Hillel at Syracuse University offers an extensive assortment of services and spiritual events for holidays and Shabbat. Click on the holiday below to learn more about how we celebrate on campus.
How We Celebrate - Miss being home for Rosh Hashanah? Don’t worry - Hillel has you covered! Every year, both Conservative and Reform Rabbinical Students join us to kick off the Jewish New Year. Evening and morning services are offered on both days, complete with shofar blowing! Plus, we offer delicious holiday meals, enjoy the wisdom of our guest rabbinical students during study sessions, and throw away our sins during the Tashlich service at Thornden Park.
How We Celebrate - Yom Kippur at Syracuse University is an event you don’t want to miss. During this University holiday (no classes are held), you will have the chance to hear a special University guest give the annual Kol Nidre Faculty D’var Torah. During the day, we have Reform and Conservative services and interesting text study sessions lead by visiting rabbinical students. Plus, we provide dinner before the holiday starts, and a delicious break fast, for FREE!
How We Celebrate - To commemorate the anniversary of Kristallnacht, we have hosted a variety of interesting and unique speakers. In 2007, we hosted Henry King, one of the prosecutors at the Nuremberg Trials. In 2008, a special exhibit on Italy and the Holocaust was housed at the Winnick Hillel Center for Jewish Life.
How We Celebrate - Sukkot is celebrated all week long with a multitude of events! Our sukkah, located on the porch of the Winnick Hillel Center, is open all week for anyone to come by and shake a lulav or grab a nosh. If you’re lucky, you’ll also be able to join us for programs such as Sushi in the Sukkah, Hookah in the Sukkah, or our special Sukkot Shabbat, complete with kiddush and dessert under the stars!
How We Celebrate - Singing, dancing, and who knows what else - Simchat Torah is guaranteed to be a good time. Complete with the traditional readings from the end and beginning of the Torah and plenty of music and dancing to go around, you don’t want to miss this! We frequently celebrate with the Reform community at Temple Society of Cocord or our friends at Chabbad.
How We Celebrate - Don’t forget those eight crazy nights! The Winnick Hillel Center is open every night for Hanukkah menorah lightings. Of course there is also our fabulous Hanukkah party! In the past we have had one-of-a-kind Latke Waffle from Funk n’ Waffles, music from Oy Cappella, and a poker tournament at one of the local bars!
How We Celebrate - Although it may be cold and snowy outside, delicious tropical fruits will warm you up during our annual Tu B’Shevat seder! Come enjoy new foods and learn some Kabbalistic wisdom about this New Year for the Trees. We have also celebrated this Jewish Earth Day by donating potted plants to the elderly, learning about environmentalism, and encouraging people to go green!
How We Celebrate - Our sages have commanded us to eat, drink, and be merry to celebrate Purim - And that’s exactly what we do! Every year we chant the Megillah of Esther, and then the party begins! Whether it’s dancing to the stylings of an Israeli DJ, engaging in the age-old Latke vs. Hamantaschen debate, donating Shalach Manot to a local food pantry, or participating in an interactive Megillah reading complete with a hamantaschen eating contest, the party is at Hillel!
How We Celebrate - Passover is a week to remember here at the Winnick. Student-led Seders are held every year on the first and second night, with singing, joking, afikomen-searching, and more than enough matzah to go around! During the week, stop by Hillel any time for our delicious FREE kosher-for-passover lunch and dinner (if you have a SU meal plan) - it tastes so good, you will wish it was Passover all year long (we're not kidding - It's amazing)! And make sure you don’t miss out on our mouth-watering chocolate seder, one of the sweetest nights you’ll ever experience!
How We Celebrate - Every year, you will find something new and interesting to commemorate the Holocaust on campus. Often partnering with other student organizations such as fraternities and sororities, the LGBT Center, and other religious student organizations, Hillel has hosted speakers such as child survivor William Donat, watched and discussed films such as The Pianist, and organized ceremonies to commemorate the Holocaust through music, poetry, prose, and pictures.
How We Celebrate - Israel’s Independence Day is always a party here! In the past, our events have included serving an Israeli Flag Cake on the quad and hosting an Israeli Discotheque! Other programmings have include programs such as Krav Maga-Israeli Self Defense workshops, Israeli Folk Dancing, and Israeli movie marathons.
This is just a sampling of what we have done in the past. Is there something else you would like to see? Do you have a great idea for a Purim party, or want to organize a themed Passover seder? Or maybe you are interested in learning how to lead services or want to read Torah? Let us know! Just e-mail our staff at .
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"Hillel takes a pluralistic approach to its services and holiday programming. We want to make sure that each student can choose from what we offer and have a meaningful religious experience."
Lowell Lustig, Hillel Staff
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