As you head off for living Judaism, a summer of fun, a lifetime of memories…

To our campers:
May the one who blessed our ancestors bless you:
With copious amounts of sunscreen.
With adventures: whether by horseback, or zipline, by mountain bike or by waterslide.
With grilled cheese and tomato soup, sundaes on Saturday and seconds of strawberry salad.
With friendships by flashlight while you giggle at night, woven tightly like brightly colored bracelets.
With secrets and dreams and stories to share under towering trees and twinkling stars.
With independence.

FJC

To our staff:
May you be blessed to know:
You’ve traded in the internship to comfort a homesick camper
You’ve traded in the college credit to be a role model
You’ve traded in an apartment for a cabin full of unclaimed socks, wet towels, and happy kids.
You are ready to create the kind of magic that another once created for you.
We thank you. We are proud of you. We trust you.

To our parents:
May the One who blesses your children bless you, too.
Remember: No letters means your kids are too busy having fun.
Remember: They are finding their voices courageously and kindly, with a strong Jewish heart.
Remember: They are taking risks, safely.
They are reconnecting with the earth after a year of zoom and video games and group texts.
Remember: you have blessed them with this gift of Big Jewish Fun.

May we all be blessed with a summer of health and safety, a summer of growth and laughter, and many memories in the making.

Amen!

Rabbi Sara Mason-Barkin is the Associate Rabbi at Congregation Beth Israel in Scottsdale, Arizona. She fell in love with camp as a child, spent many summers on staff and faculty at URJ Camp Newman, and is delighted that she – and her children – get to enjoy summers at Camp Daisy and Harry Stein.

This piece is a part of Foundation for Jewish Camp’s summer blog series. Follow along all summer long, and share how Jewish camp impacted your life! Tell us your story in the comments, on Facebook, or tweet @JewishCamp using the hashtag #JewishCamp.