Shana Tovah!

We wish you all a very sweet, healthy, and happy new year!

To help ensure that, we wanted to share this incredible recipe from Smitten Kitchen for Apple and Honey Challah.  Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1 packet active dry yeast
1/3 cup  plus 1 teaspoon honey
1/3 cup neutral oil
2 large eggs plus 1 large yolk
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
4 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

2 medium apples, peeled, cored and cut into small chunks
Squeeze of lemon juice, to keep apples from browning

Directions:

1. Whisk yeast and 1 teaspoon honey into 2/3 cup warm water and let stand until foamy, a few minutes.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together yeast mixture, oil, remaining honey (1/3 cup), eggs and yolk. Add flour all at once and stir with a wooden spoon until you get a craggy mass of uneven dough. Turn dough out onto a floured counter and knead it into a smooth, elastic dough, about 5 to 8 minutes.

3. Transfer dough to large oil-coated bowl, cover with plastic wrap and set aside for 1 hour.

4. Turn dough out onto a floured counter and gently press it down into a flat, oblong shape.  Spread 2/3 of apple chunks over 1/2 of the flattened dough. Fold the other half over the apple chunks and press the dough down around them, flattening the now lumpy dough. Spread the remaining 1/3 apple chunks over half the folded dough. Fold the other half over the apples, pressing the dough down again. Fold the corners under with the sides of your hands and form the dough into a round. 

5. Upend your empty bowl over and set it aside for another 30 minutes.

6. Divide dough into 4 pieces. Roll and stretch each one as carefully as you can into a rope. If any apple chunks fall out as you form the ropes or at any other time in the forming of the loaf or risings, just poke them back in with your finger.

7. Arrange two strands in each direction, perpendicular to each other, like a plus sign. Weave them so that one side is over, and the other is under, where they meet. Take the four legs that come from underneath the center and move them over the leg to their right. Take those legs that were on the right and again, jump each over the leg before, this time to the left. If you had extra length to your ropes, you can repeat these left-right jumps until you run out of rope. Tuck the corners/odd bumps under the dough with the sides of your hands to form a round.

8. Transfer the dough to a parchment-covered heavy baking sheet. Beat egg until smooth and brush over challah. Let challah rise for another hour.

9. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.

10. Before baking, brush loaf one more time with egg wash and sprinkle with coarse sugar (optional). Bake in the middle of the oven for 40 to 45 minutes.

11. Remove and cool on a rack.

September at a Glance

Hello Galil families!

Yes, summer is over but the sun never sets on the Galil community.  Starting this month we will be offering year-round activities for campers to keep in touch with their friends and continuing learning, celebrating Jewish holidays, and having fun just like at Galil.

We wish everyone a Shana Tovah U'Metukah, a sweet and happy new year!  If you're looking for some tasty or crafty things to do as you gear up for the High Holidays, don't forget to check out our Jewish Holidays Pinterest board.

Fall Seminar
Friday, September 21st to Sunday, September 23rd
Please join us for a weekend at camp! Catch up with your friends and counselors by spending Shabbat at Galil.  This is the kick-off event for our ken, the year-round programming that Galil provides.  You must register here.  Any registrations after September 7th will be charged a $25 late fee.

The next two events are not in September, but we encourage you to start thinking about and planning for them now...

Fall Open House
Sunday, October 7th 3-5pm
Come visit Galil's campsite and learn more about how we provide "the spirit of kibbutz...close to home!"  Our Fall Open House is a wonderful way to see Galil, ask questions, and become familiar with our programming.  Families are welcome -- there will be activities for campers of all ages!

To RSVP or to ask questions, please contact Ilana Goldfus, Assistant Director at (609) 558-1395 or registrar@campgalil.org.  Returning families: please keep in mind our referral fees and share your love of Camp Galil with friends and family.

October Registration Discount Deadline
Monday, October 15th
Registration for next summer is now open!  We are offering tuition discounts up to $300 for every camper that is registered with a $600 deposit by October 15th and paid in full by June 1st.  Last year we had to turn families away from our July and Taste of Galil sessions so please do not wait to sign up!

Todah Rabah

There is nothing left for us to say but thank you (todah rabah)!  This was an amazing summer, one that we will cherish for the next ten months until Galil 2013 beings (only 314 days, but who is counting?).

Thank you to our counselors for your endless creativity, your thought-provoking questions, your silly costumes (even if there was no reason to be wearing costumes), and for providing every individual camper the love and attention they deserve.  We could not have asked for a better team and are so grateful for your many late nights and brilliant ideas.

Thank you to our campers for making Galil come alive, filling it with noise and energy, and making every moment special.  Everything that we do is for you.  You are the future of Galil, Judaism, and the world.  It was our pleasure to spend the summer with you.

Thank you to our parents for lending us your wonderful children,  sharing Galil with your friends and family, sending in positive feedback, and joining us on the journey (our blog has been viewed over 10,000 times since camp began this summer!).  We appreciate your support every day.

We wish everyone a wonderful remainder of your summer and hope to see you at Fall Seminar, then again next summer!

The Galil Team

Last Shabbat of 2012

This summer flew by and it’s already the last Shabbat. We hoped for a sunny day, but we woke up to a lovely rain storm. Although we couldn’t spend our Friday pizza lunch outside, we still had a great day. Rainy days at camp (machaneh) are definitely different but are equally as fun. During rainy days, we utilize all of the indoor spaces we have at machaneh which is nice for a change in scenery. Typically, when it comes time for sports we all will go to the Moadon for a sports related movie since we can’t play outside. However, because today was Friday and the start to Shabbat, we didn’t have sports. Instead, on Friday's we have the CIT activity (Madatz peula). In the morning during Madatz peula today, the Chotrim hung out in the Mini-Mo. Together they made warm and fuzzy books which is very common for the last few days of camp. They each were given construction paper and different decorations to create their own warm and fuzzy and pass to their friends. Warm and fuzzies are little booklets that the chanichim make on the last day of camp and pass to their friends to write nice notes about their friendships. 

The Sayarim played their favorite trigger games in the Moadon for Madatz peula. Trigger games are short fun games that we play before any age group activity (peula) that we do. One of the games they played today was Music Memory. Before the game begins, two people leave the room so they can’t see who has been partnered up. During this game everyone has a partner and chooses two lines from a song. Each partner will have one line and the object of the game is for the two people who left the room to come back and guess the partners based on the lines of the song that they sing. 

Although it was still raining, we continued our normal Friday schedule (seder yom). We had Shabbat singing (Shira) inside of the Moadon today. Because today was the last Shabbat shira all of the chanichim got really dressed up to impress the judges today. Every Friday before lunch the age group (shickvah) that sings the loudest, has the most energy, dresses the craziest and even compliments the judges gets called to pizza first. During Shabbat shira we learned two songs that we sing every weekend. One of the songs that we learned today, we sing on Friday night during Kabalat Shabbat and the other we sing during our campfire (medurah) on Saturday nights. It’s helpful for the chanichim to learn these songs so they can sing along throughout Shabbat.

Friday’s pizza lunch was inside of the dining hall (chadar ochel) today but it was still set up just as Hyde Park is set up outside. We created a circle of benches, put tape where the tire would be in Hyde Park, and turned one of the benches into the rock we stand on. Many chanichim thanked everyone for a wonderful summer and said they can’t wait to come back next year. 

Shabbat shalom and see everyone on Sunday from 1-3 PM for pick-up! 

The Last "Normal" Day of Galil 2012

This week has flown by and today was the last "normal" day of the summer.  In the morning a reporter came from the local newspaper to learn about Galil. Specifically, she was interested in the garden (gan) and the sheep that we are taking care of this summer. The reporter came during work groups (avodah) so they also interviewed campers (chanichim) and took great pictures with the sheep.

During the first age group activity (peula shickvah aleph), the Chotrim (post 5th grade campers) had a scavenger hunt. They had to put a map together by figuring out different clues. The clues were placed throughout camp (machaneh) in a poem or riddle form and the chanichim had to complete different challenges to complete the map.

The Sayarim (post 6th grade campers) had a fun time at the pool in the morning. Today was the last day for instructional swim so after a short lesson the lifeguards gave the chanichim free swim. Since we’ve had many special days in the past week, there are many new pool toys and floats to play with at the pool and the Sayarim took full advantage of them! Their counselors (madrichim) also joined them in their free swim.

During sports today, the Tzofim (post 7th grade campers) counselor (madrich), Eli Silverman, organized a game of basketball with the older chanichim. This way the older chanichim were able to play more competitively which they really enjoyed.

What we thought was going to be a completely normal day turned into a slightly different schedule in the afternoon. Following lunch, Galil experienced a big thunderstorm and all of the chanichim had to stay inside for their next activity (peula). In the end, everyone was okay and enjoyed watching the storm from the cabin (tzrif).

After the rainstorm passed we returned to our regularly scheduled programming. The Amelim (post 3rd and 4th grade campers) and Chotrim (post 5th grade campers) had a cool workshop (sad’na) today. Instead of hanging out in the arts and crafts center (beit omanut), they went to the dining hall (chadar ochel) to make food art! Different types of foods were placed in the middle of the table and the chanichim made funny faces on plates with the ingredients. After they made their food art they happily ate their art!

We’re excited for the last Shabbat! 

Bo-coup Alice and Wonderland!

The morning started out as a normal day...until sports. Today was Bo-coup. Bo-coup happens once a summer and it is a day that the Bogrim (post 9th grade campers) plan for machaneh. The Bogrim run half a day of activities and meals for the chanichim that of course follow a theme. Bo-coup's theme was Alice and Wonderland. They broke the special day right before lunch in full costume. The chanichim enjoyed a day full of special food, a carnival, obstacle course, a movie and a party at the end of the night!

Why do we have Bo-coup at camp?  The Galil experience is more than just seven weeks of fun, swimming lessons, or an opportunity to connect with other Jews.  What makes our camping experience unique is the youth-leading-youth leadership model.  From a young age our campers have the opportunity to step up, speak, and give feedback for the program.  We do this every week at Hyde Park in which campers of all ages have the opportunity to tell the Galil Leadership Team their favorite activities as well as how camp can be improved.  As our oldest campers, the Bogrim get this unique opportunity to test the leadership skills they have learned all summer (and every previous summer) to use!  Next summer they will spend five weeks in Israel, then return to Galil as counselors-in-training.  Bo-coup is an important step for our campers as they climb the Galil leadership ladder.

Make sure to check out all of the pictures on Bunk1 to see all of the fun the chanichim had today!

More Tikkun Olam!

In the beginning of the summer, the Bogrim (post-9th grade campers) received a grant from the Jewish Teen Funders Network of $1,500 to give to an organization of their choice.   The grant is thanks to the JTFN Camp Philanthropy Pilot Program.  Galil also participated in 2011 when the Bogrim visited and eventually chose the Broad Street Ministry in Philadelphia as their site.
All summer this year's Bogrim participated in different activities (peulot) discussing various organizations where they would like to donate the money. After a long process, the Bogrim narrowed their options down to two organizations. Today, they boarded buses to visit these final two sites to get a better sense of what the organizations do each day. They first visited a familiar organization to Galil: Urban Tree Connection. During first session, the younger campers (chanichim) did their "healing the world" (tikkun olam) project at one of Urban Tree Connection’s sites.  Urban Tree Connection is an organization that creates urban gardens in inner-city communities.  Galil campers have been there multiple times over the past two summers as well as during our year-round program (eizor).   Today, the Bogrim visited the main farming site and met with two workers to learn more about the organization. After Urban Tree Connection, the Bogrim boarded the bus to University of Pennsylvania’s campus for a picnic lunch. They relaxed a bit and discussed what they thought about their first visit. Next stop: Neighborhood BikeWorks. This organization has camps in three different locations throughout the Philadelphia area. At these camps the kids learn how to make bikes from scratch and at the end of the summer the kids are able to keep the bikes that they built. The Bogrim have not made any decisions yet and will take time on Friday to discuss where they would like to donate their grant.  It was a great day, full of learning, fantastic questions, and hands-on philanthropy!

Back at camp, the chanichim had a normal scheduled day. During workshops (sadnaot) this afternoon, the Amelim (post-3rd and 4th grade campers) and Chotrim (post-5th grade campers) went to the Israel sad’na. At the Israel sad’na the chanichim learn all about Israel in a fun way. In order to learn about Israel, the chanichim had to “fly” there. 

The Amelim and Chotrim each received El-Al flight tickets. The madrichim pretended to be flight attendants and seated all of the chanichim in two rows. After everyone was in the flight they took off and watched the safety video El-Al provides before each flight. They eventually landed in Israel and learned all about the country.

The Sayarim went on the low ropes course today. We have two ropes course, the high ropes and the low ropes course. Because the high ropes course is only available to the older chanichim, we use the low ropes course for the younger chanichim. The low ropes course has a lot of team building elements and trust elements. The Sayarim worked together to complete the different elements and are really excited for next year when they are able to use the high ropes course! 

Tonight We Are Young, Wild, and Free

Hi Galil parents!

I’m Katherine, a member of the Madatz (counselor-in-training) crew here at Camp Galil.  Today we ran something called Revo. Revo is a day when we, the CITs, “kick out” the counselors (madrichim) and have an exciting themed day. Our theme for this session is Revo Old, Wild and Free; this means we acted as if we were old people breaking out of a retirement home and living out our bucket list.

When the kids woke up this morning their madrichim were gone (don’t worry!  The madrichim are all at camp keeping an eye on everyone, but the campers are so excited for a special day they don't notice the counselors are really all around camp).  We ate crepes with lots of toppings along with chocolate milk. After breakfast, all of the “elderly” people went on a cruise, had relaxation exercises, went on a water slide. The campers chose where they wanted to get off the cruise with stops in Jamaica (swimming), Paris (clothing swap), Las Vegas (card games), Italy (painting), and London (Olympic sports games).

Lunch had a french fry bar with toppings such as chili, cheese, and onions. After a little naptime, the campers attended a carnival with their grandchildren. This carnival featured a very popular dunk tank - Madatz and Bogrim (post 9th grade campers) got dunked! – in addition to a cotton candy machine, carnival games, clown school, and an obstacle course. After some cotton candy and ball tossing, the kids headed over to the dining hall (chadar ochel) for a snack (kibud) of apple pie and ice cream.  We called it the early bird special. After kibud the kids spilt up by age gropu (shkavot) for activites. Amelim (post 3rd and 4th grade campers) and Chotrim (post 5th grade campers) had relay races; Sayarim (post 6th grade campers) played a trivia game about oldies music, sports in the 40s and more. The Tzofim (post 7th grade campers)“ lost their grandparents in the mall” and played manhunt to find them; finally, the Bonim (post 8th grade campers) were instructed to “not break their hip” while playing a tagging game.

After that, campers choose between the movie Up and the original Willy Wonka with Gene Wilder. There was some free time before a dinner of chicken fingers and mashed potatoes. After that a small party in honor of Edith’s 100th birthday was thrown with lots of Oreo cupcakes to celebrate. Finally, we did something called Crime and Punishment (not as malicious as it sounds!), where the Madatzim (CITs) threw the counselors into the pool for certain funny “crimes” they supposedly committed.

Everyone then  returned to their retirement homes following a wild day out and free.  

{On an unrelated note, an e-mail was sent out today reminding our wonderful parents that the end of camp is fast approaching!  We ask everyone pick-up their campers on Sunday, August 12th between 1pm and 3pm.  If you need to come at a different time, please contact Bart Davis at bart@campgalil.org or (610) 847-8330 as soon as possible.  Thank you!}

Aliyah Bet and Alumni Day

We’ve had an exciting past two days. After a relaxing Shabbat, last night the Bonim ran aliyah bet for the campers. Aliyah bet is one of our special activities that we have every summer at camp (machaneh). This is the first time the Bonim plan a machaneh wide event and the first time they have responsibility of leading campers (chanichim). After ice cream (glida) last night all of the chanichim went back to their cabins (tzrifim) just to discover the Bonim telling them to get dressed for aliyah bet. During aliyah bet at Galil the Bonim create a simulated Aliyah Bet from the early 1900’s. They plan different stations around machaneh with counselors (madrichim) acting as different characters. At the beginning of the stations, each camper (chanich) recieved as passport of someone that lived during the early 1900’s that weren’t Jewish in order for them to make it to Palestine. The chanichim had to memorize their new identities for “their journey to Palestine.” Some of the stations the chanichim went through were Jewish bribers who asked the chanichim to give them their passports in exchange for money, an interaction with British soldiers and a simulated fight scene between a British soldier and a Jewish man on the ropes course. 

At the end of the stations, the chanichim ended in the parking lot which was Palestine. At Palestine there were various treats and hot chocolate for the chanichim made by the Bonim.  After their treats, everyone went to bed.

Today, after a sleep-in, we welcomed Galil alumni and donors to machaneh. In the morning we had a special ceremony for the donors that helped us to create our two new buildings, the MoAdina and Beit Adina. The ceremony included speeches by the Camp Committee Chair, Joe Ross, Rosh Machaneh Kali Silverman and a member of Madatz, Segev Yarden. After the dedication ceremony, Galil alumni arrived for a picnic lunch with the chanichim. 

We had a barbecue picnic lunch in hyde park. Many of the alumni sat with the chanichim asking them what Galil is like today and they shared stories from when they were chanichim here as well. After lunch, the chanichim went back to a normal schedule and had their age group activity (peula shickvah). The alumni had their own programming and spent the afternoon taking tours of Galil and having Israeli dancing (rikud). 

The chanichim had a great time interacting with the alumni today! 

Shabbat Shalom, Hey!

After a busy and fun special day, everyone is ready for Shabbat. To kick off a relaxing weekend, the Bogrim headed to the movies today to see the new Batman movie! This was a complete surprise and they had no idea where they were going until the busses pulled into the movie theater parking lot. 

Back at camp, the Taste of Galil campers (chanichim) helped the kichen staff (tzevet mitbach) to braid the challah we will be having for dinner tonight. They learned how to make the dough, prepare the dough in strips to braid, and of course how to actually braid the challah. They all turned out great and they are excited to show the rest of machaneh what they worked on this morning! 

The sayarim had a really great CIT activity (madatz peula) about team work. They started out by playing various games alone which made it really difficult to win or even get started. In the end they came to the decision that it would be better to work together as a team.

The tzophim had a fun madatz peula about the 5 pillars of Habonim Dror. Because we are also in the midst of the Summer Olympics, the madatz incorporated part of the Olympics into their peula. The tzophim split into 5 groups, each representing a different pillar. Each group had to come up with a synchronized diving routine (on dry land) that represented that pillar and present it to the rest of their age group (shickvah). 

On Friday afternoons, we have Game of the Week (mischak hashvua). This happens after Hyde Park and before Shabbat begins. Every week is a different sport, and this week the sport was ultimate frisbee! This is completely optional for the chanichim but many of them usually come to play. If there are enough counselors (madrichim) and Madatz playing, the chanichim like to play Madrichim vs. chanichim. There are always spectators cheering their friends on and a madrich on the microphone shouting the play-by-play. 

We are looking forward to a relaxing Shabbat! Shabbat Shalom! 

Special Day: Greek Mythology!

Today was Special Day! Every session there is one day that has a special theme that the counselors (madrichim) plan for the rest of camp (machaneh). The theme for this session’s special day was Greek Mythology. Typically, special day is broken to the campers (chanichim) in the morning, but this session we wanted to surprise everyone. Special Day was broken last night after the evening activity (tochnit erev). Special Day was broken with a fight scene acted out by the staff (tzevet). The titans stormed into the dining hall (chadar ochel) as we were finishing tochnit erev and all of the chanichim cheered with excitement! After special day was broken everyone went to bed anxiously awaiting everything that happened today. 

Before the day began, all of the chanichim were instructed to dress up as different Greek gods and goddesses. After everyone was in costume and ready for the day, we had breakfast on Mt. Olympus with the Greek Gods. After a special breakfast everyone headed to the soccer field (kikar) and basketball court for a fun carnival. All of the stations were different Greek gods and goddesses. The stations included: Zeus (playing darts with cardboard lightening bolts), Hera (a marriage station), Ares (playing ninja with foam sword and pool noodles), Hephaestus (making robots), Aphrodite (love potion cocktails), Athena (playing sporcle), Apollo (playing dance dance revolution), Artemis (wack-a-mole), Hermes (sending a message station), and Demeter & Persephone (face painting). All of the chanichim had a really great time at all of the stations, especially the wack-a-mole station. One of the madrichim placed her head in a cardboard cut out and the chanichim threw wet sponges at her. 

After an exciting carnival, the chanichim had a round robin of activities in “the underworld.” Each age group (shickvah) went from station to station together to discover what the underworld was like. The station that really stood out from the rest was the haunted house that the tzevet made. The haunted house was created in the barn (refet). The haunted house had a maze inside of it with water and tarps to crawl through. Although the chanichim may have been a bit scared, they all finished with smiles and laughter because it was really fun to crawl through it. Some of the other stations during the round robin were river styx, medusa, the minotaur’s labyrinth and a mud pit. At the river styx station, the chanichim had to get from one side of Hyde Park to the other side without touching the ground. They used chairs, benches, and milk crates in order to get to the other side and also help their friends. At the medusa station, the chanichim had a game of fencing with pool noodles and the object of the game was to get your opponent off of the mattress first. The minotaur’s labryinth was located in the Moadon and it was a maze and obstacle course combination. There were different challenges each chanich had to accomplish to get from the beginning to the end. At the mud pit, the chanichim played different games that we play here at machaneh but in the sand. All of the stations were really fun and the chanichim got a taste of what the underworld was like. 

During lunch we had Greek themed food, which was delicious! After lunch was finished we all watched a skit that led everyone into the Trojan War! The machaneh was then split into two teams and everyone raced to the basketball court for a paint fight! Following the paint fight, everyone hosed off and went to the pool for a pool party! 

Later tonight we will have a machaneh wide scavenger hunt followed by a delicious banquet for dinner. After dinner we have a fun toga party set up to close special day!

We’ve had a really fun day so far and tonight will be just as exciting! Look for pictures from today on Bunk1! 

Garden Update and Introduction to Taste of Galil

Shalom! The first half of the summer, especially the rain, has made our organic garden (gan) bloom! The campers (chanichim) enjoyed harvesting over ten pounds of onions, fifteen pounds of lettuce, and five pounds of beans. All of the food harvested is brought to the kitchen (mitbach) to be used in our meals! During work period (avodah)  campers get the opportunity to harvest and weigh the fresh vegetables. At the end of the summer, we will compile a list of our harvests and calculate the carbon emissions we saved as a result of the produce from the gan!

In addition, all chanichim have participated in discussions about food justice issues such as local eating, food deserts, and urban agriculture. The Bogrim (post 9th grade campers) played a trivia game and won veggies from the gan to begin their discussion about equal access to food in rural and urban areas. 

The Amelim (post 3rd and 4th grade campers) and Chotrim (post 5th grade campers) learned two methods for building fires: the teepee and the log cabin. We built both, then made banana boats (bananas with chocolate chips wrapped in tin foil and heated in the fire) as a special snack. The Tzofim (post 7th grade campers) have been enjoying several TED talks about large organizations and their power to enact change followed by a debate about the potential environmental benefits of these corporations. The Sayarim (post 6th grade campers) will be visiting the gan next week to learn about fires and other survival skills.

Also, today our Taste of Galil (post 2nd grade) campers arrived for four days of non-stop fun at camp!  They started the day with tons of ice-breakers and games.  After lunch they went swimming, played sports, went on a scavenger hunt, and learned lots of new Hebrew words!