An anonymous donor and the OU came together in partnership to purchase a new OU-JLIC home for our Jewish student community at the University of Chicago, led by on campus directors Rabbi Yehudah and Hannah Auerbach. We are grateful to have secured a home close to campus and close to Hillel to provide the local Jewish student community with a safe environment.
The new facility provides a larger, dedicated space for OU-JLIC programming – a space that will be continuously transformed and elevated. When we look at the dining room, we see shabbat hospitality; a bevy of students partaking in Shabbat and Yom Tov meals, engaged in lively conversation filled with Divrei torah and singing. When we look at the tables and chairs, we imagine Lunch & Learns, mishmar and seudat shlishit.
The living room is elevated to a holy space for prayer services or a venue to hear prolific speakers. The couches transform into an exclusive zone for social programming or a student lounge. When we look at the kitchen, we imagine students and OU-JLIC directors baking challah together, learning complex laws of kashrut, and preparing traditional Jewish meals. The fireplace becomes a cozy nook for chavruta learning or connecting informally.
When we look at a bookcase, we imagine a Sefarim corner housing Siddurim, Chumashim, Mishnah, Talmud, and Jewish History. A desk becomes an educator’s study to prepare shiurim and connect students to our rich Jewish heritage.
Please join us in supporting our mission to transform our new OU-JLIC house into a warm home away from home for our Jewish students at University of Chicago.
