Students: 'Mazel Tov' on Israel's 50th birthday

Students celebrated Israel's 50th anniversary at a Locust Walk celebration and a downtown party. With a hot sun bearing down on the brightly colored top of an Arab Shuk -- or tented market place -- and bits of Hebrew drifting across College Green, students lounging in front of the Van Pelt Library last Thursday could close their eyes and almost pretend they were in Israel. All the while, they still would have been near Locust Walk, which was dressed up in its Middle Eastern best in celebration of Israel's 50th birthday. The day-long event moved on to Delaware Avenue later that evening, culminating in a party at the Eighth Floor Club where Mayor Ed Rendell -- a noted Israel supporter -- made a guest appearance. Although the actual Israel Independence Day is celebrated on April 30, the Israel Day Committee -- an outgrowth of Hillel's Israel Committee -- decided months ago to hold the event in early April, when students would have time to stop and enjoy it. "We definitely didn't want to hold it during reading days," said College sophomore Sam Andorsky, one of the Israel Day Committee tri-chairs. "We didn't want people to miss it." That fear certainly proved unfounded, as the sounds of loud Israeli rock music awakened crowds of students from their sun-bathing slumber on the Green. Wandering over to the Shuk, many stopped to munch on the hummus and falafel for sale, browse the Israeli jewelry or flip through education booklets and brochures supplied by the Israeli Consulate of Philadelphia. And if that proved too tiresome, there was always the Bedouin tent set up on the side offering pillows and a cool respite beneath its fabric flaps. From this vantage point, they could then sit and watch Ayalah, Hillel's Israeli dance troupe, perform to Israeli folk songs or glance up at the timeline of Israeli history set up by the education branch of the Israel Committee. "We really tried to give a multi-cultural, multi-faceted presentation," said Jaime Blanc, a College senior and another committee tri-chairperson. When the activities wound down, students slipped into their eveningwear for a more formal celebration at the nightclub. "The event during the day was more educational. This was the more social part of the celebration," said College senior and Hillel Social Chairperson Rachel Kohen, who was in charge of the party. Outgoing Hillel President Ami Joseph, a College senior, said the party "was [also] a way for the [Israel Day] leadership to meet and talk with each other." He added that the highlight was their chance to meet Rendell, who arrived during the pre-party cocktail hour to mingle with hundreds of students before taking cake-cutting honors. Many asked Rendell questions focusing on his embrace of controversial Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan last year. But all controversies seemed forgotten when the mayor spontaneously led the crowd in a spirited rendition of "Happy Birthday to Israel" before helping to blow out the candles. "We have tried to make Philadelphia the premier city in the country for celebrating the 50th anniversary of Israel," said Rendell, noting that Philadelphia hosted the celebrity- studded "Israel at 50" concert this year and plans to sponsor outdoor activities along the Schuylkill River for Israel Independence Day.