For Rice University families visiting campus for Family Weekend, Friday evening, Oct. 2, offered an opportunity to experience something their students know well: the warmth and community of Shabbat with Rice Hillel.
More than 40 students, parents and family members gathered Oct. 2 at the home of the Chao College magisters for a special Rice Hillel Family Weekend Shabbat. Chao is Rice’s newest and 12th residential college.
Families traveled from across the country, from New York and Florida to California, along with those closer to home in Houston. Even the challah, shaped like an owl, embraced the Rice spirit. It was baked by Rabbi Kenny Weiss, Houston Hillel’s executive director.
Sophomore Amelia Wigder of Boca Raton, Fla., Rice Hillel co-president, welcomed the families and reflected on Hillel’s role in her college experience.
“When I first came to college, I think one of the things I was most nervous about was finding a sense of community, finding a place where I could feel comfortable, known and at home,” Wigder said. “And for me, Hillel became that place.”
She described Friday night Shabbat dinners as a constant amid the pressures of college, a place to see familiar faces, meet new people and spend time together. She told parents that whether their students attend every Friday, occasionally come to a holiday celebration or simply stop by, “there’s always a place for them here.”
That spirit was echoed as Rice sophomore Hannah Guffrey led the group with her guitar in “Hinei Ma Tov,” with the refrain, “How good it is. How sweet it is. To be together on this day.”
Rice sophomore Justin Feder delivered the evening’s d’var Torah, connecting Hoshana Rabbah, one of the concluding days of Sukkot, with college life. He explained the tradition of beating willow branches until their leaves fall away, symbolizing the shedding of sins while the branches remain.
Feder used the imagery to remind students that mistakes do not have to define them. With midterms underway, he encouraged his peers to revisit goals they may have made around Yom Kippur, whether attending office hours, spending more time with friends or coming to Shabbat more often.
“Hoshana Rabbah says these resolutions are still open and even if we haven’t started them yet, we still have time,” he said.
For parents, the evening offered a glimpse into their students’ Jewish life on campus.
Caren Harris of Bellaire, who has a freshman and a sophomore at Rice and is herself a Rice alumna, said it was “fantastic to see how much it’s grown and evolved” since her own years on campus.
Andrew Lambert of New York City, father of Rice junior Austin Lambert, also appreciated the sense of community shared by students and their families.
“It was such a pleasure to be amidst such wonderful families all around. I feel grateful to be a part of the Rice community,” Lambert said.
Senior Eitan Feldman, a former Rice Hillel co-president, who now serves as a senior advisor, said Hillel helped him find his Jewish community after arriving at Rice.
“Hillel’s meant a lot to me,” Feldman said. “Hillel has been a big part of me finding my Jewish friends and having a place to go every Friday night.”
His parents, David and Tali Feldman, traveled from California for Family Weekend. David, who attended a smaller college where Jewish life was less active, said it was terrific to see Hillel’s presence at Rice and expressed pride in his son’s role in helping build that community.
Rabbi Weiss reinforced the students’ and parents’ praise for Rice Hillel’s student leadership by stepping back and allowing the students to lead, as they do each Shabbat. Rather than offering his own words of welcome, he left that role to the students themselves. As he later reflected, “There’s nothing more important than helping students on their Jewish journeys.”
The Family Weekend Shabbat gave parents a firsthand look at the Rice Hillel community their students have found and a chance to share that experience with them. It also left them with a clear sense of what Hillel means to their Rice students: a welcoming place where students can belong and gather together.