Parents pour over Bunk1, our secure photo repository, in the hopes of getting a glimpse of their child's summer experience. We can't share Bunk1 with you, but we're lucky to have The Clipboard! The content below gives you an extraordinary gateway into the incredible happenings across all the URJ summer experiences.

It is sure to make you tear up and laugh, as well as make you proud of being a part of making the magic happen.

Miriam Chilton, Director of Strategic Planning, Operations & Finance
URJ Camping, Israel and Youth Programs
 

Seventeen Again  
URJ Kutz Camp
 
Dr. Madelyn Mishkin Katz, Associate Dean of Hebrew Union College in LA, was overcome with nostalgia when she pulled into the Kutz parking lot to serve on faculty. A lot has changed since this Kutz and NFTY alum and mother of two NFTYites went to camp, but the power of the Kutz experience is stronger than ever. Read more »


The First of Many Summers Together—GFC & MAZON  
URJ Greene Family Camp
 
With over 50 million hungry Americans, 1 in 4 children aren't getting enough to eat. Campers at GFC got a taste of what it would be like to be food insecure while participating in a 2-day MAZON program focused on anti-hunger awareness, and walked away armed with new ways to advocate for the hungry. Read more »


Camper Mitzvah Day: Senior Prom 
URJ Camp Coleman

Corey was surprised to find that he shared a lot with Ann, a senior at the Gold City Convalescent Home in Dahlonega, Georgia, including his birthday! Camp Coleman's Kesher unit recently stopped by to spend time with the residents, and it's clear from the connections they made that these campers really brightened their day. Read more »


Jewish Teenage Journeys in Israel: Biblical Foundations
& Personal Transformations  
NFTY in Israel
 
In Israel, the guide book for our participants is not Lonely Planet or Fodor's, but rather the TANACH. Rabbi Rich Kirschen, Director of NFTY in Israel, shares the joy of watching our teens walk through the narrative of the Hebrew Bible. Read more »


Kicking Off the Summer with an Olympic-Worthy Ceremony 
URJ Eisner Camp
 
Eisner Camp's opening day ceremony was the perfect way to welcome summer! After campers were greeted with cheers and applause, Director Louis Bordman kicked off the ceremony full of spirited dancing, singing and the tradition of passing the Torah from the oldest campers to the youngest. Watch the video & read more » 


Camp is a Real Job (or, How it Helped Me Get a Non-Camp Job)  
URJ Camp Coleman

Listing archery under "additional skills" on her resume helped Jill strike up a conversation with her interviewer and eventually land an internship. Several years later, Jill again found camp an asset while job hunting: the creative problem solving she learned at camp helped her nail a job in TV journalism. Read more »


A New Way to Think About Brushing Teeth  
URJ Olin-Sang-Ruby Union Institute

At camp, even brushing your teeth is a ritual! Visiting faculty Rabbi Lisa Greene has found that the most mundane activity can become spiritual when it involves community and intention. Building on that idea, she created a full-fledged program to encourage campers to create and challenge the idea of Jewish ritual. Read more »


To Be a Kutz Fellow 
URJ Kutz Camp
 
The Kutz Fellowship offers participants like Amy Weinstock the opportunity to network with teens from different synagogues in different states with different interests. Post-camp, she'll use that network to help her connect unengaged teens to a meaningful Reform Jewish experience similar to the one she had at camp. Read more »


My Journey Through NFTY  
NFTY, NFTY in Israel, URJ Greene Family Camp & URJ Jacobs Camp
 
Soon-to-be college freshman Evan Traylor credits the power of Jewish community he first experienced at a junior youth group event at Greene Family Camp, as well as the Jewish spiritual awakening he found on a NFTY in Israel L'dor V'dor trip, with inspiring him to run and be elected as the new NFTY President. Read more »
 

Last week's most read content in The Clipboard included a reflection from a camp parent on receiving her first-ever camp letter, a look at two schools of thought around the "no cellphone" policies at camps around the country and one parent's path to preparing her daughter for camp—and herself to let go.
 

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