SHLICHA’S VIEW WITH EYNAV DAHAN Israeli summer camp 101

In order to tell you about our camps, I need to give you a little vocabulary first:

Keytana: Day camp.

I don’t really know much about American summer camps, as I’ve never been to one. I do remember as a kid watching movies and TV shows set in American camps and always wanting to take part in one. Each one had a theme (like Disney’s “Camp Rock”!), and I thought it would be so fun to be in a camp like that. So I am very excited to take part in the JCC day camp this summer, even if it’s not as one of the kids.

Israeli summer camps are very different from the camps here. They are day camps that take place in matnasim (community centers) with groups for grades 1 to 6.

Madatz: A young counselor who spends one day a week learning how to be a counselor. They are ages 14 to 18 and pretty much run the keytana. Each madatz is assigned to an age group in the keytana, two madatzim for each group.

Kvutza: Age group in the keytana. The sentence you hear most in the keytana is, “Eyfo ha kvutza shelcha?”

(Where is your group?) Because the kids love to be all over the place.

Himnon: Anthem.

OK. Now that you’re all caught up, I can start telling you more.

The first day of keytana is always like this: The kids in each kvutza meets their madatz and start thinking of a name for the kvutza. It’s usually something like Hasholtim (the Controllers) or Hashvim (the Best). And then the kids start working on the group’s himnon, an anthem for the group that follows a familiar melody but with lyrics such as, “We are the best. / All the other groups are gross….” You know, normal.

Then the kids create a big poster with the name of the kvutza. At the end of the day, there’s an assembly where all the groups sing their hearts out trying to show the other groups they are the best.

During the summer the keytana will have fun days indoors, go to the pool and go to every fun place Israel has to offer: Luna Park, Luna Gal, Gai Beach and more. By the end of the summer, the kids feel like the madatzim are their big siblings.

And how could I forget the best part? Shoko be’lachmania! Cold choco late milk and a bun in a bag. You take one bite of the bun and pour the chocolate milk inside and eat it. It sounds weird, but even as an adult, I highly recommend this as a treat!

They met with me to discuss how to proceed in training their son for bar mitzvah in two years. They wanted me to teach him and lead a service for him. Having prepared hundreds of children, studied all aspects of bar mitzvah training in cantorial school and led countless bar mitzvah services, I certainly could ensure their son excellent training.

But that is not what bar mitzvah is about. I was concerned that the young man would not have the full experience because he was not enrolled in religious school where he could share his experience with other students and publicly acknowledge that he was accepting the responsibilities of an adult in the Jewish community in front of that community. I told the parents to join a synagogue and enroll him in religious school as my shul, Temple Shirat Shalom, does not have one. I think they understood what I was saying and will follow my advice. In this crazy world we live in, many of us feel alienated, and our children feel that as well. Of course, the pandemic only added to the feelings of loneliness. Now more than ever our children need to belong and be connected to something larger than themselves. JCC camp and our synagogues can be an antidote to loneliness and depression. I would add joining our Federation and volunteering for Jewish Family Service. Getting out to meet people, as well as helping others, will make our reentrance into the world after the isolation of the pandemic a joyful positive thing.