42 | MARCH 23 • 2023 

MSU Chabad’s annual Mega Shabbat is 
taking on a different meaning this year. 
After the recent tragedy at Michigan 
State University, Chabad is helping 
a Jewish campus community heal 
together. 
The event will pay tribute to the 
victims of the mass shooting at 
Michigan State University. 
A mitzvah auction, bringing more 
good deeds into the world, will be held 
in memory of the victims. Students 

can bid on prizes by committing to a 
mitzvah each week. 
The pre-dinner portion of the event, 
which Chabad calls the “Israel Matzah 
Ball Social,” will feature items to remind 
people of Israel, including henna 
painting and a Kotel photo backdrop. 
The meal will be prepared kosher in the 
Spartan Stadium kitchen. Guests can 
partake of all the delicious food from 
the Matzah Ball pre-social, dinner and 
dessert. 

When Shabbat in a stadium was first 
introduced to the Spartan community 
by Chabad in 2019, it was a wildly 
unheard-of idea for MSU. At this year’s 
event, Chabad expects to have 400 
people in attendance, with special guests 
including Michigan Supreme Court 
Justice Richard Bernstein, MSU’s interim 
president Teresa K. Woodruff, Ph.D. and 
other university officials. 
Mega Shabbat will take place on 
Friday, March 31, from 5:30-8 p.m. at 
the MSFCU Club on the fourth floor of 
Spartan Stadium. The event is free for all 
to attend. There are also opportunities 
to sponsor a table, the Matzah Ball 
Social, Shabbat candle lighting or 
Kiddush. Please visit megashabbatmsu.
com to register or become a sponsor. 
Chabad is also looking for additional 
prize donations. If you would like to 
donate, you can email simi@jewishmsu.
com. 

MSU Chabad Hosts Annual 
Mega Shabbat Event to 
Honor Victims of Last 
Month’s Mass Shooting

OUR COMMUNITY

Brad Grossman (right) 
enjoys spending time with 
friends at his first Mega 
Shabbat at the 2022 event.

Sparty with members of the Sigma Delta Tau sorority in 
the upper deck at Spartan Stadium during Mega Shabbat 
2022. Pictured left to right (Lauren Tarnopol, Katelyn 
Selsky, Ricki Warren, Alena Blumberg, Mara Gordon, Dana 
Simon, Alex Scheier, Haley Robins and Sydney Sokol). 

in memory of the victims. Students 
dessert. 

Students at Michigan State University, their families and members 
of the Greater Lansing Jewish Community enjoy a tasty meal 
during Chabad’s Mega Shabbat 2022 dinner at Spartan Stadium. 

