated, and we drew many new faces who otherwise wouldn't attend a Sabbath dinner. I created questions and accusations for all of the audience members to ask the cast during the dinner break. Everyone who attended felt like they were involved. It was a fabulous evening, a lot of work, and a lot of fun!
Phil Glotzer
After you meet Phil Glotzer, you realize why he gets along with everybody because it's impossible not to like the guy. Phil was born in the Soviet Union, and moved to the United States when he was 12. He spent his teenage years growing up in New Orleans, Louisiana. Phil is a very bright student who likes to write poetry, and rap like Eminem.
Phil wanted to win a free smoothie at the Reily Center (gym) so we competed in a game of horse. He was sure that he would win, but I got lucky and made a few shots. I still bought him a free smoothie, and from then on, Phil became a regular at my coffee hour and my theater group until work prohibited him from attending. Phil went to Israel on the Birthright program, and is somebody who now can be considered a Hillel regular. Get him involved in his passions, and he can be a very friendly leader!
Monday Night Football
For three consecutive Mondays at the start of the year, I took pizza and soda into the Sharp Lounge (freshmen residence hall) to watch Monday night football with the students. I met a number of Jews and gentiles who came for the free food and for the football game. The students who attended included: Adam Ross, Daniel Lederman, Yoni Sunshine, Ethan Rosenberg and Jonathan McMaster. Ethan has a passion for photography, and is someone that could be engaged if there is a need for picture taking. Yoni is also a typical engagement student although he attended several events throughout the year, and is someone I can see getting involved in the future. Jonathan decided to leave Tulane, and is now serving America in the Marine Corps.
At half-time of each of the games, I raffled off a free ticket to the 49ers Saints game. The winners included Adam Ross, little Daniel Lederman and Jay Hazen. I had a fun time talking with the students during the games, and it brought back a lot of memories of my freshmen year in college. The students, however, were more interested in eating free pizza, and finding out ways that I could hook them up with a free ticket to the Saints game!
Greek Shabbat Dinner
We had a Greek Shabbat Dinner at the Tulane Alumni House. The purpose of the event was to get Jewish Greek students to celebrate Shabbat who otherwise wouldn't. I got to know several of the AEPi guys including the President of AEPi, Matt Ebner. Matt and I wrote a grant to Hillel International to try to get funding to pay for the event. Although we didn't receive the grant, and we had a hefty batch of leftovers, the event was a success. Besides the AEPi guys, there were girls from AEPhi, SDT, Theta, and KKG.
We had a nice Friday night meal that included plush pasta and a delicious dessert tray. I'm hoping that next year AEPi, or one of the sororities will try to organize a Shabbat dinner. We ended the year with a Break the Bread at an Italian restaurant after the conclusion of Passover.
Greg Starr
Greg Starr attended one of my smoothie hours, and was the first person who showed a great deal of interest in the Jewish Theater group. As I got to know Greg, I realized that he was looking for all kinds of activities to do with his spare time. It seemed that he wanted to make the most of his college experience. Greg wouldn't be considered your typical engagement student because he was actively searching to occupy his time.
Greg became a regular with the theater group, and a regular at my coffee hour. He also attended many of my engagement programs throughout campus, and throughout New Orleans including a trip to hear jazz music at Preservation Hall. Greg loves to be the center of attention, and can be a very funny guy when he lets his humor surpass an 8th grade level. He's a person that can definitely plan an event in the future, and he has a distinct vision for the way he wants things to be!
Rap with the Rabbi and Alexis Kaplan
I met Alexis Kaplan at the beginning of the year, and she instantly gravitated towards my coffee hour and theater group. Alexis was very comfortable attending Hillel and Chabad functions so she wouldn't necessarily be categorized as an engagement student. She was always looking to expand her Jewish knowledge, and she was one of the regulars at our Rap with the Rabbi program.
Rabbi Shiff from Beth Israel is an Orthodox Rabbi who wanted to meet with Tulane students to discuss a variety of topics relating to Judaism. During the Rabbi's time at Tulane, we engaged a handful of people. Most of the time, Alexis and I were the only ones having a lively conversation with the Rabbi. We didn't reach as many students as we would have liked, and it's a challenge to find the demand to hear the Rabbi speak on a regular basis! Alexis and Rabbi Shiff could be involved more next year at Hillel.
49ers Saints Football Game
When I first arrived in the Big Easy I marked my calendar for October 20th because I knew that I would be at the Louisiana Superdome watching my San Francisco 49ers take on the New Orleans Saints. I didn't know that I would turn my passion into an opportunity to engage Jewish students at Tulane. It was an exciting game, and all of the students who attended had a great time. It was free for the students who had won the raffles while the other students paid a nominal amount of $20 dollars a ticket.
A few of the students who attended became JCSC groupies, and now they are regulars at Hillel. I wish I had made better connections with the other students, but it is hard to talk to people when you are screaming next to 65,000 other hysterical fans. Going to the game was my favorite memory from the first semester although it would have been better if the 49ers had prevailed!
Daniel Lederman
Daniel Lederman is a freshmen guy who loves the New York Yankees and the game of baseball. Daniel unfortunately has the distinct disadvantage of being a really skinny kid who doesn't look a day older than twelve. I met Daniel at the beginning of the year, and he attended my engagement opportunities throughout the school year. One day, I gave Daniel a ride to GNC so that he could purchase some protein powder. It's hard for him to gain weight, and the fact that he keeps kosher makes matters worse because he can't eat the meat at the dining commons. Daniel is always looking to get involved in new activities, and he likes to laugh and have fun. Its only a matter of time before he becomes a Tulane ladies man! I enjoyed mentoring him, and I believe that I helped him have a memorable freshmen year of college.
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