JGrads Mini Capital Campaign:
Growing Grads
About JGrads
JGrads Pittsburgh serves Jewish graduate students and recent graduates living in the Pittsburgh area.
JGrads is a warm community of young adults who come together to celebrate Shabbat, and holidays and get to know one another. It’s the perfect place to enjoy delicious eats, make and meet Jewish friends, and get to know more about our Jewish culture and heritage. We welcome all current and recent Jewish grads regardless of background or affiliation and invite students to join us at whatever level of involvement they choose.
JGrads is an affiliate of Chabad House on Campus, an international organization that supports the vibrancy and growth of Jewish student life on campus through the sustainability of Chabad Houses worldwide.
Our Mission
We help Jewish graduate students build strong connections within the local young Jewish community, learn more about Jewish culture, and foster a sense of Jewish pride and purpose in our members.
Campaign Goals
Our goal for this campaign is to provide increased security, safety, and comfort for JGrads students attending Shabbat and holiday meals and events in our home, which currently serves as the JGrads programming center.
Our current hosting space is approximately 300 sq. feet, with a small adjacent sunroom to accommodate overflow tables and seating when needed.
Our kitchen space is approximately 150 sq. feet.
The entry door opens directly into the living room and dining space. In colder months, a coat hanging rack fills the entry space, making the entryway cluttered and difficult to navigate with a full house (which we are excited to get back to post-Covid, G-d willing).
An expanded hosting space would free up the entryway and allow us to use it as a welcoming space where students can pick up a program schedule, kippah, and any other supplies and give them a chance to orient themselves before entering the program area.
We are planning for the future of JGrads; when Covid-19 is over, we’ll be ready to welcome our crowds with plenty of room and outdoor space, too.
Total to Raise: $66K
Our Story
We are Shua and Shoshana Hoexter, directors of JGrads Pittsburgh, and this is our story.
We moved down to Pittsburgh back in YEAR to serve the young Jewish community living in the area. Shabbat dinners (which we’ve dubbed “Grad Shabbat”) have always been a staple of our programming, and as they grew in size, so did our space. We started out in a tiny apartment in Oakland before upgrading to a slightly bigger apartment in Shadyside located between the University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon University. Each move was carefully calculated to maximize our space and accommodate as many guests as we could.
In 2006, we purchased a HOUSE in Squirrel Hill so we could be closer to graduate students living in the area. It needed a bit of work before it was JGrads ready; we replaced the carpets with hardwood and widened the entryway between the dining room and living rooms so we could more comfortably seat our guests across the two areas.
Soon, Grad Shabbat morphed from a once-a-month event to a biweekly and then a weekly occurrence, with consistent attendance. When Covid-19 hit, we continued hosting our Shabbat meals in our yard until the cold weather arrived.
For eighteen years, Grad Shabbat has been a space where students can meet friends, enjoy delicious homemade meals, and immerse themselves in Jewish tradition and community.
Shua and I remember when we ourselves were young college students, and the feeling of being welcomed into families' homes or Chabad Houses for Shabbat dinner. It felt like home, and we want to ensure that other grad students feel the same way. Hosting graduate students in our home each weekend (and often between weekends, too) fulfills our dream of hosting a welcoming space and home where young adults can meet, grow, and celebrate with one another.
Over the course of these last few years, we’ve watched our dream come to life and bear fruit. “JGrads became a home away from home, where we would sit down for a delicious, home-cooked meal, and enjoy each others’ company,” says NAME. “I met so many wonderful people through JGrads… I feel so fortunate to have been part of such a warm, welcoming community of grad students.”
It’s an honor to keep serving NAME and others like her.
Now, we need your help to expand our space so we can serve our grads even better in the future as we plan a major renovation at the JGrads center that will enable us to grow and provide more extensive programming.
Make a gift today to help JGrads grow and make a difference in the lives of Pittsburgh’s Jewish graduate students.
The Process
Phase 1: Front House
Build a secure front entry area for JGrads, including a coat closet exclusively for guests.
Highlights
This will remove the additional 6 ft. hanging rack from the living room.
The new front entry door will be strong, weather-efficient, and address the biggest security concerns on our post-Oct. 27 location assessment by creating an accessible entry space that does not open directly into the room with guests.
Build a pergola structure and level patio to provide a beautiful outdoor hosting space (Covid-19 has taught us to think about and use our outdoor spaces more creatively!).
We expect to use this during the period of Covid-19 and beyond. The roof will have a removable cover to provide shelter from the elements, which can be replaced with sechach (evergreen leaves) during Sukkot to create a Kosher sukkah.
Timeline
Winter 2021: Architectural renderings, plans and permits
Summer 2021: Ground breaking & construction
Fall 2021: Let’s get hosting! (G-d willing)
Estimated cost: $16,000
Phase 2: Back-house Addition
Additional 170 sq feet of space will be added to the dining and kitchen areas, making the space more comfortable and fire-safe for guests and more amenable to producing weekly Shabbat dinners for 20-30 guests.
While it is thrilling to imagine a kitchen with room to cook and turn around (and breathe a little easier), I am most excited about the storage closet for storing tables and chairs for weekly hosting--and I believe anyone who has helped carry tables and chairs up or down to the basement would agree!
Estimated cost: $50,000