Visiting Israelis bring country to JCC camps
Many Jews go to Israel to discover their roots as Jews. Israeli Ron Alter, however, is getting in touch with his at the Steve and Shari Sadek Family Camp Interlaken in Eagle River.
He is part of the Summer Shlichim Program of the Jewish Agency for Israel, the program that sent most of the young Israelis to Wisconsin camps this summer and that has placed thousands of young Israelis in American camps for more than 30 years.
Alter, 22, comes from Kibbutz Ashdot Yaakov Ichud in Milwaukee’s Partnership 2000 region of Sovev Kinneret (around Lake Kinneret). He is one of ten Israelis working at summer camps of the Harry & Rose Samson Family Jewish Community Center, seven as counselors and three as counselors-in-training.
Alter is a counselor for 10th graders at Interlaken’s Kfar Noar (youth village). “There’s such a spiritual feeling here,” he said in a recent telephone interview from the camp office.
“I grew up in a really secular place,” he explained. “Now, it’s really important to me to keep my Jewish roots. It’s much easier to experience here.”
Moreover, Alter said, being here “strengthens my faith.”
But faith isn’t his only reason for participating in the Schlichim program.
“It’s important to make connections between people in the diaspora and people in Israel, especially now that so many people think that Israel is a bad place,” said Alter, who worked at Interlaken last year as well. “I want to show the campers the day-to-day life in Israel. We don’t always fight and feel afraid of bombs.”
That’s part of the point of having Israelis at camp, said Interlaken director, Howard Wagan. “The kids develop friendships. If they go to Israel in college or after, they have someone they can interact with. Generally it’s kind of the whole mifgash, meeting — kids exchanging with other kids and campers.”
It’s part of what Lenny Kass, director of the Albert & Ann Deshur JCC Rainbow Camp, called “backdoor learning.” The kids learn through personal contact, not just structured programs or classes.
“We like to incorporate [the Israeli counselors’] knowledge as much as possible in camp, rather than say, ‘We’re going to have a half-hour program today,’” he explained.
Reut Malach, 20, from Haifa, is working as a counselor at Rainbow with Meital Greenwald. “I wanted to give American kids more clues about Israel, about the beautiful view, warm families, friends, culture and different things,” she said.
Malach and Greenwald, like all the other participants of the Shlichim program, were selected from a pool of thousands after rigorous testing, interviews and workshops.
Some, like Alter, have worked at American camps before. Greenwald spent last summer at a day camp in Atlanta as part of her mandatory army service. “I had a really great time and I wanted to do it again this year,” she said.
An element of the Shlichim program is home hospitality. Though the Interlaken shlichim are staying at camp, Malach and Greenwald are housed with local families.
That suits Malach just fine. “Originally I wanted to go for an overnight camp,” she said, “but I’m so happy I’m here because I have the experience of being with a Jewish family and getting to know the community here in Milwaukee, which is very warm and friendly.”
‘ Personal introduction’
Part of the concept of having a strong Israeli presence at camp, explained Wagan, “was that our kids aren’t going to Israel so we bring Israel to camp.” The Israel Adventure, the JCC program that sends local youth to Israel, has not sent a group since summer 1999.
Shai Revivo is working at Interlaken as specialty staff, focusing on arts, crafts and culture. Revivo and Alina Yermonenok spent the year in Milwaukee as “Shin Shiniot” (the Jewish Agency’s Young Emissaries Program), teaching children and participating in community programming.
Yermonenok, a counselor with sixth-grade girls, said that she believes that the Israelis’ presence transforms the children’s image of the country.
“They know us and they know we came a long way to be with them. [S]o when they think about Israel, they don’t think about the bombing; they think, ‘Where is Alina or Shai or Ron or Natan?’ It’s a personal introduction to Israel.”
Interlaken boasts a record number of Israelis this year. Aside from Revivo and Yermonenok, the camp is host to three younger (pre-military service) counselors-in-training and two counselors. Alter and Yonatan Goren, the camp tripper (staff person responsible for leading trips), are both participants in the Shlichim program.
Then there’s Natan Geva. Wagan and camp assistant director Sharon Cohen can’t stop kvelling about Geva’s wood and metal work around camp.
Geva, a teacher from the Sovev Kinneret region, came to Interlaken twice previously as leader of P2K’s Teen Mifgash program. This year he came independently and has been beautifying the camp to no end, said Cohen. “He doesn’t stop; he’s constantly fixing and creating.”
Geva’s wife and three children have joined him at camp for second session. His wife, a nurse, is an aide at the health center.
Second session also brings a group of 20 teens to Milwaukee and then Interlaken as part of the Teen Mifgash program. They will stay at American teens’ homes for five days while they get a taste of life here, including a day at Six Flags Great America and a visit to Chicago. The American and Israeli teens will then go to Interlaken for five days.
“What the Mifgash kids enjoy the most is getting to know the American kids. That’s really what the whole program is about — making that connection,” explained Mona Cohen, program director of the JCC, who coordinates the Mifgash program for the JCC.
Revivo, Yermonenok and Geva have all been at Interlaken previously as part of the Mifgash program as have the three counselors-in-training.
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