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Hillel Dedicates Expanded Braman Miller Center for Jewish Student Life


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    By Andres Tamayo
    UM News

    The newly expanded and renovated

    The newly expanded and renovated Braman Miller Center for Jewish Student Life was made possible by two of Miami’s most philanthropic families.

    CORAL GABLES, Fla. (December 11, 2015)—In a festive celebration last Wednesday night, hundreds of members of the Miami community gathered to mark the dedication of The Braman Miller Center for Jewish Student Life at the University of Miami Hillel.

    On the  fourth night of Hanukkah, students, alumni, parents, donors, and other visitors shared laughs while marveling at the newly expanded and renovated three-story building.

    The expansion—made possible through gifts from two of Miami’s most philanthropic families, the Bramans and the Millers, along with Hillel International—provides an inviting space for all students and the community to study, pray, eat, and spend time with friends. The common message throughout the evening was that the building was designed to create a welcoming place where the Jewish community and others, whether from Miami or beyond, can gather and deepen their connections.

    “Since students don’t always have breaks for the Jewish holidays, it will be nice to be able to come here and share experiences with students like you,” said Joey Newfeld, a junior majoring in industrial engineering. “Just knowing that there is somewhere you can go where you’ll always be accepted no matter what happens and be able to be yourself is really comforting.”

    The dedication featured speeches from Eric Fingerhut, CEO and president of Hillel International; UM President Julio Frenk; and Chaim Shacham, Consul General of Israel to Florida. Each touched on the main focus of the new center: to provide students an opportunity to gain a deeper connection with Jewish culture and strengthen relationships with others.

    “Here at UM, Hillel gives Jewish students a place where they can call home, a place where they can connect with their culture, deepen their spirituality, energize their commitment to community service, and develop relationships that, as we heard, will last a lifetime,” said Frenk. “We want to create an environment where everyone feels like they belong.”

    Hillel2

    UM President Julio Frenk and Felicia Knaul celebrate the dedication of the Braman Miller Center for Jewish Student Life with students who provided tours of their new home away from home.

    As part of the celebration, Felicia Knaul, director of  UM’s Miami Institute for the Americas and wife of President Frenk, lit four lights of the menorah, signifying the fourth night of Hanukkah. Frenk, who is the first Jewish president in UM’s history, looked on with the couple’s daughter as the crowd rejoiced in song as part of the Hanukkah celebration.

    The evening began with a networking hour where guests enjoyed drinks, food, student-led tours and a live performance by Chad Bernstein, the founder of the Guitars Over Guns Organization. The tours took guests from the first floor, where conference rooms and an open ballroom greeted them, to study rooms and lounges on the second floor, to a third-floor lounge area and rooftop balcony overlooking part of the UM campus.

    To find out more about The Braman Miller Center for Jewish Student Life visit www.december9.org. For more on the University of Miami Hillel visit miami.hillel.org.

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