Hello From Camp!

Thanks to the great success and popularity of Alumni Day at Galil the past two summers, we have been inspired to gather our wonderful alumni together more often!  

We plan to run programming for Galil graduates (and their families!) around major Jewish holidays such as:  

• apple picking for Rosh Hashanah; 
• building a sukkah at Galil then having a potluck dinner under the stars in our sukkah;  
• dreidel tournament;  
• fondue B'Shvat seder;  
• Purim party;  
• freedom seder for Passover;  
• Lag B'Omer bonfire; and  
• dairy potluck for Shavuot.  

With the Fall High Holidays coming up, we have already planned apple picking and Sukkot celebrations.  Find out about them on our community calendar or on our alumni web page and register now!  

 

 We need your help!  Sign up today to help organize, run, or recruit for any of these family-friendly get-togethers! 

 

No matter how many years it has been since you were a camper, we hope you still think of Galil as your second home and want to share that experience with your friends and family.  We hope to see you all more often with these new traditions!  

 

Questions?  Comments?  Ideas?  Want to get involved?  Contact Ilana at alumni@campgalil.org or (609) 558-1395. 

  

 

 Galil is a place full of traditions from pizza lunch on Fridays to singing Phil Ochs as we raise the flag each morning.  We are very excited to add a new one this year: Facebook Fan of the Year!  

 Our inaugural winner is Ari Carroll -- come learn more about Ari, what Galil means to him, and what makes him an all-star Facebook fan.  

  Name: Ari Carroll  

  Kvutzah (age group): Madatz (counselors-in-training) 2011  

  Number of Years at Galil: 7  

  Favorite Galil Memory: I always love doing rikkud (Israeli dancing) on Friday nights at camp.  

  Favorite Year-Round Galil Activity: Spring Seminar.  After a great weekend at camp, we have a graduation ceremony when you get to move up to the next kvutzah (age group).  I like seeing the progress of all the chanichim (campers) going through the stages of camp just as I did.  

  Favorite Part of the Day at Camp: Free swim.  It's fun, relaxing, and really awesome.  

  Best Part of Being in Madatz: What's cool about Madatz is how different it is to now be running peulot (activities) for chanichim and seeing the other side of the spectrum.  I now have a new respect for the madrichim (counselors) and all the work they put into everything they do.  I understand how hard it is and how much they want the chanichim to learn.  Being in Madatz this summer, I had a foot in each side of the door between madrichim and chanichim.  

  What do You Love About Galil: Galil changed my life.  It sounds corny, but it's true because it absolutely made me who I am today.  

  What made Ari our greatest fan?  His tireless enthusiasm and clear love for Galil shined through in every post or "like" he gave to a status or photo.  Thanks again, Ari!  

  Now that Galil 2011 has sadly ended, we are ready to start our search for our 2nd ever Facebook Fan of the Year!  Could it be you?  You don't need to comment on everything, but what you do say should be positive, from the heart, and appropriate for our fans of all ages.  Any camper, alum, or relative can win the honor (and a special prize...Ari won the Habonim Dror Australia sweatshirt shown in the photo) of being our greatest fan!  

  Like us now!  There are more prizes, competitions, and drawings on our Facebook page...  

Dear parents, campers, alumni, and friends of Galil 2011, 

 Thank you!  What a summer we had!  From journeying through space and the return of Maccabiah (sports games against our sister camps) to laser tag and doing tikkun olam (healing the world) with the Urban Tree Connection, we loved every single moment of it.  Todah rabah (thank you) for being a part of making our 65th summer so incredible. 

We hope you will keep in touch throughout the year by taking part in our ken (year-round activities) events.  You can always find out more by looking at our calendar or the eizor (area) page of our website.  We will also continue to post on this blog about events happening at Galil or exciting milestones for members of our community.  Check back often!  

Lastly, registration for 2012 will open soon.  If you loved Galil this year, you won't believe what we have in store for our 66th summer!  We hope to see all of your beautiful, smiling faces again then.  Also, you can always recommend Galil to your friends and family -- we want to keep our wonderful community growing and thriving! 

Have a wonderful year and we hope to see you again soon! 

B'shalom, 

Galil's 2011 Staff 

Hello friends,

I am honored to have the responsibility of writing the blog post for our last yom ragil (regular day) of machaneh (camp), which is also my last yom ragil before I’m going back to Israel after two years as the Shlicha (Israel Emissary) at Galil. It’s funny we call days with our schedule ragil (regular), because every day here is magical and full of great stories that I’ll treasure for life -- and I hope your children feel the same way too.

As the Shlicha I’m responsible for the Israel and Hebrew programs at camp. Every two years a new Shaliach comes to Galil with a new energy and passion. One of my big passions is photography and so this session I had the pleasure to run Chug Tzilum (photography club). The chanichim (campers) learned basic photography guidelines, how to operate their cameras, and completed numerous projects. Today was our final project in which we used long exposures in a dark room. The outcome was pretty cool as you can see in the picture! 

 Every summer we welcome four summer shlichim (also known as mishlachat, or Israeli delegation), who join our tzevet (staff) and work as madrichim (counselors) for the different schavot (age groups). Together with the mishlachat, I ran a daily sadna (workshop) about Israel for our campers. Today we took the Amelim and Chotrim (campers going into 4th, 5th, and 6th grades) for a "tour" around Israel.  We stopped at Be’er Sheva to make yummy pita on the tabun (a metal oven above fire).

Growing up in a youth movement (Habonim Dror sister movement in Israel) I remember a lot of Ru’ach (spirit) that is reflected in singing songs and cheers, but camp Galil redefines what Ru’ach actually means! Fact is, our Bogrim (10th graders) won the spirit award in the annual regional Frisbee tournament at camp JRF! They had a lot of fun and also held an incredible record; they beat every single team that was there!

When I first arrived to Galil two summers ago, the first thing I noticed was the strong feeling of community. This loving camping family welcomed me immediately and made me feel at home, even though I was so far away from home.  This creative community overwhelmed me with their interesting, fun and enriching peulot (activities) in addition to the caring way each member treated the others.

Shlichut is a bridge. I came with the purpose of educating and connecting the chanichim (campers) about Israel and found out that I’m learning a lot at the same time. I taught about Israel and Zionism and learned beautiful traditions and multiple ways to practice my Judaism. I answered questions, but also asked many. You opened the door to your community to me and Galil will always have a place in my heart.

Todah Rabah! Thank you very much!

See you in Israel,
Ronit 

This is my second visit to Camp Galil this summer in my role as Central Shaliach (Israel Emissary) to Habonim Dror North America. The first was during Construction (the ten-day training period for counselors before camp beings) during which I ran a peulah (activity) in which I reminded the tzevet (staff) to take their responsibilities as educators really seriously. I urged them to remember that they are in a unique position as informal educators to make an unforgettable impact on a group of Jewish children. I suggested to them that this was a sacred duty and it carried with it all types of responsibilities and is accompanied by a number of ethical questions. 

It was therefore appropriate that my second visit to Galil this summer -- after six weeks on the road visiting all the camps of Habonim Dror -- coincided with Tisha B’Av, a day in which the tzevet has the opportunity to function as Jewish educators on a complicated day for Jewish camps. Summer camps are about fun more than anything else. Of course we at Galil learn a lot and it is clear from all the data that this education impacts more on their Jewish identity than any other experience they might have as young people, but the question remains: how does one do justice to the central themes of Tisha B’Av in an environment such as this? 

The tzevet at Galil rose to the challenge and responded in a way of which I am very proud. Tisha B’Av opened with a short introduction to the day so that every camper was on the same page with respect to basic knowledge of what this day means traditionally in the Jewish world. The campers were then offered an opportunity to attend one of a number of electives during which themes from the day were discussed. I ran a discussion on the dilemmas of power and around 20 young people discussed the ethical dimensions of military decisions in a way which made me very proud to be connected to this movement and this camp.  

Today the atmosphere at camp has been a different one from the usual one here. The central peulah in the morning had the children writing cartoons based on the events from Jewish History they were confronting (in the style of the famous cartoon story Maus). Only older campers were given the option to fast.  Those who were fasting were given the space to do so and those who were eating ate in a dining room with a more subdued atmosphere because of the decision that there would be no singing with the meals today. This evening will culminate with a ceremony to mark the end of the day and I am convinced of one thing: everyone at Camp Galil will have in some small way asked another question about life whether s/he is nine or seventeen.  

As a parent of three young adult children myself, I ask you, can we ask for more? 

Shalom, 

Julian Resnick  

Today was another exciting day at machaneh (camp) as three shcavot (age groups) went on trips into the outside world. The Bonim (campers going into 9th grade) and Chotrim (campers going into 6th grade) went on their tikkun olam (healing the world) trip. Like the other age groups, they worked at the Urban Tree Connection.  They weeded the communal gardens in order to benefit the residents of Philadelphia. Though they came back pretty tired, most wore smiles and admitted they had a lot of fun working!  

Last night Galil held a Veida (a meeting where the camp votes on improvements for machaneh that are suggested by campers) and a proposition to lengthen Tikkun Olam trips and increase them to twice a summer was passed! It’s amazing to see how much our chanichim (campers) care about the world.  Way to go!
Additionally, the Tzofim (campers going into 8th grade) are out on a one-day tiyul (nature trip).  The trip was meant to be an overnight but unfortunately the campsite flooded due to the recent rain. Regardless they are having a great time and will return with plenty of stories to share.  

In other exciting news, the Bogrim (campers going into 10th grade) spent part of the day practicing for the upcoming Frisbee tournament. Each summer the Bogrim compete in a Frisbee tournament against other nearby Jewish camps, including JRF, Pinemere, and Harlem. Our Bogrim are looking pretty good this summer and they might even win! However, they are still no match for tzevet (counselors); in the tzevet/madatz (counselor/CIT) vs. chanichim (campers) game on Friday, the counselors won...better luck next week, campers! 

Tomorrow promises to be more solemn as it is the Jewish fast day of Tisha B'Av. The fast starts at 8:08 pm tonight and after dinner the tochnit erev (evening activity) will be serious chugim (electives) that deal with the observance of the fast. The normal schedule tomorrow will be changed to include learning about the Holocaust via the graphic novel, Maus, and creating life-sized murals depicting the five catastrophes we mourn on Tisha B'Av. 

We hope everyone is having as much fun at home as we are here!
Leora  

The day began as ever with hitkansut boker (morning flag raising) alongside our daily ivrit shimushit (useful Hebrew) skit. Ivrit shimushit is a skit performed every morning by the counselors to teach a handy Hebrew word.  For example, the skit might end with a character saying, "That's a nice house...let's buy it...house...bayit!"  Thanks to the morning's humid conditions this took place inside our new glorious moadon instead of at our toran (flag pole) as per usual. 

There were some sad departures from our machaneh (camp) community today. Our adorable Nitzanim (Taste of Galil campers, going into 3rd grade) completed their four days of Galil fun and games. It was an amazing experience for us to host such wonderful additions as well as for the campers who had their first Jewish summer camp experience.  We hope they return for many years to come! 

An exciting element in today's camp program was the occurrence of Yom Bonim Shalom or Building Peace Day that was run just for our Bonim (campers going into 9th grade). The Bonim enjoyed a one-hour sleep-in then had a separate, delicious breakfast as a lovely start to the day dedicated to learning about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and making peace. The group was divided into two -- Israelis and Palestinians -- and began by learning about their own and each others' narratives to the conflict. Afterwards, they negotiated a peace solution to be signed in front of the whole machaneh at lunch. Dramatically, one of the leaders signing the treaty was "assassinated." Consequently the shicvah (age group) learned about violence effecting peace and democracy, which references the assassination of Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin in 1995.  The day ended with a peaceful solution, self reflection, a final discussion, then a tasty snack of pita and hummus. 

Tomorrow machaneh will be a quiet place since the Chotrim (campers going into 6th grade) and Bonim (campers going into 9th grade) away doing their tikkun olam (healing the world) project at the Urban Tree Connection and the Tzofim (campers going into 8th grade) going on tiyul (nature hike). 
This all makes for an exciting last week with many memorable days.
That's all folks! 

Darren 

Another weekend has come and gone and we're heading into our final week of Galil 2011!  We can't believe how quickly this summer has gone by, but we're having so much fun continuing old traditions and starting new ones. 

Camp started Friday morning with our very popular traditional muffin breakfast.  This summer the most popular flavor is lemon poppyseed.  Toranut (kitchen duty) held a jumping contest to decide who deserved the last one which featured fifteen muffin-loving campers and counselors.  Not to worry, we always have lots of muffins available (chocolate chip, blueberry, and more) plus our regular cereal, fruit, and yogurt buffet. 

The day continued as usual with a peula (activity) run by our counselors-in-training, shira (singing), sports, and pizza lunch.  While the Madatz (counselors-in-training) usually braid beautiful, homemade challah for Friday night dinner and blessings, they had special helpers this week: our Nitzanim (Taste of Galil, campers going into 3rd grade).  Thanks for the help, Nitzanim!  

In the afternoon the campers have extra time to shower and clean up for Shabbat.  Everyone dresses up a little bit more than usual to mark the day as special.  Our Amelim (campers going into 4th and 5th grades) led our Kabbalat Shabbat (welcoming the Sabbath).  The Amelim sang a song in Hebrew ("Tachzor") and one in English (Cat Stevens' "If You Want to Sing Out").  They were amazing and so adorable! 

Shabbat dinner is always a special meal.  After the blessings we eat a large dinner including challah, chicken, vegetables, and matzah ball soup.  Dinner is followed by shira (singing), blessings after the meal, then an oneg (skit) that the age groups take turns writing, starring in, directing, and creating sets and props for.  This week the Bonim (campers going into 9th grade) were our stars. The performance was followed, as always, by rikud (Israeli dancing), watermelon, and bedtime! 

We just finished a lovely Shabbat -- the second to last one of Galil 2011!  We're off to medurah (bonfire) complete with dancing and comedic skits by our campers followed by everyone's favorite part of the week: ice cream sundae bar! 

Shavua tov and have a wonderful week! 

Julie 

At the beginning of the summer, we, the Bogrim (going into 10th grade) received a grant of $1,800 from the Jewish Teen Funders Network with one goal: to give the money away. Our madrichim (counselors) facilitated two seminars for us to start a process of deciding where the money would go and how to make the most significant impact.  We addressed the differences between tikkun olam (healing the world) and tzedakah (charity or righteousness) then decided what type of organization we wanted to donate to.  

Using the list of values and goals we established for ourselves -- something pertaining to youth, health or recreation -- we composed a mission statement and sent it to six different organizations whose criteria and mission matched our own. Each of these organizations sent us a proposal for us to evaluate and assess in order to make the right decision. In the end, we had to choose between Reach Out and Read (a program of the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia) and the Broad Street Ministry (a Philadelphia-based nonprofit that addresses urban homelessness). Ultimately, we chose the Broad Street Ministry because we wanted to be able to make an impact with our dollars as well as our hands.  We feel very proud of and empowered by this decision! 

Since we still value the goals of Reach Out and Read, we have decided to run a book drive through Camp Galil. By choosing the Broad Street Ministry, we are donating our money to their new program geared towards giving people a "re-identification." Today we visited the Broad Street Ministy and spoke with the guests to see their amazing work first-hand. In addition, we took a tour of their facilities and are looking to start a long-term relationship between this amazing organization and all of us here at Camp Galil. 

Sincerely, 

Bogrim 2011 

Camp Galil was an exciting place to be today with movement galore. The day had a lot in store with the arrival of the Nitzanim (our Taste of Galil campers who are going into 3rd grade)  and a visit from the Jewish Federation of Philadelphia. We were very excited for the youngest members of our community to join us!  Check out the amazing picture of our newest, youngest campers plus one of two of their madrichim (counselors).  Welcome to the Galil family, Nitzanim! 

Our campers enjoyed a breakfast of tasty french toast alongside our usual delicious breakfast buffet which features various fruits, cereals, and yogurts. After breakfast, all campers took part in a special avoda (work time) to help clean Galil after three days jam-packed with special events.  Next came peulat shicvah (activities by age group). Today multiple age groups had special activities run that focused on Israeli culture.  The Bonim (campers going into 9th grade) watched a movie called 'Promises' about Israeli-Arab co-existence while enjoying homemade kafe kar (iced coffee) and pita. Across camp the Bogrim (campers going into 10th grade) learned about the protests for social justice happening now in Israel.

The next part of the day was chugim (interest groups). Campers choose their activity on the first day of the session from a wide variety including World Cup Soccer, knitting and crocheting, photography, and clothing design. Lunch followed with a delicious salad bar and chicken.  

The day continued with our other yom ragil (regular day) activities such as sports, sadnaot (workshops), and shira (singing).  After a burrito dinner, each age group will do evening activities together then head to bed nice and early! 

Tomorrow the Bonim will leave for tiyul (hiking trip) for a wonderful day filled with kvutzah (group) bonding and beautiful scenery. 

That's all folks!


  

Unfortunately, when some of the villains took it too far and attacked their new friends in a mid-afternoon jello and applesauce fight, we realized that total chaos and destruction wasn't such a good idea and that we need some good in this world, too. This disagreement escalated into a final epic battle between the five main villains on the top of the high ropes course. In the end the chanichim were able to vanquish Ursula and the Joker and restore balance to machaneh.

We learned a valuable lesson today at Galil and we had a great time being bad. Now we're looking forward to a good night's sleep and calm, normal day tomorrow.   

 Fondly,  

 Jordan
   

Second Session is always so busy!  We have to pack in all of the special days we have during First Session but in only three weeks.  After yesterday's Alumni Day and Kupa Trip, our chanichim (campers) didn't expect to encounter another special Galil tradition today...surprise!  Today was BoCoup -- the day that our oldest campers, the Bogrim, get to plan fun programming for camp.   

By bearing the new weight of responsibility, the Bogrim got a taste of what it feels like to be madrichim (counselors).  They learned how to take care of younger chanichim, how to cook for a camp full of people, how to run activities, and how to utilize power in a constructive and creative way. 

The theme was Mario and Luigi.  The Bogrim chose it through a democratic vote.  Va'adot (committees) of Bogrim were established to plan a different aspect of the day with the help of their madrichim: food, daytime activities, decorations, characters, skits, and the party.  The Bogrim wrote a Bocoup song, created costumes, wrote scripts, and painted posters and pictures.  It's been a busy week as they prepared for this day!   

BoCoup began with Bowser -- Mario's enemy -- capturing Peach.  The kids then proceeded to kick the madrichim out in a water fight.  Mario and Luigi, with the help of our wonderful campers had to rescue peach through a series of activities throughout the day including: 

• eating lunch at Mama Luigi's house where she served homemade pizza, salad, and garlic bread; 
• a carnival to train for future obstacles; 
• a pillow fight; 
• games of "Anything for Candy" in which campers participate in physical challenges (such as ten push-ups) to earn candy; 
• swimming; and 
• hockey, knock-out, and soccer.