Jewish Aggie of the Week Presents
What is your name?
Bari Beilinson
Where are you from?
I grew up in Austin, but I was born in Champaign, Illinois.
Where did you go to high school?
I went to High School in Austin.
Why did you choose Texas A&M?
Because I grew up in Austin, I wanted to get out of Austin and see what it was like to live somewhere else. Something about A&M always intrigued me, so I decided to go here.
What was your major and why did you decide to pursue such a degree?
I am a marketing Major. I knew I wanted to be a business major but I didn’t know which major I wanted to do. I chose marketing through process of elimination, but I am so glad I’m chose marketing because I think it is so interesting now.
What is your favorite book? Why?
Well, I really dislike reading. However I have read some interesting books for school. I cant remember the name of the book, but it was about Africa written by an African and she talked about how America and the rest of the world giving Africa money, clothes, food etc is actually enabling Africa to stay a third world country. I thought this book was fascinating and explained what the world is really like despite what we might think is true.
What do you look forward to when coming to Chabad?
I love having a place that is open to me all hours of the day where I know I will always have friends to talk to. It is my happy place.
What do you love about Jewish life on campus?
I love being apart of such an amazing Jewish community, it makes me proud to be Jewish.
Why do you think it is important to be involved in Jewish life?
I think it’s important to be involved in Jewish life on campus so that you have friends who understand you. It can be hard going to school at a very Christian school and feeling like you don’t fit it. But being a part of Jewish life reminds me everyday how lucky I am to be Jewish. Having Jewish friends who get me without me having to explain a million things is also a big plus.
If you had a dream list for Chabad, what would be on it?
Can this Chabad move with me when I graduate?
Do you plan on going to graduate school at A&M?
I hope to go to grad school some day and get my MBA, but probably not at A&M.
Do you have any siblings?
Yes, I have a brother who is 19 and his name is Harry. I also have a sister, Sophie, who is 16.
What is your favorite Jewish food?
Cholent, for sure. More specifically kishka. I love kishka, even though I barely ever eat it.
What is your favorite food?
I LOVE TACOS. Tacos are for sure my favorite food. Ill never get sick of them.
What is your favorite Jewish childhood memory?
Probably, being with my family in Atlanta on Pesach and celebrating the Seder and searching for the Afikomen, because my grandfather would always give us gold dollars. At the time I thought gold dollars were the coolest thing.
What is your favorite Chabad experience until now?
I would say just being at Chabad on a Friday night, and enjoying Shabbat with other Jewish Aggies.
Have you ever traveled outside of the United States?
I have actually been lucky to travel all over. I’ve been to Canada, Mexico, Jamaica, Australia, and Israel. In Europe I’ve been to Germany, Sweden, Italy, France, and Holland.
Which place was your favorite?
Well Israel of course, because Israel is just amazing. It’s beautiful, historical and its home. Other than Israel I really loved Sweden, it was just a beautiful country and the people were so friendly.
Have you ever been to Israel? If so, what was the most moving experience you had?
The most moving experience I had in Israel was seeing some of my fellow Aggies get Bar/Bat mitzvah at the Kotel. My sister never had a Bat Mitzvah so the whole time I was thinking how neat would it be for my sister to have her Bat Mitzvah at the Kotel.
If you could go anywhere in the world where would you go?
I have a list going, and my top three choices right now are Greece, Ireland, and China.
What is your favorite vacation spot?
I love the mountains, and hiking. So any where with a combination of those two things.
How do you enjoy spending your free time?
I love hiking and teaching swimming. However, hiking is really hard to do in College Station because it is completely flat. I also am too busy to teach swimming lessons during the school year, but I still teach swimming during the summer.
What is at the top of your bucket list?
Getting my scuba license. I really want to go scuba diving someday.
If you could start university again what would you do differently?
I would try to enjoy school and learning more than I didn’t at the beginning. As time has gone by I have noticed how much I love learning and how much fun it really is.
Did you prefer living on campus or off campus? What would you recommend to freshmen?
Well I have never lived on campus, so I would have to say living off campus is pretty great. My advice to freshman would be that it is difficult to live with people, and try to understand where your roommates are coming from.
If you could have one wish for anything in the world what would it be?
If I could have one wish, It would be going to outer space but just for the day. This way I can see what its like, but I don’t need to spend anymore time there.
What has been your most enjoyable class?
My most enjoyable class would have to be CSR or Consumer Social Responsibility. This class we discussed when a business is profiting off a specific area what is their responsibility to give back to that area and the people in that area because they are making a profit off of it.
What has been your best job on campus?
I currently work as a marketing intern for Willies Ice House and Grill as their marketing Intern. They have given me some pretty interesting assignments. Right now I am doing a comparative sales project where I compare daily sales today to daily sales in 2015 and 2014 to see how the restaurant overall is doing.
If you were able to have one superpower what would it be?
I would say reading minds just because I think it would be neat to read minds. However, I think it could get me into sticky situations pretty fast.
What would enhance Jewish life on campus?
It is perfect the way it is :)
How did you get involved with Chabad?
I went to the Chabad freshman BBQ, it took me a month or so to get involved in Chabad. But then I started going to Kosher Cooking Club and Shabbat and the rest is history.
Do you have plans for after graduation?
My plan as of now is to find a full time job and hopefully a few years after that go and get my MBA somewhere.