TEEN LINKS—Arad Bulka watches his brother Oren “race” at the Linked In event for Portland area Jewish teens Jan. 20.
Game night draws 150 diverse teens
By Jewish Review
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Nearly 150 teenagers from at least seven Jewish youth groups turned out for a night of friendship, games and kosher food on Jan. 20.
Organized by the Jewish Student Union, which has chapters at seven area high schools, the community-wide social gathering was financed in part by the Jewish Federation of Greater Portland and promoted by seven youth groups.
Unlimited bowling, billiards and arcade games, along with kosher pizza from Café at the J , drew teens for an evening of fun at Players in Lake Oswego.
“There are a lot of youth groups in town and every one has events, but we wanted to do one together,” said JSU Portland Director Meira Spivak. “It exceeded my expectations. It was huge. They bombarded us.”
JSU Regional President Natan Brownstein said that all the teens he spoke to at the event had a great time.
“It was unbelievable,” he said. “We had representatives from almost every school in the Portland metro area. It was a good kickoff for people who want to start clubs in their schools.”
Spivak said about 60 to 70 teens registered in advance, with the remainder paying an extra $6 drop-in fee. She said JSU members wanted to rent a facility for the sole use of the Jewish teens and selected the day before Martin Luther King Jr. Day as a time they could hold an after-hours party that didn’t impinge on school readiness the next day.
So from Players’ closing at 9 p.m. until 11:30, nearly 150 diverse Jewish teens mixed and mingled over games and food.
For more information about Jewish Student Union activities, contact Spivak at 503-757-3037 or meiraspivak@gmail.com.