NJP (Nice Jewish Person) Haley Schreier
Each month, The Well highlights an amazing (and eligible!) individual.
This month, we have a conversation with NJP Haley Schreier!
TW: You spend your days getting your Master of Social Work and working at the Holocaust Memorial Center (HMC) in Farmington Hills -- tell us more!
HS: I'm finishing up my graduate degree in Social Work at the University of Michigan, and am a part of the Jewish Communal Leadership Program. For my internship I was placed at HMC, and I was in the middle of a project when the internship ended, so I just stuck around! School is great -- but I'm definitely ready to not have homework anymore!
TW: I hear you've lived in Ann Arbor your whole life! Any plans to venture away anytime soon?
HS: I love Ann Arbor and don't ever want to leave, although I'll probably end up moving closer to work once I get my masters. For now, I am perfectly content being a lifelong "townie." My parents moved to Ann Arbor for college from West Bloomfield/Bloomfield Hills and never left, and my sisters and I all stayed for college too! We are a big Michigan family -- 4th generation actually! Go Blue!
TW: Have you always been interested in Jewish communal life? How did that passion come about?
HS: I got really involved in Jewish communal life when I was in High School. I was the Social Action Vice President of my temple youth group in Ann Arbor (Go AARTY!) and then co-President my senior year. I had a little bit of distance from the Jewish community my freshman and sophomore years of college, but got right back into it as a junior, and have stayed really involved ever since!
TW: What's your favorite book and why does it move you?
HS: One of my favorite books is "The Five Books of Miriam" by Ellen Frankel -- it's essentially a feminist Torah, so it combines my two favorite things: feminism and Judaism!
TW: Where would you most like to travel to that you haven't visited?
HS: Poland! And I'm about to get to go! I am fortunate to have the opportunity in March to co-lead an Alternative Spring Break Trip through University of Michigan Hillel. I'm really looking forward to it personally and professionally -- visiting Poland is very relevant to the work that I do at HMC.
TW: What's your favorite Jewish holiday and why?
HS: Passover! I love a good Seder, especially one with a social justice focus! I also just love being with my family and eating my grandma's delicious brisket!!!
TW: Fav Jewish food?
HS: Matzah ball soup is hands down my favorite Jewish food -- especially the kind that has vegetables in it! You can find me eating it regularly at Pickles & Rye in West Bloomfield!
TW: Who's your favorite Jewish person?
HS: Letty Cottin Pogrebin or Gloria Steinem! I look up to women who place themselves at the intersection of Judaism and feminism.
TW: If you could add an 11th commandment what would it be?
HS: Thou shalt fact check all sources before posting on social media
TW: How about a fun fact?
HS: My friends tease me often for having a secret twitter life where I engage exclusively on topics of politics, sports, and The Bachelor. I can be pretty hilarious -- @hayz950.
TW: Best movie ever made?
HS: Shawshank Redemption and Stand By Me are definitely two of my favorites.
TW: Finish the sentence: When I go to The Well...
HS: It's amazing! I'm looking forward to becoming even more involved in the Metro Detroit Jewish community as I make my way out of Ann Arbor this spring after graduation!
