People didn’t see my adopted mom as my ‘real’ mother, so they didn’t see me as a ‘real’ Jew.
Nowadays, I’m not scared to tell people that I’m adopted and Jewish anymore.
Hillel Stories
What’s happening on campus? Hear from students, professionals, and Hillel community members whose lives have been impacted by Hillel and who impact the world with their voices and stories. Share your story with us!
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My brothers and I found a respite from the constant pressures of cadet life at Hillel.
It was a small, tight-knit community that immediately absorbed us and gave us a respite from the constant pressures at West Point.
My family emigrated from India to New York and then moved to North Carolina.
“Jewish life centered around the home for me. My family immigrated from India to New York and then moved to North Carolina.”
On and off campus, my volunteer work with the military reflects my Jewish values.
“My time as a cadet ended when I began studying cybersecurity at Towson University, but I wanted to find a way to continue my support of our military. And Towson Hillel gave me an opportunity to do that.”
I have the best of both worlds as a Latina Jew. My dual identity has influenced who I am.
“I’m Jewish and Latina. I feel like I have the best of both worlds. Being Jewish and Spanish has influenced who I am — my personality, the foods I like, my values. I grew up in a traditional Modern Orthodox home in Hollywood, Fla. I attended Jewish private school my whole life, spent almost every […]
My kippah sparked dialogue within religious communities, most notably with a monk.
My kippah sparked a conversation between me and a monk on campus during my sophomore year.
I was raised in an interfaith household. My dad is Jewish. My mom isn’t.
It’s not enough to talk about our history as a Jewish people, we need to experience it firsthand.
I tapped into my Judaism even more when I became a cadet at Virginia Military Institute.
I found peace outside of the rigors of training at Hillel.
On a campus with 250 Jewish students, most of my friends never met a Jew before me.
Most of my college friends never met a Jew before meeting me.
I’m from San Juan, a very welcoming and accepting place for Jewish people.
“I’m from San Juan, Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico has been extremely accepting of the Jewish people, and I’ve always felt like I had a home there and people were very welcoming and very accepting of who I was. When I decided to come to college I came to Elon University and, as well, it was […]
