As more Jewish camps across the country expand their programs to welcome campers of all abilities, a new online resource has been created in a partnership between the Foundation For Jewish Camp and the Ramah Camping Movement. The “Inclusion Training Guide for Jewish Summer Camps” is a comprehensive guide that camps are able to download and use for staff training.
Read MoreThe Inclusion Training Guide for Jewish Summer Camps is a new online resource designed to provide hands-on training guidance and support for camp staff seeking to create or expand inclusion programs.
This resource has been developed as a partnership between Ramah and the Foundation for Jewish Camp. We are grateful to the UJA-Federation of New York - Neshamot Fund for supporting this project through a generous grant to FJC.
Read MoreFor 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.
Read MoreWalking through Ramah New England, basketball hoops are being netted, tents are being structured, and it’s clear that the first day of camp is truly in sight. It’s sad to see the National Ramah Spring Staff Training Institute come to an end, but the excitement for the reality of summer is evident.
Read MoreFor 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.
Read MoreLike 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.
Read MoreOn 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.”
Read More“Having kids with disabilities is just as normal as having sports at Camp Ramah. It’s what we do,” said Howard Blas, director of the Tikvah Program at Camp Ramah.
That is great news for 18-year old Uriel Levitt of Silver Spring, who has Down syndrome, a genetic condition in which a person has 47 chromosomes instead of the usual 46. This summer will be his fourth one at the camp. “He’s got this amazing opportunity for growth and independence. He’s away from home for two months,” said his mother, Dina Levitt.
Read MoreIn January, 21 campers in the Camp Ramah in Wisconsin Tikvah program and 12 Atzmayim vocational participants traveled to a hotel in suburban Chicago to celebrate Shabbat together. They came from 15 cities in the U.S. and Canada to join their counselors and 11 grade friends for a wonderful camp reunion.
Read More
