Camp Essman Gadol
Camp Essman Katan
Nature
Camp is going by so quickly! This week our theme was USA. We got in the spirit of Independence Day by creating the American flag, camp-style, by painting twigs and sticks and arranging them like the flag. Patriotic wind socks were fun to make, as were our red, white, and blue beaded bracelets. The gaga pit was completed, and our campers have loved playing gaga! We had a visit from the police department, and the officer brought Olla, his police dog. She was full of energy, showing off while the officer talked about her and the great things she does.
Week Five went by as fast as the fireworks! We had so much fun this week. We picked purple beans from our garden. They were magic! When we put them in boiling water they turned GREEN! On Friday, we cleaned and cooked a big pot of the purple beans. They tasted really good, too! We have other vegetables growing in our garden. Everyone is looking forward to cooking and eating them, too!
It seems as though the natural world is enjoying the cool weather as much as the humans are. Birds are singing and other animals are more active.
In cooking, we made yummy Fourth of July sparklers with pretzel rods dipped in white chocolate, and rolled in red, white, and blue sprinkles. We finished off our week with a field trip to Purina Farms, and then came back to camp for some swimming, and “Duct tape for Oklahoma.” The campers are having fun with this fundraiser for Oklahoma tornado victims. Matt Stern (counselor, aka Fuzzy) and I were on The Big 550 KTRS radio Wednesday morning talking about what the campers are doing to help Oklahoma. We strive to have fun here at camp, and also to instill in our campers how important and wonderful it is to help others. The campers get it, and we are so proud of what we do!
In swimming, we are having a great time. The campers are really becoming good swimmers. We looked at flowers in our garden in Nature and then made flowers in Art. We love singing under the big tree with Miss Sally. We had Sports inside this week because it was raining. The gym is so much fun to play in. Next week we are looking forward to learning about Israel.
This being St. Louis, at some point our summer is bound to get hot and dry. Some groups made insect oases. Beneficial insects need water, so we can help them out when it is dry and hot. Bees drink from puddles; butterflies drink and get minerals from mud in the puddles as well. Our oases have stones so the insects can land, and mud at the bottom for minerals. For the time being, though, there is plenty of water for wildlife. Some groups saw woodpeckers and American goldfinches at the bird feeder, but the real sight this week was the discovery of two patches of trilliums, along with a lot of moss and ferns, back in the woods. Trilliums have an interesting way to propagate: ants take the fruit back to their ant hills, but do not eat the seeds. Each ant hill has a section where the ants toss their trash, and the seeds wind up there. The loose, fertile soil is perfect for growing another plant. Until next week, enjoy the outdoors!
2013 JCC Day Camp Splatter July 5, 2013 / 27 Tamuz 5773 Vol. 7 - Issue 5
Sixth Annual Tiyul for Hunger Summer 2013 marks the sixth annual Tiyul (March) for Hunger program, sponsored by the J Day Camps and the Harvey Kornblum Jewish Food Pantry. The event will take place on Wednesday, July 31 at 1:15pm, starting at the J Day Camp Pavilion and ending on the shelves of the Harvey Kornblum Jewish Food Pantry. Our goal this year is to exceed 14,000 food items to be delivered by our campers and staff. Over the past five summers, we have delivered almost 12,000 food items, so we need more than 2,000 items to reach our goal. All summer camp staff members, campers and families collect food at both JCC campuses in a fun competition to see which group can collect the most. This Tiyul or march, with more than 400 campers and staff, streams across the campus and Schuetz Road, in an effort to illustrate to the community and our campers that giving to the less fortunate is an important value. We have decided to focus our collections on canned fruits, vegetables and macaroni and cheese this summer. According to Marcia Mermelstein, Volunteer Coordinator of the Pantry, “we are looking for healthy/hardy items; these can be the most important foods for children and families.”
Over the next three weeks, we hope our storage areas at both campuses will turn into “mini” food pantries themselves, but WE NEED YOUR HELP! Please bring macaroni and cheese or a canned vegetable or fruit item to help replenish the shelves of the Harvey Kornblum Jewish Food Pantry. Then on July 31, our campers and staff members, arms full of healthy food, will march down the street with a “swagger,” feeling great about giving back to the community. For every 10 items a camper brings, he/she will receive a raffle ticket. On August 2, we will draw winners who will get to choose a counselor to “pie” in the face. There is no limit on how many tickets a camper can receive, so keep bringing in food. More tickets means more chances to win and the more cans and food the better! And, the winning group will receive a cookie cake. Happy Camping, Joey Boime, Director J Day Camps
Shabbat Shalom
Staenberg Family Complex 2 Millstone Campus Drive St. Louis, MO 63146
Marilyn Fox Building
16801 Baxter Road Chesterfield, MO 63005
314-432-5700 jccstl.org
Discover the Spirit
Camp Kehillah
Camp Kehillah
Hyman Multin Sports Track
Gymnastics, Cheer, & Dance Track
In addition to the sports activities the campers play with their counselors, each group will also have a few periods a week that center on the “Sport Focus” of the week. Sports coordinator Kyle Harrigan provides campers with sportspecific skill instruction followed by games. With the NBA and NHL playoffs all wrapped up, and Major League Baseball in full swing, there can only be one thing left for ESPN and camp to cover: football. Since training camp for most NFL teams is only a few weeks away, what better way to prepare them than to make Flag Football our sports focus? Over the past week, we have engaged in a series of drills to help prepare campers for the upcoming football season. From running routes to throwing spirals and dodging defense, campers were able to get a taste of the football experience. For those campers interested in playing flag football in the fall, visit our website for information about our upcoming flag football league sponsored by the St. Louis Rams. The sports camp award-winners from the previous week were Jacob B. from group #3 and counselor Diana R. from group #1. Congratulations to both!
This week revolutionized the era of a new week of fun games, gymnastic lessons, swimming, and pillow art. Campers proudly wore their stars and stripes on Wednesday to acknowledge the true meaning of patriotism. We cheered our way to victory during the Shabbat performance on Friday. Camp Kehillah
Fourth of July banner for Wacky Wednesday’s flag pole. They watched An American Girl movie about a girl from The Great Depression named Kit, ate popcorn and decorated their own popcorn bags. On Wednesday, campers made noise makers to compete with the fireworks and played fun theatre games. Finally, campers made customized pillows with the resident artist. Next week kicks off four weeks of specialized arts camps and first up is Around the World in a Week where campers will “visit” Kenya, Japan, Mexico, England and Israel!
Milton Frank Camp of the Arts
Camp Nat Koplar
Camp of the Arts FOX Camp of the Arts created culinary treats all week in Cooking Camp! Everything they made was food art that could be easily made at home using only a toaster oven and utensils. The recipes make great after-school snacks and fun family cooking projects that are ready in a jiff. On Monday, campers made Cinnamon Toast Houses and cookbooks. On Tuesday, they made tropical fruit palm trees with bananas, kiwis and oranges. They also created healthy vs. junk food puppets and began writing scripts. Wednesday was chock-full of food including Orange Fizz Floats, Clown Face English Muffins and Chocolate Covered Pretzels in cooking class. On Friday, they made Veggie Critters with hummus, cucumbers, olives, carrots and tomatoes; creative, delicious and nutritious! The week was also full of theatre games with a food twist and lots of swimming, despite one rainy day. Next week, Camp of the Arts campers will reach the Big Top with Circus week, which includes three visits from City Museum’s Circus Harmony and campers creating their very own show for the other campers at Shabbat on Friday!
The Kids in Nat Koplar are halfway through the summer. We have had a great time this week even though the temperatures have been a little chilly. We moved indoors for the rain day and the campers have enjoyed the break.
Camp of the Arts SFC Camp of the Arts celebrated the USA all week with red, white and blue projects. Campers made their very own American flags, some with jewels and glitter. Tuesday brought lots of rain but arts campers had plenty to do inside. They made pipe cleaner critters in Nature, painted festive nails, decorated t-shirts and made a
In Art, the campers had a great time watching and creating with exploding paint. We found that if you put a piece of Alka Seltzer in with paint and water and then put it in a film container and shake it up, the top will explode – leaving paint on the canvas. The paintings turned out really well and the kids had a great time getting the containers to POP. We hope everyone had a cool and fun time on July 4th. In science, the campers made ice cream. They had a great time shaking the bag with the ice and salt. We were lucky that none of the bags of ice cream opened, creating a funny taste. The campers were able to flavor their ice cream in a cup with different flavor syrups. Fun was had by all!
We have been adding campers all summer and it has been wonderful watching them enter into the groups as if they have been there the entire summer. I love the way young children are so open and kind to each other. If you are interested in adding weeks to Nat Koplar, spots are available through Week Nine. Have a great weekend and Shabbat Shalom.
Maccabi Sports Camp
Camp Kehillah
Sidney R. Baer Track The low humidity amped up our fun at Baer this week. We welcomed an artist-in-residence and campers marble-ized fabric to create a colorful, fluffy pillow, perfect for the après-camp rest! The turnout for our Wacky Wednesday theme of Stars and Stripes proved successful as campers arrived decked out in red, white and blue. To capture our USA pride, we made pretzel firecrackers, bursting with flare and sweetness. During Mitzvah Mania, we held a Boston Tea Party challenge. Before the rains came, campers made insect oases for nature. During inside time, we played four-corner dodge ball, made beaded bracelets, enjoyed musical games, had plastic cup challenges, decorated nature scenes, challenged our friends at various board games and even watched a movie as we munched on some popcorn. Families are always invited to our weekly Shabbat celebration in the Performing Arts Center on Fridays beginning at 1:30pm. Please check our lost and found bin for articles of clothing, towels or water bottles.
Ben Akiba Teen Mitzvah Camp It was another crazy week at Teen Camp. After sorting enough meals to feed 4,000 people, we made pillows and designed our own sunglasses. Some may have thought that rain would have stopped our plans for a Tuesday night camp-out. Instead we “camped out” in the Performing Arts Center. After a delicious hot dog dinner in the pavilion, grilled by Joey Boime himself, we roasted marshmallows and had s’mores. We then watched a few movies on the projector screen. Our Wednesday field trip was bowling at Olivette Lanes followed by our counselor Lexi’s favorite restaurant, Happy Joe’s. Special shoutout this week to Isabella G., our camper of the week and Ilya G., our counselor of the week!
Wet and Wild Camp What an interesting and fun week of camp! This week we debuted something new in Maccabi Sports: Wet & Wild Camp. Although the weather was not great at the beginning of the week (temps in the 60s and 70s and rain), it did not deter our crew from having fun. On Monday, we walked to the Chesterfield Pool and had a great time both on the walk singing songs and taking in the beautiful surroundings, and then again at the pool as we bascially had the whole place to ourselves! On Tuesday, we were supposed to go to Six Flags but Mother Nature was not in a cooperative mood, so we made a change on the fly and took the bus to the Chesterfield Mall for a special Monster’s University screening. Finally, on Wednesday, we were able to get out to Six Flags for the best time ever! Campers enjoyed just about every ride in the park plus Hurricane Harbor before returning to campus. Campers were heard saying “this is the best day ever” and “I love camp,” great things to hear as the director of camp. After a much needed day of rest for staff and campers, we recharged and went to Raging Rivers Water Park in Grafton, Illinois. Another great time for all! Everyone seemed to have a tremendous time this week, enjoying new experiences and seeing some new places and things. We will definitely do Wet & Wild again next summer. See you all next week for Baseball week!