Hours spent in the kitchen: 150. Pounds of meat barbecued: 1200. Number of stomachs filled: 3000. Seeing Berkeley Hillel filled to capacity every Wednesday: priceless.

Nothing touches the Jewish grandmother in us all quite like the scene at Berkeley Hillel on Wednesday evenings during the weekly barbeque. Students flock to the scent of grilled chicken, freshly made french fries, and zesty guacamole. Planned and carried out completely by a group of student volunteers, the barbeque provides kosher meat, and vegetarian dishes, to over 250 Jewish students.

However, in following Cal’s tradition of doing things a bit differently than the rest, Hillel’s barbecue squad rarely puts out just an average, traditional spread. In any given week, students may find a Middle Eastern feast complete with falafel and tabouleh salad, Italian pesto chicken and baked eggplant, Szechwan chicken alongside a Thai Peanut noodle salad, or even, you guessed it, eggs and BACON! That is turkey bacon of course.

“The Starting Eleven,” as the bbq cooking team calls themselves, truly enjoys transforming creativity in the kitchen into smiles at the food line. “I look forward to the bbq every week. It really helps getting over that midweek slump,” said co-captain Aaron Abromowitz. Adding to the rejuvenating effects of free food, students have had the pleasure of listening to live music performances by sophomore Noah Grant and Ugandans J.J. Keki and Seth Yonadav.

This year’s BBQs have far surpassed all of “The Starting Eleven’s” hopes and visions. Not only has their creativity in the kitchen gone above and beyond all expectation, they are also becoming accomplished chefs. They have appreciated the guidance of Berkeley Hillel staff member Oren Kroll-Zeldin and are thoroughly looking forward to continuing the journey in the months ahead.

Hurricane Katrina, and its aftermath have led many Americans to look for ways to make a difference in the lives of those affected. Jewish tradition teaches that we are required to help others in their time of need and sometimes our labor is what is most essential.

It is this tradition which drove many students to participate in Hillel’s Alternative Winter Break Trip to Gulfport, Mississippi. Through the generous support of our donors, Hillel International and participant contributions, we were able to join a delegation of 9 Cal students, our JCSC Fellow, Michal Gordon, and students from 10 other campuses. Those of us lucky enough to participate were involved in an interfaith relief effort roofing houses in the Biloxi area. We were housed in the Westminster Presbyterian Church in Gulfport and worked daily with people of varying religious backgrounds, further reinforcing the notion that we must come together in times of need.

Each morning we drove from Gulfport along the I-90 to our worksites in Biloxi. I-90 is the main highway in Southern Mississippi, and it is currently flanked on one side by the breathtaking Gulf of Mexico and on the other by complete and utter destruction. We worked in the same neighborhood each day which fostered a bond not only to the homes we roofed but also to the people who lived in and around them. Our primary task was to aid in the process of rebuilding but we also had many opportunities to speak with residents and explore the area. Each evening we came together as a campus to reflect on our day and share important and meaningful experiences. Discussions often centered around the people that we met, the homeowners, other Biloxi residents, and the other college students working with us. What affected us most was the overwhelming appreciation expressed to us by the residents of Biloxi and Gulfport.

As our time in Mississippi came to an end, we considered the role we could play in increasing awareness of the disaster and its aftermath once we returned to the UC Berkeley campus. Since our return each group member has taken a role in achieving this goal. Our group cooked a Shabbat dinner at Hillel and presented a panel discussion for the campus community. We created a photo exhibit at Hillel to document the trip, the destruction we saw and the work we did. There have been multiple newspaper articles, written both about and by participants which drew attention to the issue. On a larger scale, a group of the Alternative Break participants have, with other students, formed a Social Action Committee (ACTt- Awareness, Community, Tzedek and Tikkun Olam) through Berkeley Hillel. This group is addressing not only the issues surrounding Hurricane Katrina but also other social concerns in our local and global communities.

Two and a half months after leaving Mississippi, students and staff at Berkeley Hillel have decided it is time to return. This Spring Break, a group of 20 Cal students, along with Michal Gordon and our Executive Director, Adam Weisberg, will travel to Mississippi to continue the rebuilding efforts. Now, seven months after the hurricane, we are eager to do more to aid in the Gulf Coast’s revitalization.

Judaism 101 was started by Monica Johnson, a senior at Cal. Monica transferred to Cal in the fall semester and immediately began attending events at Berkeley Hillel. As the fall semester progressed Monica realized she didn’t feel like she had a grasp on all that Judaism had to offer. She approached Rabbi Dorothy about various subjects in Judaism that she wanted to become more knowledgeable on. Her discussions with Dorothy inspired the idea of starting a class to help other students strengthen their own knowledge of Judaism. At the beginning of this semester, Monica registered Judaism 101 a student sponsored course, through the university’s DeCal program. The course has proven to be very popular with both Jewish and non-Jewish students and has over 20 students enrolled for credit. Rabbi Dorothy has covered a variety of topics, such as holidays, life cycle observances, and the history of Zionism. While I personally attended Jewish day school, I am finding the course covering topics in greater depth, allowing me to achieve a more mature understanding of my own Judaism. This class has given me, as well as my classmates, access to the multitudes of information that will enrich our lives for the better and forge a lifelong bond to the Jewish Community.

First Year Students at Hillel (FYSH) has flourished. FYSH is run by JCSC Fellow Michal Gordon and twelve dedicated students on the Hillel Engagement Council (HEC).

Together, these students have put on many successful programs this year that have made FYSH a comfortable and welcoming environment at Berkeley Hillel. The year started off strong with a freshman retreat, where 60 freshmen attended. Activities on the retreat included singing camp songs around the fire, learning about all the amazing opportunities at Berkeley Hillel, and ended with a walk across the Golden Gate Bridge. The retreat was a success and left the freshman wanting more from Berkeley Hillel.

Weekly FYSH dinners give freshmen the chance to hang out with their friends, enjoy a good meal cooked by HEC, and relax in the Hillel lobby. Each week’s dinner has a different theme such as “Everything FYSH,” “Hookah in the Sukkah,” and “Breakfast for Dinner,” and dinners are accompanied by activities that go along with each theme. No matter the theme, on Thursday nights the Hillel lobby is jam packed with 40-60 freshmen who can not get enough of the good food and company. Some freshmen enjoy FYSH so much they have opted to help grocery shop and cook the dinners.

Freshmen enjoy themselves so much at Berkeley Hillel, that Michal and HEC organized many successful outings for freshmen. Such outings include, FYSH in the city where 35 freshmen rode BART into San Francisco and saw the brand new play “25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.” Another fun activity was nighttime broomball. No matter the activity, the freshmen have a fun time and will continue to consider Berkeley Hillel their home during their remaining years at Cal.