Director's Corner - Saturday, August 3
Saturday, August 3, 2024
We Are Family
We are family
I got all my sisters with me
We are family
Get up, everybody, and sing
We are family
I got all my sisters with me
We are family
Get up, everybody, and sing
Everyone can see we're together
As we walk on by
(And) And we flock just like birds of a feather
I won't tell no lie
(All) All of the people around us, they say
"Can they be that close?"
Just let me state for the record
We're giving love in a family dose
Today was a warm but perfect day which created the perfect backdrop for our final Shabbat.
At morning GA, campers could be seen all over playing games with friends, hanging out in the hammock park relaxed and having fun as a leisurely start to the day, followed by breakfast on the Island. I was able to play some pickleball and Baggo! What a great start to the morning. (By the way, a huge thanks to the CITs who take down the hammocks every Friday so I’m able to wash them once a week!)
This morning at services, campers continued to impress me with their leadership in services and the sound of over 400 people singing the prayers all together in one space filled me with tremendous joy. Saturday Torah Live, led by our CITs once again captivated the camp audience with their unique take on this Shabbat’s Torah portion.
After a moving and beautiful service we gathered in our Mishpaha groups to reflect on our theme of sacred community. Having began our Mishpaha program in the first week, spending time together during Maccabiah and now during the last Mikud, our camp families are able to solidify their bonds that hopefully will transcend into summers to come. Being that the theme for this shabbat was Kehillah Kedosha, sacred community, this really drove that concept home with a camp family that has a shared experience for the summer.
In Shabbat programming this afternoon, Ramot had some amazing Shabboptions including Sababa Slam Dunk, Shalom Stretch Yoga/Gymnastics, L'Chaim Latin Dance, Simcha Stitching: Crochet Basics, Beading Blessing Bracelets, Mazel Mahjong, and Ultimate Frisbee Tov. These creative activities as well having some customization in their programming create the perfect opportunity for real enjoyment. I was able to play Ultimate Frisbee Tov and Sababa Slam Dunk! I definitely enjoyed my time with Ramot!
Kesher participated in the Kehillah Quest, a bunk scavenger hunt all around camp with tasks that had to be completed with video proof of completion. It was funny listening to the campers solve the riddles and clues and complete tasks like singing the Birkat together. .Makor campers used ipads and went around filming places where they thought the sacred community was in camp and filmed what happened there in some really cute film clips. Their program was called Kehillah Chronicles: Sacred Community in Video. I want to give a huge shout out to Lara and our Jewish Life team. Their dedication to bringing creative and fun Jewish programming to the campers this summer is outstanding. It really makes Shabbat special.
Campers also had a period of free swim at the pool which was very refreshing on a warm day. They also played four way dodgeball for their Maccabi Games period which was a ton of fun and a nice spin on the traditional dodgeball.
We ended the night with our final Havdalah. The night was beautiful and emotional as we sang “Bless This House '' one last time in the Amphitheater. We watched a slideshow of pictures and videos from the three day trips which was incredible to see all of the smiling faces from the campers and hear their cheers when their trip pictures came up. The setting of these trips made the perfect backdrop for some incredible photos. We also announced this week's cabin clean up winners. Stay tuned for the overall summer winner as the final week of cleanup scores are tallied.
There is a feeling that time here is coming to an end and that we should savor the moments and bottle them up to carry us through until the next time we get back together on the shores of Lake Beulah.
P.S. Congratulations to the following who knew that Richard Marx sang "Hold on to the Nights.”
Dennis P
Ronit R
Amy B
Brian B
P.S. - Today’s question: Who sang ““We Are Family”?” Email your answer to trivia@bebercamp.com for a shoutout in tomorrow’s blog!