By Leyna Krow, Assistant Editor, JTNews
Moving into a new house is never fun. But for the directors of Chabad at the University of Washington, Rabbi Elie Estrin and his wife, Chaya, all the packing and heavy lifting was well worth the effort.
After more than six months of operating out of a two-bedroom apartment in the U-District, Chabad has finally found a permanent home for its student center.
“We really needed a bigger place,” Rabbi Estrin said. “We needed somewhere with a large living room and dining room for Shabbat dinners. We were also looking for land outside for barbecues and outdoor activities. Mostly we just wanted room to be comfortable and not just to squeeze people in.”
Chabad purchased its new facility, a 3,800-square-foot home on 21st Ave. NE, for $870,000 at the end of August. The Estrins then made their move, furnishing the house with plenty of couches and chairs, and a large dining room table and library, just prior to the start of the school year. Chabad’s first event at the new location was a welcome-back barbecue for new and returning students.
“It was so great. We had about 40 people at the house and there was plenty of room for everyone,” Estrin said.
The house was purchased with the help of a $300,000 donation from the Rohr Family Foundation, a New York-based philanthropic organization that provides millions of dollars a year to Jewish groups around the world.
This isn’t the first time Chabad at UW has received funding from the Rohr Foundation. During Chabad’s first three years of existence, the foundation provided the fledging organization with grants of $40,000 a year. In honor of the foundation’s gifts to Chabad, the house has been named the Rohr Chabad Jewish Student Center.
As for where the rest of the money for the new building is coming from, “We’re still working on that,” Rabbi Estrin said.
Chabad has received a number of donations from parents and alumni as well to help pay for the house, but, according to Estrin, the fundraising process will continue for quite some time to come.
For students active in Chabad, the house seems well worth the hefty price tag. Val Loughney, a senior at UW, is a regular at Chabad functions. She said she is pleased with the new student center.
“It definitely feels like a house and not just a U-District rental,” Loughney said. “It has a very warm feeling to it.”
Loughney said she has attended Shabbat dinner a number of times at the new student center since the start of the school year and often stops by just to visit with the Estrins and other students.
“It’s a place I know I can go and hang out,” she said.
This is exactly how Estrin wants students to see the house. He hopes that, with the establishment of the Rohr Chabad Jewish Student Center, that the Chabad at UW will continue to grow. He stressed that he wants the new student center to be a place where all Jewish students, not just Orthodox Jews, can feel comfortable.
“Our purpose is to provide Jewish support and content, and we do that in a non-judgmental, family-type atmosphere,” Estrin said. “We want kids to know that this is a place where they are going to be accepted; a place where they can be Jews in the company of other Jews.”