This week, Capital Camps feels full of beginnings once again — from the first walk down the hill, to the sounds of campers settling into cabins, to the familiar rhythm of ruach beginning to fill our community.
The energy of Second Session has given way to new cabin friendships, familiar camp songs, meals in the Chadar Ochel, evenings on the hill, and the anticipation of celebrating our first Shabbat together as a new Capital Camps community begins to take shape.
As part of our Parasha Project, we continue exploring Torah portions that are traditionally read outside the camp season, giving campers the opportunity to engage with stories and values they might otherwise miss during the summer. This week, campers explored Vayera and ChayeiSarah.
In Vayera, Abraham’s first instinct is to welcome strangers into his tent with generosity and care. Later, he advocates for the people of Sodom, demonstrating a deep sense of responsibility for others, even those beyond his own family. Throughout the parashah, we are reminded that holiness is often found not only in extraordinary moments, but in the everyday choices to notice another person, extend kindness, and create space for others to feel welcome.
Chayei Sarah shifts our attention to what comes next. As Abraham seeks a partner for Isaac, the Torah introduces us to Rebecca, whose character is revealed not through words, but through an act of generosity as she offers water not only to a stranger, but to all of his camels. It is a small act with lasting consequences. The parashah reminds us that communities and legacies are built through values lived consistently, one interaction at a time.
Those ideas feel especially meaningful during the first week of a new session.
Every invitation to join a game on the field, every counselor who notices a camper having a difficult moment, every bunkmate who makes room at the table in the Chadar Ohel, every cabin conversation before lights out, and every cheer of encouragement at an activity helps create the kind of Capital Camps community we aspire to be. These moments may seem small on their own, but together they become the foundation of a summer — and the memories, friendships, Jewish values, and sense of belonging our campers carry home with them.
As we celebrate our first Shabbat of Second Session at Capital Camps, may we embrace the opportunity that every new beginning offers — not only to meet new friends, try new activities, or learn new camp traditions, but to become the kind of Jewish camp community that Abraham and Sarah modeled: one where every camper and staff member feels welcomed, valued, supported, and truly at home.
Shabbat Shalom,
Havi Goldscher, CEO