Campus Life

To Life! Penn State Chabad to mark 18 years with gala dinner

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Rabbi Nosson and Sarah Meretsky, co-directors of Chabad of Penn State, will celebrate 18 years on campus with a gala dinner in New York on Sunday, Nov. 17. The couple will host current and former students, parents and supporters to mark this landmark year.

The number 18 has mystical significance in Judaism, representing the word “chai,” which means "life" in English. This makes the 18th anniversary of the Meretskys at Penn State especially significant.

The dinner event, hosted at the Chabad House Bowery in Manhattan, will open with a cocktail reception and charity raffle auction.

The event also will honor special guests with deep connections to Penn State Chabad. Lawyer and community leader Sara Coane Goldberg will receive the Lamp Lighter Award, and Ted and Lyn Spiegel will be given the Nittany Founder Award. Penn State graduates, including entrepreneur Josh Goodkin and Northern New Jersey JNF Director Jacqueline Yehudiel, as well as current doctoral student Talia Shirazi, also will be honored.

Also attending the event will be Rabbi Hershy and Miri Gourarie, co-directors of Chabad of the Undergrads at Penn State. The Gouraries joined the Chabad on Campus team at Penn State in 2016 to support the increasing number of students engaging in Jewish activity on campus.

“We first arrived on the Penn State campus on 11 September 2001, a day that changed America and the world forever,” noted Rabbi Nosson Meretsky. “We had to help students at Penn State cope with the tragedy and begin their university lives. Over the last 18 years, we’ve experienced amazing growth and expansion. Now we’ve reached ‘chai’ years, we can truly toast ‘L'Chaim,’ to Jewish life at Penn State!”

“Over the years we’ve been honored to host, feed, teach and support thousands of Jewish students,” said Sarah Meretsky. “It’s inspiring to see how so many have gone on to build Jewish homes and families, and take leading roles in their communities. We are blessed that we can continue and expand our work today at Penn State Chabad.”

“Chabad at Penn State has ignited not only the Penn State campus with Jewish inspiration, but has also brought community members into a world of warmth and love,” said Phil Massey, a Penn State senior who is active at Chabad. “Kickstarting Jewish life at Penn State, the Meretsky family has impacted more lives for the better than they may ever know. Through their years of hard work, the Meretsky family has enabled countless students to raise Jewish families with the spark of light they’ve spread over these 18 years. L’Chaim!”

Last Updated September 3, 2020