Welcome Parents To Camp Judaea’s Week 1 of Second Session!

WATCH THIS WEEK’S VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS HERE

RISHONIM

Shalom Rishonim Parents,

I can’t believe how fast this week flew by! We have been very busy having so much fun in the sun here at camp. We hit the ground running when the campers got here with peulot eda (educational activities) and rotational activities. So far we have completed three peulat edas: one on an introduction to camp, one on three major Israeli cities, and the last on Shabbat. The intro to c­amp peulah included a treasure hunt around camp to see the various locations and complete different tasks at each location. To learn about Israeli cities, we had the chanichim decorate cakes to demonstrate the different details that each city has. To learn about Shabbat, we discussed the different ways to celebrate Shabbat and then ended by braiding challah.  We have also had lots of fun going to the pool, the lake (both boats and slide), ivrit, playing sports, rikkud (dancing), shira (singing), high ropes, fishing, sussim (horses) and so much more.

If you think this was a busy week, it is about to get even busier. Today we spent the morning bowling, on Sunday we will be leaving for a day trip, and on Monday evening we will be camping out at a beautiful campsite on camp property. The staff and I have all been having such an amazing time taking care of your campers and experiencing the magic of CJ with them for the very first time. This group is made up of extraordinarily special chanichim (campers) and we are all already feeling sad that in less than a week they will be leaving us!  Please join us on Thursday, July 25th at 11am at Camp for a special Rishonim end of session celebration.

Shabbat shalom to you all and I hope you have a wonderful weekend,

Emmy Cohn, Rishonim Merakezet

OFFARIM

Shalom Offarim parents!

We had an eventful first week at CJ, filled with new activities, cheers, and friends. For our first peulah eda (educational activity by age group) we did a camp-wide scavenger hunt to learn about the five pillars of Camp Judaea which include Judaism, Zionism, social growth, personal growth, and nature. Next we continued with the Jewish life cycle and learned about the brit milah and baby naming ceremonies. For our nighttime activities we’ve done cupcake wars as well as several get-to-know-you games. The majority of the kids have already made it to all of the rotational activities including ropes course, horses, and the lake. Last night the Offarim campers got their “B.O.s”–which are their camp older brother or sister for the session–in a nighttime bonfire ceremony. We are all very much looking forward to spending a relaxing Shabbat together as a camp and then another exciting week ahead of us!

Shabbat Shalom,

Shira Berman, Offarim Merakezet

ORANIM

Shabbat Shalom Oranim parents!

This week has been an incredibly fun week for your children here at camp! They have made up their own Oranim holiday, chocomakabikah and have learned about a few other holidays such as Rosh Hashana, Yom Kippur, Sukkot, and Tu B’shvat. They made greeting cards for camp, threw bread in the water, had meditation, and ate apples and honey while they learned about the high holidays. They acted out the different varieties of sukkot and built sukkahs out of food and candy. They even  got to begin planting a tree and read a story about a pine tree for Tu B’shvat! In addition to the educational activities, they have had dyadic encounters and have participated in an improv show. We also went bowling today which was so much fun! Your children have also been to the lake, pool and farm this week in addition to many other activities. This upcoming, Sunday we will be going on a field trip to the Ashville Nature Center and will be camping out in Pisgah National Forest. The Oranim staff and I are looking forward to the camp out and the rest of next week with your children! We all hope you have a relaxing peaceful Shabbat!

Shabbat Shalom,

Emily Shalev, Oranim Merakezet

SAYARIM

Shalom Sayarim parents,

Week one has kicked off and the session is off to a great start. The campers started off the week by learning about a few famous Zionist heroes such as David Ben-Gurion and Theodore Hertzl. They then went on to learn about additional famous menches such as Albert Einstein, Mark Zuckerberg, and Sandy Koufax. Earlier today the campers went as an age group to the local bowling alley here in Hendersonville and had a blast! This Shabbat, Sayarim will be leading the Kabbalat Shabbat as well as services tomorrow morning. Campers will be participating in an Israeli dance, leading an Israeli song, leading prayers, and also leading the closing of Shabbat Havdallah ceremony. This week has been amazing and all of us here at Camp Judaea are looking forward to an amazing second week.

Shabbat Shalom,

Eitan Bender, Sayarim Merakez

TSOFIM

Shalom Tsofim Parents,

This first week at camp has been packed full of fun and educational activities.  We have begun our journey in exploring Israeli society and culture with an activity centered around recognizing the many different people that call Israel home.  We also learned briefly about some well known Israeli artists while we created a Tsofim flag.  In addition to the educational peulot, we have also become much closer as an eda, especially during our indoor bonfire on Wednesday night.  As the skies opened up, we decided to go ahead with the bonfire, but without the fire.  We instead had story telling and raw smores!.  Both the campers and counselors had a lot of fun.  The kids are having a great time and we are all looking forward to the fun that the rest of the summer has to offer.  

Shabbat Shalom and Shavuah Tov.

Sam Morse, Tsofim Merakez

KESHER

Shabbat Shalom Kesher parents,

My staff and I have had an incredible week with your children—they are fantastic! They are all having an amazing time. So far, we’ve explored the meaning of identities and what it means to be Jewish. We also performed our Hatzagah (play) entitled Finding Tali to the entire camp last night, which was both educational and fun. They did an incredible job! All of the campers had a chance to swim in the agam (lake) and the brecha (pool), as well as experience sussim (horses) and omanut (art)! Today we went bowling and spent the afternoon in the pool under the summer sun! We are leaving Saturday night after Havdallah and return Friday morning. I am very excited to spend a week with these amazing campers in New York!

Wishing you on behalf of all of the Kesher staff, Shabbat Shalom and Shavuah Tov.

Tali Burger, Kesher Merakezet

BOGRIM 

Shalom Bogrim parents,

The first week of Bogrim second session 2013 was a jam packed week of fun field trips, awesome peulot (programs), and great bonding activities! The first of our field trips was this Thursday, when all of Bogrim traveled to Rabun Gap, Georgia to play in an inter-camp Yom Sport (Sports Day)! The chanichim took advantage of the chance to show off their sports skills in many sports from basketball to tennis to ultimate Frisbee  They also got a chance to meet other Jewish campers from all over the Southeast from camps Coleman and Ramah Darom! After Yom Sport, the chanichim in Bogrim were paired with a little brother or sister on Offarim, or a B. O.! They enjoyed a great bonfire equipped with s’mores and hot chocolate to kickoff the B.O. tradition! In the coming week, we’re looking forward to a day trip to the amusement park Carowinds and some more awesome activities in camp!

Shabbat Shalom,

Sarah Fine, Bogrim Merakezet

CHALUTZIM

Dear Chalutzim parents,

Chalutzim has had an amazing week. Four of the campers arrived on Monday and immediately we started to break in our boots and prepare for Outward Bound. They played sports, ran around camp, and learned how to tie the essential knots needed for the woods. On Thursday, the other fourteen campers arrived from TY. They all had an amazing time and are so excited for Chalutzim. Once all of Chalutzim arrived, we stared to do team building activities and preparing even more for Outward Bound. We leave on Monday and everyone is really excited for this once in a lifetime opportunity.  As we light the candles tonight, we think about our family and friends back at home and look forward to our next Shabbat in the woods!

Shabbat Shalom,

Steven Beiner, Chalutzim Merakez

PLEASE ENJOY THIS WEEK’S VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS HERE!