Wilf Campus “Welcome Back” Tradition Revived by Student Council Presidents

Wilf Campus undergraduate student councils welcomed students back to campus with an outdoor movie night on the pleasant evening of August 31. Around 50 students sat on the artificial grass of the Tenzer Gardens to watch Bridge of Spies on a large blowup screen. Spearheaded by YCSA President Tzvi Levitin, the presidents of the four student councils planned the event with the intention that it would begin the year by bringing the whole campus together.

Screen on the Green, as the event was dubbed, featured the movie Bridge of Spies. Directed by Steven Spielberg and based on a true story, Bridge of Spies follows a New York lawyer as he successfully negotiates the prisoner exchange of two Americans for a Russian spy during the Cold War. It received much acclaim by critics and students at Yeshiva University agreed with their reviews. Jonathan Meiner, a freshman, had already seen the movie but came to see it again. “It was a great movie and well worth the rewatch” Mr. Meiner said.

Before the feature presentation, trivia questions were projected on the screen with a lively musical soundtrack. Students enjoyed traditional cinema fare, snacking on popcorn from a popcorn machine, hot pretzels, hot dogs and chicken fingers. Student Leiby Deutsch described the scene as “something you’d expect to see in the 50s and 60s.”

Powerade lawn towels, the swag that had been advertised prior to the showing, were distributed for seating in Tenzer Gardens. Max Hoffman, YSU senior class representative, helped distribute the towels. “The swag was really cool and towels were a great move for an outdoor movie night,” he said.

In the middle of the movie, though, the blowup screen collapsed, seemingly having lost air. It took a minute or so to re-inflate but even with this slight disruption the whole event went over well with the student body. One student expressed his satisfaction, stating, “It’s a really great idea to have movies here [in Tenzer Gardens].” Another student commented, “they should do this more often. It’s a great way to start the year and to get guys together.”

Many students appreciated the gesture of hosting the movie outside on the cool, pleasant night. “I’d love to see more events like this, especially because it’s so nice at night now,” expressed Menachem Benchimol. Ezra Miller was also pleased with the setting of the event, commenting “it’s great to see YU doing things for the student body out in the beautiful weather.”

The reason for this event? According to Mr. Herenstein, “The Beren campus has always hosted a second ‘Welcome Back’ event in addition to the BBQ. We haven’t had one in over five years. So we decided to do a Wilf ‘Welcome Back’ event as well.” The hopes are that this concept carries over to the future, building the foundation for many more amazing opening week events. Mr. Miller voiced why he liked the event so much: “It’s great to see everyone in the beginning when there is a lot of stress from the new year and new classes.”

Yosef Kerendian succinctly summed up the event: “great friends, great food, and great movie!”