It's Monday afternoon and, as I sit in the lodge writing this update, I'm watching our youngest campers, Unit 1, "make-up" their male counselors for a beauty contest. At the other end of the lodge, an old (ancient?) Camp Akiba camper, counselor (he was actually one of my counselors) and one-time Camp Akiba doctor from the 60's and 70's (and currently a camp visitor), Dave Paperny, is teaching the CITs "The Hula". Dave lives in Hawaii and journeyed all way the to California just to visit us and share some of his hobbies and expertise. Once a Camp Akiba Camper...always a Camp Akiba Camper!
Earlier today, our CITs ran an all-camp activity where the kids helped a good Jewish Deli get back stolen ingredients from an evil non-kosher deli. The kids participated in activities such as creating a song, making a deli logo, a waiter obstacle course, and decorating a cake by throwing paint at it. The program culminated with the evil-doers being thrown into the pool, much to the campers delight.
Last Friday, we began our "chugim" (literally "hobbies" but we think of them as "interest groups") programming. The campers choose one of 5 different chugim that the staff have prepared for them -- Nature Chug, Bake-N-Chat Chug, Drama Chug, ArtsNCrafts Chug, or Sports Chug. The campers choose their group and then spend 5 different sessions in that group throughout camp. They have now completed 3 of the 5 one-hour sessions and the kids are having a blast playing creative sports, making photo frames and other creative items from natural materials found around camp, baking/making tasty treats while chatting about whatever seems to be on the campers' minds, doing improv and other fun dramatic activities, and hiking and building natural forts in the wilderness. Chugim are mixed-aged groups and are focused to please all ages.
We ate delicious BBQ Chicken for our Shabbat dinner and then Unit 3, our oldest campers, ran our Friday evening Shabbat services at our outdoor chapel surrounded by large trees so dense you can't see more than a few feet into the forest. The campers shared their feelings about our new facility, the excellent food we're growing accustomed to, and memories of camp past (for some) and new experiences for others. Several unit 3 campers treated us to guitar music accompaniment as we sang Shabbat songs and recited and chanted the traditional Shabbat evening prayers. After the service, we danced and sang at Oneg Shabbat -- EVERY camper was participating in our Israeli dancing led by several of our staff members. It was a sight to behold (see photos).
On Saturday mornings, we traditionally have a more creative tefillah (prayer) service. I elicited from the congregation 3 of the most widely appreciated forms of participation in tefillah -- song, recitation of prayer, and pondering the meanings those prayers. Each camper was asked to choose a form of tefillah they identified with or liked best, and they then gathered in small groups, studied either a prayer, or a set of songs, or discussed the meaning of a particular prayer and then we reconvened as a congregation and each small (or large) group presented their "tefillah" in the traditional order of Shabbat morning services. This enabled each individual to participate and help complete the service in a manner which suited them best while allowing the entire congregation as a whole to cooperatively create a service engaging to each individual while learning a bit about our Judaism in the process.
Akiba Day Camp director Stephanie Schwartz and 3 Akiba Day Camp staff who've come from Israel to work at day camp arrived here late Friday evening. They schmoozed with our staff and participated in our Saturday morning services. They had prepared theme-related (our theme is "The Word of Israel") activities for each of our units for Saturday afternoon -- they played a form of "simon-says", but in Hebrew. The campers had to learn many Hebrew vocabulary words associated with body parts and each camper was actually speaking and responding to Hebrew as they interacted with the Israelis.
Shabbat culminated with an Havdalah service led by our youngest campers, Unit 1, and we heard from each of them their thoughts about camp, Judaism, friends, and staff. We smelled the spices of the Earth on beautiful six-pointed "Spice Stars" the Unit 1 campers made. We lit the Havdalah candle as we sang traditional Havdalah prayers and tunes, and then we all listened carefully as the flame was extinguished in the fruit of the vine. tsssssssssss.
On Sunday, we had an all-camp activity where the campers "re-trained" the staff in certain activities they apparently had forgotten how to do properly -- campers had the opportunity to teach the staff to eat correctly by feeding them (very messy), teaching them proper pool etiquette, singing of Jewish song, and appropriate use of the bathroom facilities. The campers had a great time bossing the staff around and by the end of the activity, the campers had done such a fantastic job of retraining, I was able to the deem them "fit to remain in camp" with the campers who were overjoyed at their accomplishment and pleased to have their well-mannered but humbled counselors back in action.
Much of what I have described has been documented in photos which you may view at
Photo Gallery 09 #1 (check back in a little while if this doesn't load)
Internet access here at camp is not "a given" and sometimes is spotty, at best....thank you for your patience waiting for updates as I don't have too much time to devote to making sure the network connections are running smoothly -- I'll do the best I can under the circumstances to upload updates and images in the days to come.
B'shalom,
Rick