Coming Together As One

When you’re a counselor working with campers who have disabilities, you’re always on the lookout for new ways and activities to help engage the campers under your charge. There is no better way to pick up these new tips and tricks than to spend time exchanging information and experiences with other counselors who work with the same population. This is precisely what I did during the last week of May at the National Ramah Spring Leadership Training Conference at Ramah Darom in Clayton, Georgia. I spent the week collaborating with and learning from counselors from other camps all over the country who also work with campers with disabilities.

On Collaboration, Inclusion, and Community

Staff Leadership Training, Tikvah/Special Needs, Blog/ReflectionsNRC WebmasterJune 17, 2014Tikvah, Rockies

Collaboration Is the Key: URJ and Ramah Working Together to Help Campers with Disabilities

For the past five summers, I have had the honor of working for the Mitzvah Corps program at URJ Kutz Camp. Mitzvah Corps is a special needs camping program for teens with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). The program’s mission is to honor the unique characteristics of every camper and provide access to Jewish camping by creating individualized accommodations and modifications that allow every camper to succeed. So when my camp and I heard that National Ramah invited the URJ Camps to their Spring Leadership Training Conference training at Ramah Darom, we saw it as a great opportunity to collaborate with a different camp movement whose mission closely aligned with our own.

Teaching self-care to counselors who work with campers with disabilities

I distinctly remember the day at camp when I sat with one of my campers outside the chadar ochel while she struggled to make it from the meal to the next activity. Something about going from the meal to the tent gave her anxiety. The way she showed it, however, was through bouts of screaming, crying, and some not-so-kind words. We sat for what felt like centuries in the same spot. I tried everything to cajole her from her perch, but nothing I tried worked. I felt increasingly defeated as the minutes ticked by without any resolution. My supervisor ended up coming around the corner and said, “Jenna, tap out.” To “tap out” means to take a break or let someone else tackle the problem. This was a crucial moment in my development as a counselor in Tikvah [one of the Ramah programs for campers with disabilities]. It was when I started to understand the role that self-care plays in my job as a counselor to children with special needs.

Investing in Our Future: National Ramah Spring Leadership Training Conference 2014

Bill Gates once said, “As we look ahead into the next century, leaders will be those who empower others.” These words could not ring more true for the nearly 100 young leaders in Jewish camping who attended last week’s 2014 National Ramah Spring Leadership Training Conference, hosted at Ramah Darom in sunny Clayton, Georgia. From the moment the buses rolled into camp, the energy and enthusiasm from the staff were incredible. As one staff member commented, “I can’t wait to be immersed in a community of people who care about camp as much as I do, who each have a passion for Jewish education, leadership, and fun.” (View our highlight video here.)

An amazing four days with colleagues in special needs camping

At last week’s National Ramah Spring Leadership Training Conference, staff members from special needs programs at Ramah camps, Union of Reform Judaism (URJ) camps, and other Jewish camps joined together to share best practices and learn from one another. Although this is the fourth year of Ramah’s training program for staff from throughout the Ramah network of Tikvah and other special needs programs, this was the first time that staff members from different movements who work with children with disabilities have had the opportunity to participate in professional development training together.

Ramah Poconos Planning New Special Needs Program

Fueled with a grant from two elderly philanthropic sisters, Ramah in the Poconos aims to integrate special needs campers into its regular sessions.

Tikvah/Special Needs, Ramah in the NewsNRC WebmasterMay 21, 2014Tikvah, Poconos

How My Son Finally Opened Up About His Little Brother With Special Needs

The first time I remember talking to Oscar about his younger brother Saul’s special needs, he couldn’t have been more than 5 years old. Definitely still in preschool. There was something–though I can’t remember exactly what–that Oscar thought Saul would like and he said, “Saul is going to do this!” and started flapping his hands and bouncing up and down. I lost it. I couldn’t believe my sweet little boy was making fun of his younger brother who has Fragile X, which is a genetic syndrome and the cause of intellectual disabilities that can include learning problems, autism, anxiety, sensory, and behavioral issues.

Tikvah/Special Needs, Blog/Reflections, Ramah in the NewsNRC WebmasterApril 30, 2014Tikvah, New England

Memories For Everyone

Children and youth in the U.S. have already internalized inclusion. They live it every day at school, on the playground, at youth groups. To them, inclusion is the norm. This is mainly because the national culture in the U.S. has surpassed the American Jewish community in its embrace of inclusion.

Tikvah/Special Needs, Blog/ReflectionsNRC WebmasterApril 6, 2014Tikvah, Ruderman Foundation