Denver, CO – Ramah in the Rockies received $10,000 from the Gendler Grapevine Initiative for its innovative approach to solar hot water heating using commercial grade 500 gallon drinking-water bladders and a solar hot box. The black bladders, similar to those used by the military to delivery large quantities of water to military zones, absorb the sun’s rays and heat the water inside. The system successfully increase
This is a rework of a blog post originally written prior to our opening summer. Many of the issues remain the same. I have updated it to reflect lessons we’ve learned from our first three summers.—Eliav ————————- Over the past few weeks, I have had a few conversations with parents regarding religious expectations at camp. The issue that has surfaced on numerous occas
As we approach the middle of February, I could not be more delighted with the staff we have already assembled for this summer. Frequent readers of our blog know that I give most of the credit for the success of this camp to the outstanding individuals who make up our Tzevet (staff) each summer. Most do not come from a traditional Ramah camping background, and almost none have grown up at Ramah Outdoor Adventure.
We just added a new page to our website called BEING GREEN. We were inspired to create this page after a conversation with Sybil Sanchez, Director of COEJL. She was musing about the need for every Jewish organization to have a link on their website about ways in which they are taking the enviroment into account in their programs. We will continue to update this page in much greater detail over the coming months
One of the stated goals of Ramah Outdoor Adventure is to be a “green camp”. Over the years, I have blogged about some of our greening initiatives, from reducing paper use in our year-round office to serving organic milk in the dining hall. We have recently added a section to our website that we will be populating in the coming weeks about these green initiatives and we will continue to update this page as we develo
In November of 2008, the Jim Joseph Foundation (JJF) and the Foundation for Jewish Camp (FJC) made a big bet. They awarded the National Ramah Commission (NRC) $1.1 million to create the first outdoor specialty camp in the country with an intensive Jewish focus. Jewish children had been going in droves to numerous secular specialty camps. The JJF, FJC & NRC bet that if a Jewish camp could offer a high level of p
At the beginning of each camp season, a herd of horses and a number of farm animals are delivered to our ranch for us to use in our camp program. For nine weeks, our tzevet (staff) and chalutzim (campers) care for these animals as their own pets. They learn the value of tzar baalei hayim (taking care of animals) as well as the work ethic involved in raising farm animals. Finding animals for camp is one of the more
Our first full day of camp has drawn to a close. Chalutzim (pioneers/campers) were rock climbing, painting, playing Frisbee and so much more. While our oldest chalutzim chose their activities according to their interests, our younger ones went around as an ohel (tent) for most of the day. From the smiles on their faces, it seems that most of the chalutzim are making an easy transition into our community. Our mea
