We can’t believe we are already over one week into the summer! There’s been lots of fun happening all over camp the last few days. We loved spending Shabbat all together with a camp-style service, Shabbat dinner, our classic song session, and rikkud (dancing)! While there is so much adventure and fun happening around camp, the adventures are also taking place outside of camp too! Our Leaders-In-Training (LITs) are having a blast on their Israel trip and our Counselors-In-Training had a meaningful community service trip experience in Richmond, Virginia. 

While the rest of our campers were heading to Waynesboro last Sunday, 60 Leaders-In-Training (LITs) flew to Israel to begin a wonderful three-week adventure!

Highlights of the LIT Israel trip so far include:

• A scavenger hunt around the Old City of Jerusalem
• Exploring the mystical city of Tzfat
• A team-building program with teens from Ashkelon (Baltimore’s sister city) 
• A boat cruise around the Sea of Galilee 

Back in America, our Counselors-In-Training (CITs) completed their service trip in Richmond, Virginia.

Highlights of their trip included:

• Volunteering at the Weinstein JCC’s Camp Hilbert
• Creating Boredom Bags for FeedMore, a local hunger relief organization
• Learning about Ukrainian culture and creating Freedom Bags for Ukrainian Independence Day
• Spending time in the Carytown neighborhood
• Visiting the Virginia Holocaust Museum

Our CITs are now back on camp and already jumping into all their favorite programs. They helped lead activities for our Taste of Camp program for prospective families yesterday and are already looking forward to getting their cabins and specialty assignments next week! 

We can’t wait to see how our Leadership Program participants continue to grow and learn throughout the rest of the summer! 

Have A Great Day!

Ilana Kornblatt

Assistant Camp Director

One of the most special things about returning to camp summer after summer (this is my 10th year!) is watching the tremendous growth that happens throughout the camp lifecycle. Not only is it incredible seeing the confidence campers gain in a few short weeks, but year to year.

Perhaps the most significant growth is the leap between camper to staff. Our LIT and CIT programs prepare these young adults for the transition, but the investment in them continues into their staff journey through the agency’s commitment to staff development.

Throughout the summer, counselors get paired with a mentor for ongoing, real-time coaching. They also engage in weekly staff development lunches to help translate all of the things they are learning working at camp to marketable career skills.

This week, I had the pleasure of co-leading the first round of these staff development lunches. The highlight of these lunches stretched beyond the content of the session itself. What stands out to me is the counselor’s answers to the icebreaker question, “What has made you smile or laugh in the past 24 hours?”

Their answers illuminated the incredible bonds forming between campers and staff in just the first week of the session. If these small glimpses into cabin life are an indication of the larger impact the counselors make, I know your camper will come home with special memories and Jewish role models they’ll remember for years to come.

Deborah Silver

Summer Programming Associate

In this week’s Torah portion, mayim, the Hebrew word for water is mentioned 22 times.  There is the commandment to mix water with the ashes of a red cow for purification, the well which provided the Israelites with water disappears when Miriam dies, and Moses strikes the rock in anger to bring forth water. What lessons can we learn from this “water narrative” that are relative to camp?

The opportunity to be outside in nature is something we often take for granted at camp. As campers splash in the lake, take care of the animals at the farm, and sit by the stream, there are ample opportunities to explore and appreciate the nature around us. Seeing a colorful sunset, an occasional rainbow and star gazing with friends are important components of a Capital Camps’ summer.    

This past week the wildfires in Canada necessitated increased indoor programing. This change taught us two important lessons. First, it helped increase our appreciation of nature.  Losing some precious time outside reminded us how much we enjoy all that this beautiful campus has to offer.  This week was also filled with lessons about flexibility, creativity, and resilience.

Between an impromptu song session with our Benjamin campers, a multi-village Bingo game with camp swag for prizes, and even a Kaufmann Village rock concert including a visit from “Taylor Swift”, our campers and staff engaged in innovative and fun activities.

As we conclude our first week at camp, we are looking forward to seeing what Reich Village prepared during their Shabbat prep time.  We will sing, dance, pray and reflect on the week. Our CITs will return from their incredible Richmond Community Service trip in time to help us welcome in the Sabbath, while our LITs will have their own camp-style Shabbat in Israel.

We entered camp as individuals and by the end of the week have become a Kehillah, or community.  We can’t wait to taste the challah made by some of our Benjamin campers! We are grateful for the natural beauty of camp and grateful to be together.    

Shabbat Shalom!

Lisa Handelman

Camp Director

Sports are one of the many ways campers come together every day at camp. They are encouraged, welcomed, and sometimes challenged outside of their comfort zone. Regardless of the competitive outcome, I love seeing campers leave their sport laughing with a bunch of new familiar faces who help this place feel even more like home. Just yesterday during chug, I watched a rousing game of soccer with Benjamin and Reich campers. Watching campers of mixed ages branch out of their typical friend groups and unite them through the spirit of friendly competition is one of the things that make camp special. 

Each week, campers in Rookie and Benjamin Village have the chance to participate in some of the different sports we offer at camp. Campers in Reich, Kaufmann, and Macks Villages choose what they would like to participate in each week. The sports we have offered so far include soccer, basketball, tennis, Zumba, volleyball, archery, lacrosse, and 9 Square in the Air.

Through these activities, they are developing physical skills, making new friends, learning to work together, playing fairly, and trying new things. I have truly enjoyed watching your campers experience success and connection through sports this week. It’s so much more than exercise! 

Jess Dvorak

Sports Coordinator