On Tisha B’Av, ex-ultra-Orthodox Jew mourns destruction of ‘personal temple’

NEW YORK – For Srully Stein, Tisha B’Av is about more than commemorating the destruction of the First and Second Temples: It represents the loss he faced after he decided to leave the ultra-Orthodox community he was born into.Hailing from a rabbinical dynasty, Stein, 23, grew up in an ultra-Orthodox family in Williamsburg, New York. At age 18 he met his wife for just a few moments before they were engaged. They had a son, but he dreamt of college and the world outside his insular community. After struggling with conflicting feelings, Stein left the insular community and divorced his wife.

Ramah in the NewsNRC WebmasterJuly 24, 2015Nyack, Reshet Ramah

Ramah to open camp in Northern California

The Conservative movement’s Ramah camp network is opening a new overnight camp in northern California.Camp Ramah in Northern California will open in summer 2016, the National Ramah Commission announced in a news release. In addition to offering standard Jewish camp activities, the new camp will offer specialties in performing arts, outdoor adventure and marine biology.

Ramah in the NewsNRC WebmasterJuly 20, 2015Galim

Riding For Ramah

For Ben Yellin and Jeff Brand, of Swampscott and Marblehead respectively, participating in the Ramah Israel Bike Ride fundraiser to support special needs camp programs was a no-brainer. Both are avid riders, both love Israel, and both have sons who attended the Tikvah program at Camp Ramah in Palmer as youngsters and, last summer, as adults. Yellin, 59, who rode 257 miles, said the May 12-19 trip was an opportunity to reconnect with some of the people he had met when he did the ride in 2013. “The ride was like a reunion for me. The bond was amazing,” he said.

Jewish Outreach Goes to Camp Ramah

Jewish outreach on college campuses and through synagogues has, over the past two decades, become the norm. We are no longer surprised to hear that freshmen who never self-identified as Jews were invited to a Shabbat dinner on campus, or that synagogues are revamping their schools to accommodate competition from soccer practice and the plethora of activities many families choose over their children’s Jewish education.

Ramah in the News, AlumniNRC WebmasterMay 21, 2015National Ramah, Reshet Ramah, Abigail Treu

New Partnership Between JDate and Ramah Aims to Connect Camp Alumni

The first-ever partnership between JDate and a Jewish camping movement has launched. A project of the Reshet Ramah alumni and community engagement initiative, RamahDate will offer former Ramah campers and staff members the opportunity to connect online with other Ramah alumni 18 years of age and older who share the passion for vibrant Jewish life that characterizes the Camp Ramah experience.

Alumni, Ramah in the News, AnnouncementsNRC WebmasterMay 17, 2015RamahDate, Reshet Ramah

This New Dating Site Fulfills Every Camp Person's Lifelong Dream

Laugh all you want at the recent rise of "adult summer camps," with their booze-soaked mess halls and raucous grown-up dodgeball games. If the trend indicates anything, it's this: There's something special about camp that you never want to give up.That lifelong devotion and (let's just say it) obsession with summer camp is behind the latest online dating venture. On Friday, prominent Jewish online dating site JDate announced the launch of RamahDate, a partnership with Camp Ramah to create the first camp-specific online dating network of its kind. The tagline? "Find your future bunkmate."

Ramah in the NewsNRC WebmasterMay 15, 2015Reshet Ramah, RamahDate

Family pays tribute to Tikvah program

For the past five years, 20-year-old Adam Berzin of Ramsey has spent his summers at Camp Ramah Wisconsin, at the camp’s Tikvah program.

Created more than 40 years ago and offered at nine Ramah camps in the United States and Canada, Tikvah welcomes children, teens, and young adults with a wide range of learning, developmental, cognitive, and social disabilities, “enhancing Jewish identity and teaching Jewish values in a supportive, inclusive, fun environment,” according to its website.

Tikvah/Special Needs, Ramah in the NewsNRC WebmasterFebruary 13, 2015Tikvah, Wisconsin, JDAIM, Voc-Ed

Ramah’s special needs programs turn a camp into a home

Like many children and teenagers, Michael Rosenbaum of Los Feliz sees going to summer camp as a highlight of his year.

He relishes the outdoor activities, cooking classes, swimming, dancing and games at Camp Ramah in Ojai. He enjoys connecting with his Jewish heritage through daily celebrations and songs, and he especially loves seeing his camp friends from previous years. And, since last summer, the 18-year-old has been thrilled at the opportunity to work at the camp as a cooking teacher’s assistant.

Tikvah/Special Needs, Ramah in the NewsNRC WebmasterFebruary 5, 2015Tikvah, JDAIM, Voc-Ed

Inclusion Comes from the Top – and the Bottom, and Middle

On a recent ten-day Tikvah Ramah Israel trip, twelve participants with disabilities, ages 18-40, were treated to a once-in-a-lifetime visit to a 1,000-soldier army base. Admittedly, other tour groups visit army bases; our group spent three hours at the MAZI/Bar-Lev base near Kiryat Milachi, where soldiers – in full uniform – with Down Syndrome, autism, and other intellectual disabilities are “just soldiers.”

Tikvah/Special Needs, Ramah in the News, Blog/ReflectionsNRC WebmasterFebruary 4, 2015Howard Blas, Tikvah, Israel, JDAIM