For the first time in over 20 years, Iona University in New Rochelle had a sukkah. This was a project of The Hillels of Westchester and the Interfaith Department at Iona. Donated by funds from Temple Israel of New Rochelle, Hillel purchased a 10-foot square sukkah which was built and decorated by Iona students.
Rachel Klein, executive director of the Hillels of Westchester, credits Elena G. Procario-Foley, Brother John G. Driscoll Professor of Jewish-Catholic Studies, as a champion of Jewish identity, and someone who wanted to see Hillel or a Jewish student club on campus for many years. Klein explained: “We are a multi-campus Hillel, and our mission is to enrich the lives of every Jewish student. I’ve long had discomfort with the fact that we were only in five of 22 colleges and universities in Westchester. In furtherance of our mission, we can connect a campus—not necessarily to form a Hillel club on their campus because there might not be the culture or capacity for that—so that they know that there is a vibrant Jewish community accessible to them in Westchester and they know how to respond [if] antisemitism or anti-Zionism pops up. That’s how I see our mission; to have some presence, however it makes sense, for every Jewish student in Westchester.”
“Adding Iona is thrilling,” Klein continued. “We were looking at this year, keeping our expectations low, because we don’t know how many Jewish students there are. Our first two events were: the building of the sukkah and a sushi in the sukkah night. In those two events, I met at least 10 Jewish students. Each thought they were the only one there. It’s just something that struck a chord, a moment.
“My hope for the year is that we’re able to gain momentum, and then next year there will be a student-driven initiative to have Jewish life.”
“This is the 25th year of Jewish-Catholic studies at Iona,” Procario-Foley explained. “Everything is always for the entire community, at Iona and the public. My program has been largely an evening-based series of public education programs, art exhibits, films and concerts, [including] a religious concert.” With COVID, the landscape shifted. “Last year, I was trying to refocus attention internally, as well as externally. I realized that we have these opportunities to learn about each other, and I wanted to find out what people wanted or needed, in order to feel comfortable in their own religious skin at Iona.
“Just prior to the pandemic, I had started conversations with Rachel Klein at Hillel,” she continued. “I thought it was an important dimension of my program to have something for Jewish students on campus. Last year we started conversations again and, in a coincidence, a graduate student was coming to Iona who was very involved with Hillels as an undergraduate. She contacted me last spring and said, ‘I’m Jewish; I would like to be involved. Do you have any jobs?’” Emily Kubrick was hired. She ran an event known as a “break” in the sukkah. “It was an opportunity for students to come and take a break from studies and learn about each other and play games.”
In describing the students’ reactions to the sukkah, Procario-Foley commented: “One of them said that he was proud to know other Jewish students and that he felt appreciated that his tradition was being recognized. Another said that raising a sukkah and participating in the other events taught him to ‘keep on doing what you’re doing, even when people tell you no.’ This event helped me to follow my dream to learn about my heritage. That meant a lot to me, a Catholic theologian, that we could provide that for students. Another one said that we made a change that brought Judaism to life at Iona.”
