Guest Blog: Aaron Small
Aaron Small, a senior Global Studies major at UCSB, speaks today:My current job is to avoid the exact situation mentioned above. Outreach. The Forest Foundation Outreach Interns are assigned to meet new members of Hillel, socialize and help them find their niche within the organization, and keep them coming back. I see my job as a valuable opportunity to forge new Jewish roots at UCSB, as well as enriching the college years of incoming freshmen and newcomers to Hillel.
Yet my efforts to find ‘new Jews’ and invite them to the Hillel home never ends. During a Midnight Pancake event last week, I persuaded a freshman living in the dormitory to come downstairs, mingle, and see what happens. We had a great conversation revolving around his first name, Tyler, and superheroes. It was a pinnacle event, perhaps of my entire year, to form a unique, genuine bond with a total stranger. The fact that he was Jewish made things only easier! I placed a yellow information card before him. He filled out his contact info with such zeal and enthusiasm that I simply sat there, amazed, trying to answer his questions as best as I could. The hours of training, recruitment, and time spent made it all worthwhile just to see his face light up. He had formed his own connection, and I was there to help him along every step of the way.
posted by forest foundation @ 9:53 AM
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