Kosher Dinner to Spread Awareness on Campus

The pungent stench of putrid chicken flesh floated heavily in the stagnant air as Jewish CSU students Max Brodsky and Joaquin Matek stared downward at the yellowed, slimy chicken, with looks of frustration intermingled with twinges of nausea rippling across their faces.

Around the corner Rabbi Yerachmiel Gorelik paced wildly, his dark bushy beard moving in tandem with his rapidly moving lips, which addressed the disembodied voices that squeaked from his cell phone speaker.

“There’s always something that goes wrong,” Gorelik said, still sounding optimistic.

With the rotten chicken finally disposed of and fresh, new and, most importantly, kosher chicken brought in, the two Jewish students immediately got to work preparing the meat while the Rabbi worked to bring the cooking equipment to kosher standards — all to prepare for tonight’s Shabbat 150 dinner.

The free dinner, which is one of two fully kosher meals sponsored by the university annually, will take place in the North Ballroom beginning at 7 p.m.

Brosky, president of the Chabad Jewish Student Organization, said the dinner is intended to spread awareness about the modest Jewish community at CSU, as well as to provide a welcoming environment for Jewish students.

The event will include a four-course kosher meal and a presentation by CSU professor Bernie Rollin.

Brodsky said he hopes the home-cooked dinner will provide a comfort zone for the Jewish community to congregate and an opportunity to “show Jewish pride and Jewish unity.”

“We’re here, and we’re here for the students,” Brodsky said. “We want it to be a home away from home. This provides that extra touch.”

Gorelik, however, put emphasis on the importance of the dinner in developing a greater degree of acceptance and integration of Jewish traditions at CSU.

“It’s critical,” Gorelik said. “The Jewish student