About 30 volunteers gathered in the Hillel courtyard yesterday to help decorate the newly-built Sukkah hut in good time for the Sukkot festival this year.

Homemade decorations of dried cranberries, peppers and gourds were tied to the poles and strung in chains around the crossbars supporting the roof.

"I think it's a fun thing to decorate and gives you a good break from your studying," said volunteer Stephanie I. Greenwood '99.

Approximately 80 volunteers helped to erect the eight-foot-high structure, which will house about 150 guests during the Sukkot festival.

The festival begins this Sunday at sundown and lasts a week.

The Sukkah consists of a metal frame draped in white nylon, and the structure is constructed in remembrance of the temporary housing that the Jews depended on during their Biblical journey through the desert, said Hillel chair Ethan M. Tucker '97.

"Philosophically, [the Sukkot festival] is a period of taking some time to move from the established worldly possessions and to just depend on the divine goodness that Jews have relied on," said Tucker, who is a Crimson editor.

During the festival, Jews eat their meals inside the Sukkah and try to live there as much as possible.

In fact, many students brave the cold and sleep in the hut, said Tucker.

One such student is Benjamin C. Singer '99, who said he plans to sleep over for the next week.

"I had lots of fun today [volunteering]. It was social and I had a chance to meet many people," Singer said. "Since I'll be participating next week [in the Sukkot], I thought it'd be a good thing to help and give my support."

Bill O. Selig '96 and Josh R. Steinerman '96 organized the volunteer builders who constructed the Sukkah. Work on the Sukkah began last Friday and ended yesterday afternoon.

"It's my first year [working on the Sukkah], but they needed someone to coordinate it," Selig said.

"I've done theater [set] construction before and I like working with my hands. There's really something nice about building a rudimentary shelter with your hands."

The interior of the Sukkah is decorated with a combination of colorful pipe cleaners, pine branches and harvest fruits like maize and baby pumpkins.

The roof of the Sukkah, called the "skhak," emphasizes the impermanent nature of the shelter--it consists solely of straw mats, which let in rain and starlight at night.

"It reminds people of how transient homes are and makes people more sensitive about homes," said Wendy A. Amsellem '96.

This is the second year that the structure has been erected in the new Hillel courtyard as opposed to the lawn of the Spee Club, according to holiday coordinator Stephanie P. Wexler '97.

Wexler, who is a Crimson editor, said she anticipates a large turnout once the festival kicks off on Sunday.

"The holiday season in the first month of school has been unbelievable in terms of the numbers of people who have shown up for events," said Wexler.

"We're expanding really fast; we'll be bursting at the seams.