Ariel Glazman

I was raised practically totally secular.  My parents are from the Soviet Union and came to the US in the 90's.  They went to shul for High Holidays.  My mom took me to shul once.

I always had a superficial view of Judaism.  It was not spiritual.  The closest I came to spirituality was watching the movie, "The Ten Commandments" every Passover.

(TPF Student Recruiter) Ilana Beacher messaged me on Instagram asking if I would like to do it.  At first I didn't think it was real; it sounded too easy.  But I interviewed with (Student Liason) Yitzhok Becker who explained it to me.

She didn't know me.  She probably found me because I have a Jewish-sounding name.

It's been awesome.  A lot of what I'm listening to is applicable to everyday life.  There's a series called The Daily Boost, where the speaker will address real-life issues, such as eating problems, from a Torah perspective.  My mentor is Rabbi Corlin (of Ohr Somayach NY).   He's a very understanding rabbi.  He's not afraid of any topic, and he has an answer ready for everything.  It seems like no question I ask him can shock him.

In a series called "Habits of Happiness," there was a quote that really stuck with me.  It was about chasing material good.  "Esav had a lot, he had much, but Yaakov had everything."

That's a direct quote from the Torah!

It's very powerful.  Almost as if a person didn't write it!

Very honestly, the kind of person I was when I was told about it wouldn't have been interested without the money--and this was just a few months ago, so it's hard to believe I could change so much so quickly, but the person I am now sees that this information is worth so much more than $15!

I've gone on many Shabbatons, with Ohr Somayach and with a program through Meor NYU called J-Lit, which is beginner-level Judaism for young adults in the City.

I also did a Lakewood Shabbaton with Rabbi Becker, which was a sort of networking event with Jews from all over the world.  Lakewood is an extremely Jewish place.  Everyone else was shocked, but I'm from Brooklyn, so I wasn't so shocked.  I'm used to seeing Orthodox Jews all over the neighborhood.  What is shocking was how welcoming everyone is.  It's a big reason why I think the Jewish community has survived for this long.

"I get paid $15 to listen to this infinitely priceless knowledge!"