Shabbat Shalom from Maple Lake

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Dear Camp George Families,

Greetings from Maple Lake! We have had a great week filled with beautiful weather and plenty of activities on land and on the water. Our first full week of camp has been amazing – filled with lots of ruach, cabin bonding, and fun programming.

Here’s a look at what all our units were up to this week:

Nitzotzot campers had a blast on their Point Adventures, they all had a great time bonding with their cabin-mates and counselors during Bunk Night, and we are proud to announce that all our campers successfully completed Pirate Training Day.

Lehavot had an amazing first full week of camp!  Both the boys and girls completed their adventures on Gan Matan and had a blast singing songs and swimming!  They also had fun playing Stones and trying to win little challenges at Minute to Win it!  The staff also got up to some wacky fun today for staff switch day where the counselors all went with different Lehavot cabins for the morning!

Kochavim had a wonderful week at camp! Campers enjoyed pizza making and team-building activities with each other during their evening programs and have come up with new cabin themes and unit cheers. Although it rained, that didn’t stop Kochavim campers of enjoying their camp programming and are excited to participate in tonight’s Pride Shabbat! They look forward for the week to come as their overnight trips approach!

Barak has had an amazing, fun filled week! Many campers from B5, B7 and B6 enjoyed an amazing canoe trip, while the rest of the unit got dressed up for a themed dodge ball EP! After spending the morning giving back to the community, the whole unit enjoyed an afternoon at the beach, and we can’t wait for another amazing week ahead!

After returning from their Ottawa Trip the CITs are well on their way to transitioning to becoming staff. Having just completed their 3rd placement, they are starting to feel like they are aware of what they would like to do next year when they become staff, whether that’s being a cabin counsellor or a specialist! They are looking forward to finishing off the summer strong and enjoying their last couple of weeks as CITs!

Yesterday we celebrated Yom Yisrael programmed by our Israeli Mishlachat (delegation). We danced during our Tel Aviv beach party, learned about Israeli life and celebrated Israeli culture. We finished the night with a dance party hosted by Magen Boys Entertainment.

This morning, Barak campers headed off camp for this session’s Barak Gives Back. Campers spent the morning out doing mitzvah projects in the Parry Sound community which included sorting books at the local library, going to to the Wasauksing First Nation and helping to get them ready for their annual Pow Wow, and hosting a charity car wash for the local fire department. The car wash raised over $400.00 which will be sent to the firefighters working on the front lines of the fire up north.

This morning we were also thrilled to welcome over 40 campers (completed grades 1-3) for our Mini Mensch program. They will be with us through to Monday and we can’t wait to show them a taste of life on Maple Lake.

Tonight, we are looking forward to beginning the celebrations for this session’s Pride Shabbat. Shabbat services tonight and tomorrow will include readings and reflections on unity, acceptance, and community, written by campers and staff. Shabbat dinner will feature colourful tablecloths and decorations, and tomorrow, campers will be taking part in Shabbat programming that looks at LGBTQ pathfinders, those who paved the way for inclusivity and acceptance.

Looking ahead to this week, we can’t wait for more activities and fun in and around Maple Lake.

Wishing you a wonderful Shabbat,

Jeff Rose
Director