Chabad at the University of Kansas (KU) in Lawrence, KS broke ground on the construction of a long-anticipated Chabad center. The 10,000-square-foot Chabad House will serve as a “home away from home” for KU’s Jewish student community—fondly known as the “Jewhawks.”
Joining the groundbreaking ceremony were KU Chancellor Dr. Doug Girod, KU Dean Rick Ginsberg, and benefactor Bob Cutler, as well as Lawrence Mayor Bart Littlejohn and other public officials representing the city.
Rabbi Zalman and Nechama Tiechtel have been serving the University of Kansas Jewish student community for the last eighteen years . Four students joined them on their first Friday night Shabbat dinner in 2006. In the years since, KU Chabad has become a staple of university life.
Chabad at KU operated out of a small converted duplex, and what it lacked in square footage, it made up for in heart and soul, as students fondly recall the warmth they experienced at Chabad. “Rabbi Zalman and Nechama welcomed me with their arms wide open and helped me find my home away from home,” said Aly Weinberg, a KU Jewish student. Weinberg described the hatred she experienced on campus after the October 7 terrorist attack, and how she found solace at Chabad that day.
“I felt like I needed to go somewhere where I felt safe, secure, and loved. I felt myself being pulled towards the Chabad House and it was there that I arrived that evening, full of emotion and tears,” she said. Weinberg says she wasn’t surprised to see a group of fellow students who’d come to Chabad feeling down, and “left later that evening filled with confidence, resilience, and pride. I was once again surrounded by my best friends at Chabad and didn’t feel alone anymore.”
Now, students like Weinberg will have a much larger space to frequent. Designed to serve the unique needs of the Jewish students and local community, the center will include a large dining hall with space for hundreds; a library; a mental health lounge; and a commercial kitchen—the first kosher commercial kitchen in Lawrence, which will enable the Tiechtels to pump out Shabbat and holiday meals and will also open the door to create additional local kosher food offerings on and off campus.
This much-larger iteration of Chabad at KU will maintain the home-style feeling that students cherished.
“The Chabad house has been an amazing gift for me and my friends,” said Tyler Bermundo, a KU student. “I can’t wait to see how many new faces the new building will bring.”
To join the building campaign, visit BuildKUChabad.com
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