Living Up to Expectations
by Allison Soll

As soon as I found out I got into Washington University School of Medicine I began to spread the word.  If I got a dollar for every person that told me how they had heard St. Louis was a wonderful city and the Jewish community was so involved, I would have been able to pay off my tuition. 

Hearing all of these great things about St. Louis definitely heightened my expectations; I was anxious and eager to immerse myself into the Jewish community that I had heard so much about. It was exciting to hear all of this hype, especially because I had briefly visited Wash U and was only aware of the campus Hillel and Chabad.

During my first week of graduate school, Chabad sent out an invitation for Shabbat dinner for graduate students.   A few classmates and I decided to check it out, and were pleasantly surprised by how many young, vibrant Jews attended Shabbat dinner.  Already I was seeing how active the Jewish community was in St. Louis.

From that point on, events seem to pass through word of mouth and facebook.  A friend who is a second year Audiology student told me about Moishe House and soon after, I heard about Next Dor.  The opportunities to be part of the Jewish community here in St. Louis seem to be endless.

Personally, I find this very comforting because as a grad student, I don't necessarily have time to be as involved as I would like to be.  It’s great to have the option of attending Shabbat dinner on Friday nights, seeing an Israeli film, or grabbing a drink with other young Jewish adults. Everybody has been so inviting and excited about everything that goes on in St. Louis, and it helps make a big city seem smaller. It truly feels great to be a part of this wonderful community--what a welcome to St. Louis!                

About Me: I am from San Diego, California.  I am currently a first year Audiology graduate student at Washington University in St. Louis, School of Medicine.  I recently graduated from Syracuse University and I spent my freshman year abroad in Israel through a program called Young Judaea Year Course.