HOW UD HILLEL HAS SHAPED MY COLLEGE EXPERIENCE

I can hardly believe that in a few short months, I will have to leave this place that I call my home. The past four years at the University of Delaware have been incredible for me, and I owe a huge part of that to UD Hillel. I started off my college experience right away with Hillel. I signed up to be part of Freshmen Fest where I was able to move in early and connect with other Jewish Freshmen. Unfortunately, there was a hurricane so that did not exactly go as planned, but I did get to move in before everyone else! My freshman year was rough, I did not like the classes I was taking, I was not involved in many clubs, and it was really hard for me to connect to UD. Sophomore year I watched as one of my best friends became a CEI intern and absolutely loved the program. She was became involved, super busy, and was meeting Jewish student all over campus. I expressed my feelings to her and she helped connect me with Nicole at Hillel. Soon after, I applied for birthright to go in the winter of 2013. I was accepted, and little did I know that it would change my life and college experience forever. On that trip, I not only connected with Israel in a way that I never had before, but I made friends that are still my best college friends as of today, over two years later. These friends have been there for me no matter what, have gone to Shabbat with me, have supported me in everything I do on campus, and have made me whole. After returning from birthright, I was asked to take over Challah for Hunger with my friend Rachel, who also was on my birthright trip. We agreed and were super excited, although we had no idea what we were getting ourselves into! We dove right into the dough (literally) and had a challenging, and rewarding experience. We put on events like Challahween and cosponsored sales with other organizations on campus. Being co-president of Challah for Hunger gave me incredible leadership experience and confidence that I did not know I had in myself. We successfully transitioned a new board last year and I am so proud of all that they are accomplishing. As my time at Delaware is unfortunately ending in a few short months, I can’t help but look back on everything that UD Hillel has done for me. Hillel and the people I met through it have completely shaped my college experience, and I am forever thankful for that.