Winter breaks aren’t necessarily known for personal discoveries. But in the midst of snorkeling and lounging poolside this year, University of Miami junior Avi Insler did something he had never done before: He kept Shabbat.

“It was a gratifying experience,” he said during some down time in a packed schedule of classes and activities as part of the first-ever Miami Torah Experience. “I was able to observe Shabbat without carrying or using electronic devices!”

Insler’s story dovetails with the other 20 participants in his program, a joint project between Friends of Lubavitch of Florida and the Chabad on Campus International Foundation. Charlie Carnow, a senior at the University of Southern California, said that he was so turned on by learning Torah that sleep fell by the wayside.

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“This program has given me hands-on experience in learning Torah in its original texts,” explained Carnow. “I’ve been so inspired by the information I’ve learned during the day that I’ve often lost track of time and stayed up in the early hours of the morning learning more.”

Ending on Thursday, the program brought together a group of students from USC, Emory University, University of Miami, Florida International University, Stony Brook University, University of Wisconsin, University of Massachusetts, University of California at Los Angeles, and the University of California, Berkeley, for 10 days of intensive study and recreational fun in North Miami Beach. From a base of two rental homes, participants attended classes at Congregation Magen David five minutes away and the Landau Yeshiva, a Chabad-Lubavitch educational institution in South Miami Beach.

After discussing Jewish texts way into the night, many students were up early for morning prayer services.
After discussing Jewish texts way into the night, many students were up early for morning prayer services.

“There’s constantly a need for programs where students from all over the country can meet other students and have the opportunity to ask questions in a relaxed atmosphere,” said the program’s director, Rabbi Immanuel Storfer, who also directs the Ivy League Torah Study Experience every summer in New York’s Catskill Mountains. “This is for men who may not be ready for full-blown yeshiva, but at the same time want a taste of the traditional texts.”

Low Pressure

Gene Ivanov, a senior at UCLA, heard about the program from his campus Chabad House and decided to make the trip.

“The key ingredient to my Jewish life is Rabbi Dovid and Elisa Gurevitch,” said Ivanov, who has been a regular at the Chabad House since the rabbi met him at the university’s Alpha Epsilon Pi fraternity. “They are very low pressure. Sometimes I just go to hang out with them.”

Insler, meanwhile, joined the program to be with his brother, a Tulane University medical student who met Storfer during a rotation in New York.

“I also like the idea of learning Judaism, the reasons to do different mitzvahs,” said the 21-year-old.

The schedule also left plenty of opportunities for adventure, including snorkeling and other water sports.
The schedule also left plenty of opportunities for adventure, including snorkeling and other water sports.

When school is in session, Insler goes to the Chabad House run by Rabbi Mendy and Chenchi Fellig. Once a month, he dons tefillin with the rabbi, who also led the program’s sessions on the Five Books of Moses.

Now, he wants to return to school and study Hebrew and Jewish history “from a non-secular point of view.”

Carnow was wowed by the experience.

“It’s been awesome,” said the USC senior, “meeting Jewish students from other universities who also have the thirst to learn more about our heritage.”