[William Levin, left, with Michelle Citrin, on the set of "20 Things to Do With Matzah," 2007]

One year ago, the Limmud NY 2009 conference was, I've been told, a disaster. While I did not attend, I heard harrowing tales of woe from the hundreds of jilted Jews who had been stranded at a chilly hotel resort in upstate New York with no working heat or hot water. The frigid 2009 conference may have dissuaded some from attending in 2010, but I figured lightning was unlikely to strike twice in the same place, and this year was bound to be a redeeming success. I was right!

Call it a comeback. The Limmud NY 2010 conference was booked solid, with all 700 attendance slots filled. The climate this year was warm and inviting, with hundreds of Jews of all denominations and levels of observance converging in a family-like atmosphere for prayer, meditation, learning, and entertainment. I was fortunate to be invited to lead an animation workshop, which was mostly attended by extremely savvy kids and their parents, and presented a short movie I produced about Jewish heroes to the entire conference. And, as an added bonus, I joined friend and fellow ROI conference attendee, Michelle Citrin, onstage for a live performance of our Passover hit song, "20 Things To Do With Matzah."

Shabbat services were lively, concluded with a conference-wide havdalah musical celebration. Over the weekend I attended several workshops, including a peaceful shabbat yoga class, a comedy improv class with comedian Joel Chasnoff, and an illuminating Torah study with keynote speaker, Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz. Perhaps the most helpful class for me was a guide to Jewish book publishing with renowned author and publisher, Arthur Kurzweil. His advice will come in handy as I strive to publish a book of my Shabot comic strips this year.

The Limmud NY conference was a delightful experience, and I highly recommend attending. They even offer scholarships for students and individuals who might be turned off by the cost. If you regret having missed the New York conference this year, fear not, there's always Limmud NY 2011. Just be sure to sign up early. I won't need to, because I'm volunteering.

William Levin, a.k.a. the Jewish Robot, produces cartoons and videos that have been featured on The New York Times website, ABC Good Morning America, G4techTV, and in film festivals, and has been written up in publications including The Forward, The Jewish Week, and The Jerusalem Post. Levin was inducted into the Writers Guild of America, East in 2009, and is a writer for Shalom Sesame, a Sesame Workshop coproduction of Sesame Street. He attended the Limmud NY Conference with help from the ROI Community Speakers' Bureau Fund.

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