Here’s how summer camps welcome their youngest charges

A sure sign, according to Karen Alford, a sleepaway camp consultant, is that he or she has grown tired of day camp.

“At 9 [or going into fourth grade], you’ve probably been doing day camp for several years, and there’s just a natural progression to sleepaway camp,” she told JTA.

Of course, Alford added, some kids aren’t ready until they’re older.

“You have to know your child and what they can handle,” she said, adding that “some parents with kids who have trouble separating find camp even more helpful at a younger age because it builds independence.”

Ramah in the NewsNRC WebmasterFebruary 16, 2017Berkshires

Seasons in the sun

Rabbi Resnick has been at Camp Ramah in the Berkshires in Wingdale, N.Y., for 29 years; for most of that time he’s been the camp’s director. He has just stepped down from that exhilarating but exhausting post to become the camp’s first senior engagement and planning director.

He loves Camp Ramah.

The memory of those buses is sweet. “You have worked for 10 months for that hour, to get those kids to camp,” he said. “I was the first face they saw in camp.

Ramah in the NewsNRC WebmasterDecember 15, 2016Berkshires

Grassroots Alumni Basketball League Celebrates 20 Years of Nurturing the Camp Community Year-Round

In 1996, before alumni engagement was a buzz phrase in the philanthropy industry, a group of Camp Ramah in the Berkshires young alumni (recent college graduates) sought a place to play basketball with their camp friends. For many of them, playing on the courts in camp was one of their favorite memories as a camper and as a staff member. Without realizing it, this group of four teams of ten established the Ramah Berkshires Alumni Association’s basketball league – known as the RBA.

AlumniNancy ScheffApril 20, 2016Berkshires

Four Outstanding New Ramah Directors

We are very pleased to welcome four outstanding new Ramah directors to our leadership team:

Sarah Shulman, Director, Camp Ramah in Northern California
Rabbi Ethan Linden, Director, Camp Ramah in the Berkshires
Elana Rivel, Director, Ramah Day Camp in Philadelphia
Rami Schwartzer, Director, Ramah Day Camp of Greater Washington, DC

AnnouncementsNRC WebmasterMarch 2, 2016Galim, Berkshires, Philadelphia Day Camp, DC Day Camp

Ramah Camps a Bright Spot for Conservative Movement

WINGDALE, N.Y. (JTA) – The sky is clearing after a damp morning at Camp Ramah in the Berkshires, and kids are emerging from their cluttered bunks.

An impromptu Frisbee game breaks out on the lawn, while down by the lake a counselor prepares the water trampoline and surf kayaks. On the other side of the 200-acre expanse, a staffer tests the high ropes obstacle course. Nearby, a group of teenagers is shooting hoops at the covered basketball courts, where industrial fans turn the sultry air.

Ramah in the NewsNRC WebmasterFebruary 28, 2016Berkshires

Partnering in Jewish Learning at US Limmuds

To celebrate Limmud’s 35th year, eJewishPhilanthropy will be offering a look into Jewish communities around the world, through the eyes of Limmud volunteers. Limmud, the global grassroots Jewish learning movement which was founded in the United Kingdom in 1980 is today in 80 communities and 40 countries.

Ramah in the NewsNRC WebmasterFebruary 5, 2016Nyack, Berkshires

4 Camps in 5 Days

What a privilege it is to visit our camps! My summer travel began this week with a visit to four camps in five days, all sources of great inspiration.

Blog/ReflectionsNRC WebmasterJune 27, 2014Mitch Cohen, Summer 2014, Nyack, Berkshires, New England, Darom

Breira B'Ramah at Ramah Berkshires and Jewish Disabilities Awareness Month

As February is Jewish Disabilities Awareness month, we are highlighting a largely unseen, yet highly valued program of Camp Ramah in the Berkshires: Breira B’Ramah. B’reira B’Ramah is a fully integrated inclusion program, for campers with the often invisible challenges of learning, emotional and/or behavioral disabilities. Breira B’Ramah campers are largely indistinguishable from their peers; they participate in all camp activities with minimal modifications. What enables these campers to be successful at camp is a group of caring, talented counselors who serve as their shadows, mentors and coaches.

Tikvah/Special NeedsNRC WebmasterJanuary 31, 2014Tikvah, Berkshires, JDAIM

Making Camp Ramah Even More Special(ty)

Today’s kids can learn anything from organic farming to circus arts.

Ramah in the NewsNRC WebmasterDecember 31, 2013Poconos, Rockies, New England, Berkshires, Wisconsin, National Ramah