From Rabbi Craig Mayers
June & July 2018
Chaverim,
Summer is here! Growing up, this meant two things: school was out, and camp was in! Each year, approximately 200,000 kids attend more than 300 Jewish summer camps in the USA. The first known Jewish camp was a girl’s camp, founded in 1893 by the Jewish Working Girls Vacation Society, located in New York. Since then, Jewish summer camps have become a Very Big Deal indeed.
Seeking primarily to get kids out of the steamy cities and into some fresh air (and out of their parent’s hair, no doubt), by the mid-1920s hundreds of camps had opened in forested, lakeshore spots around the United States.
The 1940s saw the beginning of Camp Ramah, the camping arm of Conservative Judaism. Today there are 9 full-service sleepaway camps, and several day camps around the USA and Canada. (The closest one to us would be Camp Ramah Darom in Clayton, GA). The Conservative movement’s teen program, USY, also offers a variety of summer programs - and some of our own youth will be taking advantage of them this year. In addition to the Encampment experience (8 days at the end of summer at Camp Ramah), USY offers 6-week tours of the USA, and even adventures in Israel for Jewish teens this summer.
Chaverim,
Summer is here! Growing up, this meant two things: school was out, and camp was in! Each year, approximately 200,000 kids attend more than 300 Jewish summer camps in the USA. The first known Jewish camp was a girl’s camp, founded in 1893 by the Jewish Working Girls Vacation Society, located in New York. Since then, Jewish summer camps have become a Very Big Deal indeed.
Seeking primarily to get kids out of the steamy cities and into some fresh air (and out of their parent’s hair, no doubt), by the mid-1920s hundreds of camps had opened in forested, lakeshore spots around the United States.
The 1940s saw the beginning of Camp Ramah, the camping arm of Conservative Judaism. Today there are 9 full-service sleepaway camps, and several day camps around the USA and Canada. (The closest one to us would be Camp Ramah Darom in Clayton, GA). The Conservative movement’s teen program, USY, also offers a variety of summer programs - and some of our own youth will be taking advantage of them this year. In addition to the Encampment experience (8 days at the end of summer at Camp Ramah), USY offers 6-week tours of the USA, and even adventures in Israel for Jewish teens this summer.
Some of my fondest memories are of attending Camp Ramah in the Berkshires every summer of my high school years. (See photo at right. Yes, I permed my hair back then. It was the 80s.) I can still close my eyes and picture myself standing on the deck on a Friday night, enjoying Kabbalat Shabbat with my friends as the sun set ever so slowly over Lake Ellis and the mountains.
The friends I made there are still with me, connected with the modern miracle that is Facebook. Some have made Aliyah. Some never left their home towns. Many found the experience at a Jewish summer camp solidified their Jewish identity and culture, and cemented their love and practice of Judaism. A couple (myself included) have even gone on to become Rabbis or leaders in their synagogues or Jewish day schools. Many of us now have teen children of our own that are engaging with these summer programs in a whole new generation of campers.
The friends I made there are still with me, connected with the modern miracle that is Facebook. Some have made Aliyah. Some never left their home towns. Many found the experience at a Jewish summer camp solidified their Jewish identity and culture, and cemented their love and practice of Judaism. A couple (myself included) have even gone on to become Rabbis or leaders in their synagogues or Jewish day schools. Many of us now have teen children of our own that are engaging with these summer programs in a whole new generation of campers.
For those who may not be in their teens any more, there is a new thing - Jewish summer camp for grownups! In addition to fun activities like canoeing, archery and kickball, there are beer and wine tastings Friday night after Kiddush! Seven adult Jewish camps operated last summer for Jewish adults in their 20s and 30s. They were in diverse places from Massachusetts to California.
The camps ran for four days, starting on a Thursday or Friday, at a time when the kids’ camps were not in session. Everyone got to experience (or re-experience) a Shabbat in the great outdoors. This year “Camp Nai Nai Nai” will operate on both coasts in Pennsylvania and California in May, and a group called “Trybal Gatherings” will run 3 camps in late Summer/early Fall in California, Wisconsin and Massachusetts. There’s hope for us over 30 folks too, from the Trybal Gatherings web site: “COMING SOON: SEND YOUR PARENTS TO CAMP! Designed for Empty Nesters & Salt 'n' Peppers who are still kids at heart!” I don’t know about you, but I’m in!
The camps ran for four days, starting on a Thursday or Friday, at a time when the kids’ camps were not in session. Everyone got to experience (or re-experience) a Shabbat in the great outdoors. This year “Camp Nai Nai Nai” will operate on both coasts in Pennsylvania and California in May, and a group called “Trybal Gatherings” will run 3 camps in late Summer/early Fall in California, Wisconsin and Massachusetts. There’s hope for us over 30 folks too, from the Trybal Gatherings web site: “COMING SOON: SEND YOUR PARENTS TO CAMP! Designed for Empty Nesters & Salt 'n' Peppers who are still kids at heart!” I don’t know about you, but I’m in!
Summer may at first glance seem like a time for taking it easy. Jewishly-speaking there are no big holidays save for the observance of the solemn day of Tisha B’Av. It’s a time of vacation and getting away from it all. In the past, we’ve talked about how things “slow down” at TBS over the summer months. I wondered why this was so, or why it needed to be. After all, the children’s activities ramp up, why not the grownups’ too? Why shouldn’t we increase our engagement and participation in all things Jewish over the summer?
So this year I decided to go all-in with our summer programming. TBS’ First Annual “Sizzling Summer Nights” (see full-page flier in the bulletin) will provide programming, fun and learning all summer long. Our “Family Game Night” Shabbat, JTS LiveStream event, Artist in Residence weekend, “Red, White and Blue” barbecue Shabbat dinner, adult education classes, and of course our annual Flip Flop Shabbat will keep you engaged all summer long! Think of it as “Camp TBS” – but you can sleep in your own bed instead of a bunk. And the food is better.
My wish and threefold blessing for you this summer is this: May our air conditioners all work properly. May Hurricane Season pass without incident. And may we continue to grow as a congregation, taking advantage of these additional opportunities to come together and enjoy each other’s company during the long, sunny summer days ahead.
L’shalom,
Rabbi Craig Mayers
So this year I decided to go all-in with our summer programming. TBS’ First Annual “Sizzling Summer Nights” (see full-page flier in the bulletin) will provide programming, fun and learning all summer long. Our “Family Game Night” Shabbat, JTS LiveStream event, Artist in Residence weekend, “Red, White and Blue” barbecue Shabbat dinner, adult education classes, and of course our annual Flip Flop Shabbat will keep you engaged all summer long! Think of it as “Camp TBS” – but you can sleep in your own bed instead of a bunk. And the food is better.
My wish and threefold blessing for you this summer is this: May our air conditioners all work properly. May Hurricane Season pass without incident. And may we continue to grow as a congregation, taking advantage of these additional opportunities to come together and enjoy each other’s company during the long, sunny summer days ahead.
L’shalom,
Rabbi Craig Mayers
