Ra-Mah Koreh?

‫אני‬ ‫קורא‬

TIPS FOR SENDING YOUR KIDS TO CAMP! SAMPLE DAILY SCHEDULE PACKING LIST Inside!

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Welcome

‫ברוכים הבאים‬

Dear Parents and Campers,

It is with great excitement that we welcome you and your family to the Camp Ramah in the Poconos community!

Our hope is that this summer your child begins a life-long journey with Camp Ramah; one which will offer them deep and lasting friendships, a positive Jewish identity, and of course — countless memories of indescribable fun!

Our campers’ ages range from current 2nd–10th graders, which means that developmentally, socially, intellectually, and emotionally they differ widely. In recognition of this fact, we have worked hard to create age-appropriate experiences for each of our camper age-groups. This is why, as our campers mature in both age and intellectual ability, our camp program matures with them; incorporating longer trips outside of camp, more focused leadership opportunities, as well as camper-driven learning. Inside this magazine you will find a sample schedule, and we are always available to answer any specific questions you might have regarding your child’s program this summer.

Additionally, this magazine will also offer you some informational pages describing the Ramah experience for both your child and for you as a parent. Also included are some fun games which we hope will help your child familiarize themselves to some of the basic Hebrew vocabulary of Camp Ramah.

Please know that we are eager to receive feedback on the experience from you and your children. We are always looking to grow, improve, and evolve. Our newest campers represent the beginning, the present, and most importantly, our future. We sincerely hope that this welcoming experience initiates for your child and your family a Ramah journey that lasts a lifetime!

In partnership and excitement,

Rabbi Joel Seltzer

Michelle Sugarman

Executive Director Associate Director

The National Ramah Commission acknowledges with thanks the generous support of The AVI CHAI Foundation and the Zell Family Foundation in making this program possible.

Sample Daily Schedule

‫ קימה‬Kimah (Wake Up!) 8:00 AM ‫פילות‬ ‫ ת‬T’fillot (Services) by age 8:45 AM ‫בוקר‬ ‫ ארוחת‬Aruchat Boker (B group reakfast) 9:30 AM ‫נקיון‬ Nikayon (Clea n up) 10:00 AM ‫פורט‬ ‫ ס‬Sports 11:00 AM ‫שחייה‬ Schiya (Swim) 12:00 PM ‫שראל‬ ‫ תרבות י‬Tarbut (Israeli 1:00 PM ‫הריים‬ ‫ ארוחת צ‬Aruchat TzohorCulture) aim (Lunch) 1:45 PM ‫מנוחה‬ Menuchah (Re st time) 2:30 PM ‫מנויות‬ ‫ פעולת א‬Omanut (Art Ac 3:30 PM ‫צריף‬ ‫ פעולת‬Peulat Tzrif (Bunk tivity) 4:30 PM ‫הדות‬ ‫ י‬Yahadut (Judaics Activ Activity) ity) 5:30 PM ‫ריקוד‬ / ‫ שירה‬Music/D ance 6:45 PM ‫ﬠרב‬ ‫ ארוחת‬Aruchat Erev (Din ner) 7:45 PM ‫ פעולת ﬠרב‬Peulat Erev (N 9:00 PM ‫ לילה טוב‬Lilah Tov! (Goodnight Activity) ight!)

7:30 AM

Ramah’s Yoatzim (Advisors) Camper Care

wn as the Yoetz/et At Ramah, there is a staff position kno to help address problems that (Advisor). The role of the Yoetz/et is il such as family emergencies, cannot be handled through the ma blems. homesickness, and adjustment pro other staff in camp, such as your The Yoetz/et works very closely with as the Rosh Edah (Division Head), as well child’s Madrichim (counselors) and r child’s . They work around the clock with you ctor Dire te ocia Ass and ctor Dire ve Executi best interests in mind. (perhaps you eone at camp regarding your child If you need to be in touch with som r call to the a family emergency) please direct you is re the er, lett g blin trou a ived rece given ly at a phone to receive calls, but are Yoetz/et. The Yoatzim are not routine ation we ask er to thoroughly assess a given situ ord In r. nne ma ely tim a in ges ssa me that when calling, you: the exact son answering the telephone, giving per the to rly clea n atio situ the in 1. Expla s. nature of your questions or concern that you can be re you can be reached and the time 2. Give the telephone number(s) whe behind) reached. (Remember we are 1 hour rmation. emergencies) to call back with info 3. Allow us 24–36 hours (except for m and Due to the nature of our camp progra ne pho tele y our physical site, non-emergenc meal, if not messages are delivered at the next people tact con sooner. Every effort is made to ived. as soon as possible after a call is rece mber me f staf However, it is not unusual for a may have to receive a message at lunch that been received at 9:30AM.

If you need to be in touch with someone at camp regarding your child, please direct your call to the Yoetz/et.

can best ctor, and Yoetz/et will determine who The Executive Director, Associate Dire lar situation. ctly and effectively with your particu dire st mo l dea and cern con r you handle situation, staff member address your particular In an effort to have the appropriate Business Doctor, Office Manager, Registrar, you may receive a call back from the most appropriate. is , or Executive Director – whoever Manager, Yoetz/et, Associate Director ents will receive Please note that all new camper par We welcome your communication.

2 days of camp. a phone call check-in within the first

Who Will Take Care of My Child at Camp?

DIRECTORS OF CAMP RAMAH Executive Director – Rabbi Joel Seltzer Associate Director – Michelle Sugarman

Camp Psychologist – Dr. Rachel Abel

The Marp – Infirmary Staff

Yoetz/et – Parent Liaison

Parents are our partners.

We welcome you to be in touch if you receive a letter with concerning information.

Quick Tip!

Rosh Edah – Division Head

We may turn to you for helpful strategies if your child experiences challenges.

Madrichim – Counselors

EDAH (DIVISION)

You can let your child know that there will always be someone they can turn to if something is bothering them.

ROSH EDAH (DIVISION HEAD)

Taste of Ramah (current 2 & 3 grade) Yedidim (Tikvah Campers) Notzitzim (current 3rd & 4th grade) Tze’erim (current 5th grade) Halutzim (current 6th grade) Bogrim (current 7th grade) Machon (current 8th grade) Shoafim (current 9th grade) Gesher (current 10th grade) nd

rd

Rebecca Kossman Lindsay Forman Aaron Besser Matan Ayash Tobi Afran Sarah Goldberg Avram Ellner Davida Vogel Aaron Walinsky

The name of your child’s Yoetzet will be mailed in early June.

t is L g in k c a P r e p m Ca ual shirts 10–14 t-shirts/cas irts 3–5 long sleeve sh

s 2–3 pairs of jean ants 2 pairs of sweatp ts 4–6 pairs of shor as/sleepwear 3 pairs of pajam rwear 14 pairs of unde 14 pairs of socks 1 warm jacket ce 2 sweatshirts/flee at or poncho 1 hooded rainco 2 hats * ) o bikinis for girls 3-5 swimsuits (n l for girls d for boys, optiona 10 kippot require

ses/contact lenses 1 extra pair of glas rs 2 pairs of sneake s 1 pair of rain boot s for Shabbat 1 pair of nice shoe oes 1 pair of pool sh Sleeping bag ily use) 2 blankets (for da cases Pillow and pillow sheets 2 sets of twin size t) (fitted and top shee Comb/brush

4 bath towels 3 pool towels ash g holder or body w Soap with travelin Sunscreen toothpaste Toothbrush and d.

itte *Tankinis are perm

nditioner

Shampoo and co Water Bottle

2 laundry bags Clothes hangers tteries Flashlight and ba stamps Pens, stationery, Insect repellent tie-dying White t-shirt for able ing goggles, dispos Suggested: swimm bo , oks, ries, extra stamps camera, extra batte clip ore smaller items, st to x bo s, rd ca g playin k, tissues, uipment, stain stic on fan, athletic eq p plastic drinking cu

Shabbat

ng or short) 3 dress shirts (lo acks or khakis 2 pairs of dress sl orts 2 pairs of dress sh 1 sweater cks 3 pairs of dress so

ouses ses or skirts and bl 3–4 modest dres gans 2 sweaters/cardi se or tights 3 pair of panty ho

Packing Tips & Advice Do I pack my child’s favorite t-shirt? What if it gets lost? What’s the best way to label clothing? These may be a few of the questions going through your mind as you begin the packing process. Below are a few tips offered by veteran camp parents who have perfected the art of packing for camp. And yes, it is most certainly an art!

• Pack WITH your child, not at night after they are fast asleep. You may be surprised about what items your child doesn’t want to leave home without. More importantly, this helps familiarize them with what is in their luggage so that upon arrival at camp it’s easy for them to locate everything they need.

• Provide tools for organization. If you can imagine that your child’s cubby may easily become a black hole of clothing where it could be challenging to find a pair of clean socks, you may want to consider sending up certain items like socks and underwear in mesh laundry bags.

• Ziplock bags are your friend! Use them for the following:

• Underwear – send extra

• Socks – send extra

• Liquid Toiletries • Pack a shower basket for all of your child’s toiletries. Once at camp, the counselors will instruct your child to put their toiletries into this basket, and it will be used daily to help keep your child organized during shower time. If you have not purchased this before, Target usually has this item.

• Label, label, label. Make sure to label everything you send with your child (including the clothes they wear on the bus). Please take the time to label all items including water bottles, flashlights, even shoes. Labels make bunk clean-up occur more smoothly and allow us to return items left around camp before the session ends. Iron-on labels work as well. Please use your child’s full name when labeling, you’d be surprised how many kids there are up at camp with the same initials or names!

• Don’t pack anything valuable or expensive. We expect your child to have so much fun at camp that the last thing on their mind is going to be keeping track of socks, underwear, nice shirts, etc.

•P lease don’t pack items like food or large electronics that are not allowed at camp. These items will be confiscated and then your child is stuck in the situation of having to start camp by having something taken away from them. We want camp to be a place of giving and sharing.

• Pack all linens on the top. All Notzitzim and Tze’erim campers will have their beds made for them by their counselors before they arrive. Taste of Ramah campers will make their beds with their counselors upon arrival.

Menu Options

The menus at Ramah are planned to be both healthy and fun for the campers. All meals are served family style. Most dinners are followed by spirited singing, a highlight of the summer!

If you have any questions about the meals at camp, please call the camp office. We can put you in touch with our licensed nutritionist, Beth Schwartzman.

Sample Breakfasts • Pancakes with Maple Syrup • Scrambled Eggs and Biscuits • Waffles and Assorted Fruit • Oatmeal • Matzah Brei • Bagels and Cream Cheese • Cereal and Milk are offered every morning.

In addition, a salad bar is available every breakfast with a variety of options, such as yogurt, fruit, cottage cheese, hard boiled eggs, sliced cheese, and assorted milk (including Lactaid milk).

On occasion, individual bunks go out of camp for cookouts, complete with “Rocky Mountain Toast,” hot chocolate, scrambled eggs and more, all cooked over a campfire!

Sample Lunches • Grilled Cheese and Tomato soup • “Ramacobell” Rice and Beans make your own tacos • Cheese Ravioli/Manicotti/Tortellini/Ziti • Stir Fried Asian Vegetables with Wonton Soup • Falafel, Hummus, and Israeli Salads • Wrap Sandwiches • Pizza • Potato Perogies with Sautéed Onions • Veggie Chili with Baked Potatoes • Veggie “Chicken” Nuggets with Dipping Sauces All lunches come with side dishes such as vegetables, garlic bread, etc.

We also have a salad bar available at every lunch.

Salad bar options include “PB” and J, tuna and egg salad, three bean salads, pasta salads, fruit, and yes, salad!

Sample Dinners •H oney Mustard/BBQ/Italian Baked Chicken • Spaghetti and Meatballs •H amburger and Hotdog Outdoor BBQ with all the fixings! (chicken wings, potato salad, baked beans, pasta salad, watermelon, salad bar, bug juice, brownies, and much more) • Pasta Primavera • Turkey Cutlets with Thanksgiving Style Sides • Chicken Stir Fry • BBQ Beef Sandwiches with Seasoned Orzo • Sloppy Joes with French fries • Eggplant Parmesan with Garlic Bread • Make Your Own Hoagie Night The salad bar at dinner is very similar to the lunch time salad bar, plus has a specialty salad and another something “special” such as Jell-o.

All dinners include dessert.

Shabbat On Shabbat, meals are very special. A large Friday night dinner is served with several courses. Shabbat breakfast is actually in the middle of T’fillot, thus breaking up the services for children. Shabbat lunch is a lavish buffet, with over twenty choices! Dinner Saturday night is dairy, and usually includes a pasta such as macaroni and cheese, or lasagna, plus a vegetable, side dishes, and ice cream and popsicles for dessert!

Vegetarian options are available for all meals.

All meals are peanut free. Lactose free meals are available as well.

Camp menus are created by professionals in the foodservice industry. Nutritionists are consulted to ensure that the options are not only fun and tasty for children, but wholesome as well. We do not add Trans fats and do not fry in oil that has Trans fats.

We also try to bake (versus fry) things whenever possible, such as chicken.

Our entire kitchen is Glatt Kosher, with a Mashgiah Timidi, one who supervises to ensure that everything is kosher at all times. Further supervision is provided by our Executive Director, Rabbi Seltzer, as well as Rabbi Roth of the Jewish Theological Seminary.

Ramah Vocabulary

In order to achieve a Hebrew environment at Ramah, we use Hebrew for most places, names, events, activities, etc.

We use the Hebrew terms exclusively so that campers come to identify the place or activity by its Hebrew name.

The Names and Grades for each of our ,usg (Edot) – Divisions – are: Yedidim Notzitzim Tze’erim Halutzim Bogrim Machon Shoafim Gesher

ohshsh Tikvah campers ohmmub 3rd & 4th Grades ohrhgm 5th Grade ohmukj 6th Grade ohrduc 7th Grade iufn 8th Grade ohptua 9th Grade rad 10th Grade

Should your child write about:

You will know it means:

Places Chadar Ochel Hanutiyah Beit Am Agam Breicha “The Marp”

Dining Room Canteen Social Hall Lake Pool Infirmary

People Tzrif Edah Tzevet Rosh Edah Madatz / Madatzit Madrich / Madricha Activities Rikkud Shira Maccabiah Yom Doar Peulat Erev Omanut Kadoor Sal T’fillot Tiyul Schiya Petzah (Peulat Tzrifv’edah) Kav Reches Mitbachon Beeshul Teva Shmirah Perek Yitzirah Machazeh “Etgar”

kfut rsj vh,ubj og ,hc odt vfhrc vtprn ;hrm vsg ,uum vsg atr ,hm'sn/.''sn vfhrsn/lhrsn

Bunk Division Staff Division Head Junior Counselor Counselor

suehr Dance vrha Singing vhcfn Color War rtus ouh Letter Writing Day crg ,kugp Evening Activities ,ubnt Arts & Crafts kx rusf Basketball ,ukhp, Services kuhy Out of Camp Trip vhhja Swim g''mp Bunk or Edah Activities xfr ue Hiking/Camping iujcyn Little Kitchen kuahc Outdoor Cooking gcy Nature vrhna Night Patrol erp Activity Period vrhmh Activities (non-sport) vzjn Play (drama) rd,t Ropes Course

‫זה‬ !‫עברית‬

Camp Song Mistak’lim al Migrash Banim V’omrim: “Eizeh Nof Madhim” K’sh’haShemesh yoredet l’yad Beit haAm Ein makom yoter yafeh ba’olam Rak Po – b’Poconos!

Chozrim HaBayitah, haDerekh Arukah Chozrim HaBayitah, l’Machaneh Ramah Chozrim HaBayitah, Ramah.

Holchim, yad b’yad LaChadar Olim v’yordim me’al haEtgar Kol kayitz mitkar’vim echad la’sheini U’fitom – laNetzach chaverim!

Rad HaYom Rad HaYom Shemesh Dom Cochavim Notzitzim BaMarom Lilah Ba Leil M’nuchah Shalom Shalom

Word Games

CAMP RAMAH CROSSWORD PUZZLE ACROSS

DOWN

3 An age group or division at Camp 4 A type of meal we have Wednesday nights outside with hamburgers, hot dogs and watermelon!

7 The name of our Camp Infirmary 8 Place where the whole camp has Friday night services 9 The Hebrew word for community 10 An activity offered at Camp that uses a bow and arrow 11 A friend you would share a bunk bed with 12 An activity that can be done on the lake, without getting wet

1 The Hebrew word for your counselors 2 A sport you can play at Camp with a ball and a hoop 5 Something to make sure you don’t get burned!

6 You should have this with you at all times so you don’t get dehydrated or thirsty!

11 The building where you and all of your friends will sleep at night

WORD SCRAMBLE

CAMP RAMAH WORD SEARCH L

E H C O R A D A H C

C E S Z L

J

H A M A R

A O K M W L Q G T N R H F U A O G Y A G S

J

C R K N L R B B O

P

I

I

E E

J

B W S B E N N R Q L

L A E O S A R L

R N D H X C L G M T

J

B D S X O W T O W P B D S K P Y E BREICHA RAMAH CHADAR OCHEL COUNSELOR

J M R

FRIENDS SHABBAT POCONOS

J

R

LAKE SMORES ETGAR

Try your best to unscramble the words below! B’hatzlacha! (good luck)

1. ocPoson __ __ __ __ __ __ __ 2. kiowFresr __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ 3. aiahbcacM __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ 4. Ymo raesliY __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ 5. mUal ptSro __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ 6. abSatbh __ __ __ __ __ __ __ 7. Rhso hdaE __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __

2100 Arch Street Philadelphia, PA 19103

See You in ! ! s o n o c o P e th !‫שלום‬

Summer Contact Info: 2618 Upper Woods Road, Lakewood, PA 18439 • Phone: 570-798-2504 • Fax: 570-798-2049