By Phil Hankin, RJE
Director of Education at Temple Emanu-El of San Jose
URJ Camp Newman Faculty Member
UAHC Camp Swig Alum

This year’s Fall Camp/West Coast Party Jr weekend was a huge success. Over 230 2nd-8th graders attended the weekend, with the most spectacular weather (especially for the beginning of November) and the highest level of energy I have seen at one of these weekends. You would have thought we were smack in the middle of July with the energy, games, ruach, smiles, laughter, top-notch food, It’s Its, and so much more! If the plan was to give the students a taste of what Camp Newman has to offer, SUCCESS!!!

This is why, beginning over 10 years ago, I arranged for Temple Emanu-El’s (San Jose) 3rd-5th graders to attend Camp Newman’s Winter Camp Retreat. The premise was simple—in lieu of running a weekend retreat on my own for our Religious School students, we would “piggy-back” on a weekend retreat that Camp Newman was already running…they provide all the infrastructure (housing, transportation, meals, staffing, programming, medical oversight, etc.). The cost is cheaper per student than running our own retreat, and my headaches were much less as well! I’m proud of the long-standing partnership between Temple Emanu-El (TEE) and URJ Camp Newman and that the model has expanded and been adopted by many other congregations in the Bay Area.

But why is being at camp so important to the success of a retreat like this? Jewish camping has achieved an almost universal recognition as a top-notch arena of informal education. Various studies conducted over the years on the power of Jewish camping indicate that young campers who experience some form of Jewish camping (weekend retreats, day camp, overnight camp, etc.) have seen a major impact on their positive Jewish development.

These studies show that the very future of the Jewish peoplehood is tied directly to those who have chosen to attend a Jewish summer camp. Numerous Jewish communal leaders – both lay and professional, including Rabbis, Cantors and Jewish Educators – cite camp as an influence in their career path or where they commit time for volunteer leadership. Thousands of Jews gather each summer to live and eat together, learn and celebrate Shabbat together, play sports and learn theater arts together. Jewish summer camps also focus on the development of each young person’s self-esteem, to the extent that every camper is valued for exactly who they are all while inspiring them to connect meaningfully to their Jewish identity.

It is more important now than ever before that Jewish youth get exposed to Jewish camping. With our community facing real threats to its future growth, the excitement, energy, and camaraderie that campers experience while at camp – and that they get a taste of while at a retreat like Fall Camp & West Coast Party – will only help stem this tide.

Our entire congregation benefits from a more Jewishly active student base because of this annual retreat attendance. Camp provides a special “Emanu-El only” bus for our students to take them to and from camp on that weekend. I join the students at Camp so they have a “familiar face” while there. I also help out the camp staff by continuing my role as part of the Summer Education Faculty team. And our kids benefit from mixing with other kids from all over the Bay Area and the West Coast.

I will leave you with a Quote from one of my 4th grade students who participated in Fall Camp, as told by her mother:

“Rory had a wonderful time at camp. The first thing she said when I picked her up on Sunday was that she was feeling “camp-sick.” She said, “You know how sometimes when you’re away from home, you feel homesick? I’m away from camp, so I feel camp-sick.”

She is eager to return to Camp Newman. Thanks for all your help and guidance!”

As the educator of the TEE program, I cannot think of a more powerful way for our students to receive a high impact Jewish experience.