Up Close and Personal
She'arim:The Stop Before Wall Street By Wendy Miller
Emily Kanefield, age 21, hails from St. Louis, MO. She is a recent graduate of Emory University in Atlanta, GA with a dual degree in Finance and Dance.
Emily grew up as a reform Jew until the age of 6. Around that time her mother started to become involved in the local branch of Aish HaTorah and became shomer mitzvoth. Subsequently, the Jewish Education Emily was given was from the Orthodox perspective. Yet at the same time, Emily was still leading a secular lifestyle. “I always felt like I had one foot in one world and one in another.”
To get through these feelings, Emily tried to stay completely in “one world”- the secular one. Emily went away to a large university and pledged a sorority, becoming completely involved in the college lifestyle. However, as hard as she tried to integrate, she felt that the college lifestyle was an empty one. As Emily says, “I played the game, but the clothes didn’t fit.”
At Emory, Emily became very involved with the campus kiruv couple, the wife, Chana Grove, is even a She’arim alumni! This is how Emily became introduced to She’arim. She started to learn, and participated in a plethora of programs including the Maimonides program, Heritage Retreats, and the Jewish Renaissance Center.
Inspired by all that she was learning, and hoping to continue her growth in Yiddishkeit, Emily chose to leave university at a time no college student would think of doing so- her last semester of senior year. She graduated early and came to She’arim to learn full time before starting her job as an investment banker at a large firm in New York City.
Emily feels that what she has gained in her past few months at She’arim is immeasurable. An unexpected surprise was the incredible friendships and support system that she has built. In addition, Emily feels that she has now “let Ha-shem in,” and allowed herself to be open, let down boundaries and preconceived notions. She feels that through her classes she has gained a more thorough foundation and is more comfortable with living a Torah-based life. Emily’s Taste of Torah classes have helped to teach her a sense of responsibility towards a Jewish lifestyle.
When coming to She’arim, Emily’s goals included wanting to retain her personality and individuality, while integrating a Torah lifestyle. She’arim has helped her with this and her passion for dance and exercise has helped add to the school community.
In going back to America after learning, Emily hopes to live a “strong Torah lifestyle that will hopefully have a positive impact on others.” In addition, she hopes to keep learning and be able to maintain the level of commitment, growth and focus she has gained at She’arim.
When recommending She’arim to a new candidate Emily would stress the importance of the teachers and what an incredible resource and support they are. As well, Emily would recommend to “listen to everyone else’s story! You’ll get inspired!”