COVID-19
UPDATE #2
March 19, 2020
Dear Ramah in the Rockies Community,
At camp, we talk about our four core values of kavod כָּבוֹד– respect, simcha שמחה– joy, tzmicha ishit צמיחה אישית – personal growth, and k’sharim קשרים – connections.
While we all face disruptions to our normal routines, we have an opportunity to rely on these core values to help guide us through moments of hardship, and can lean on these values to help strengthen our kehillah kedosha קהילה קדושה- holy community.
Starting tomorrow, we will be sharing online and printable content regularly – some of our own creation, some created by our partners at Ramah camps and Jewish camps throughout North America. We hope that these resources will provide opportunities to connect, to learn, and to grow.
We honor the uncertainty that exists in the world. We are committed to communicating regularly with you, our camp community, as we make decisions about the summer.
As we shared in our last email, we plan to operate this summer, and are constantly monitoring advice from the CDC, CDPHE, and Jefferson County Public Health to guide our decision making.
Registration for 2020 is still open, and we have adjusted our payment structure in recognition of the uncertainty – you can register and hold a spot for your child for a $300 deposit, with no additional tuition due until June 1st
We are all craving certainty in this uncertain time. Therefore, we are committed to making a decision about this summer’s sessions as follows:
| By May 1st, we will make and share a decision about the plans for Session I. By June 1st, we will make and share a decision about the plans for Session II. |
As a reminder, if circumstances change regarding COVID-19, and we are not able to operate our camp this summer or your child is prevented from attending, we will offer affected families a 100% refund of all tuition already paid.
We have heard from many of you that you are looking for opportunities to connect with your Ramah kehillah! Starting next week, we will hold reunions for each Edah.
These reunions are a chance to check in, reminisce about the summer that past, and dream about the summer to come while hanging out with your Ramah friends. All reunions will be held on Tuesday or Thursday evenings, from 4:00 PM – 5:00 PM MDT at this Zoom Link.
Ilanot & Metaylim Session I: Tuesday March 24
Ilanot & Metaylim Session II: Thursday March 26
Solelim & Bogrim Session I: Tuesday March 31
Solelim & Bogrim Session II: Thursday April 2
Sayarim & JOLI Session I: Tuesday April 7
Sayarim & JOLI Session II: Tuesday April 14
Additionally, we have heard from some families that they would like to use these days at home to further their Jewish learning, particularly, their Torah reading skills. If you (tzevet or chalutzim) would like to teach or to learn Torah reading/layning, please click here to fill out our online buddy form. We will make the connections. In a week, or so, we hope to publicize the list of Torah readings for the summer so any child who wants to begin learning an aliyah/ot/whole Parsha portion can do so.
We know that there is a lot of Jewish educational content on the internet right now – what a blessing! We are creating some of our own, and have compiled a list on our website. National Ramah is maintaining a similar list of Ramah-wide programming.
Each week, join us on Facebook for the following:
Mondays & Thursdays, 9:00 AM MDT– Torah Tidbit. We will be posting a Torah Tidbit video each Monday & Thursday morning. Email Ethan at ethanw@ramahoutdoors.org if you have a Torah Tidbit you want to share with our kehillah.
Tuesdays, 3:30 PM MDT. We are partnering with our friends from the other Jewish summer camper here in Colorado to share a live, interactive activity each Tuesday, through Facebook Live.
Fridays, 12:00 PM MDT. Together with the other camps here in Colorado, we will post a weekly pre-Shabbat medurah style music video to help get you ready for Shabbat! This video will be posted to our Facebook.
In addition to these weekly programs, this weekend we have three incredible musical opportunities:
Tonight: Ramah Wide Shira with Josh Warshawsky – 6:00 PM MDT
Friday: Erev Shabbat Live from NY with Michael Harlow – 4:00 PM MDT
Sunday Morning: Rick Recht Concert – 10:30 AM MDT
Depending on the response from our families we will see whether more shira and tefillah with our Ramah favorites can become weekly traditions during this period of physical distancing.
Each Wednesday, we will share resources for you to use at home – favorite Ramah recipes, games, and resources we use at camp to add meaning to every-day experiences.
Stay tuned for an awesome masa journal, recipes, and more! Make sure to share your photos with us so we can post them on our social media pages. You can also access much of our camp music on our SoundCloud. We have playlists for Weekday & Shabbat tefillah, plus tons of other shira favorites.
Check our website and social media accounts each week for new material.
We hope you will join us for these opportunities to live our core values.
As always, our year-round team is available via phone at (303) 261-8214 and email if you have any questions, concerns, or just want to chat!
Rabbi Eliav and the whole Ramah in the Rockies Team
PREVIOUS UPDATES
March 12, 2020
Dear Ramah in the Rockies Families,
We know you are carefully monitoring the news about the novel Coronavirus(COVID-19), as are we.
While summer is still months away, we want to share some information and updates with you, because nothing is more important to us than the safety and wellbeing of your/our children and staff.
Ramah in the Rockies, together with all of our partners in Jewish camping, is planning to operate fully this summer.
We can assure you that we are already planning some extra precautions, which may include: greater pre-camp health screening for campers and staff; limiting guests who can visit camp; and changing some protocols in our food service.
We are, however, concerned about the ongoing spread of the COVID-19, and will continue to provide you with updates regarding our plans both before and during the summer. Our senior staff continue to monitor the CDC daily. We have been in touch directly with our coordinators at Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) and Jefferson County Public Health Department, including their infectious disease epidemiologist. We also are participating in movement-wide calls/forums with directors and business managers from all the Ramah camps as well as some broader camp industry conversations.
We know many of our families are nervous about the summer and uncertain about how COVID-19 will affect summer plans. If circumstances change regarding COVID-19, and we are not able to operate our camp this summer or your child is prevented from attending, we will offer affected families a 100% refund of all tuition already paid.
We are, however, far from making such a decision. We are enrolling our final 40 campers, hiring our final 25 staff members and planning each day of the summer program. We are finishing three building projects and readying the ranch to open in under 100 days!
We thank you for your trust in us and look forward to another amazing summer of fun and transformation—all while keeping our communities safe and healthy.
Please be in touch directly at 303-261- 8214 X104 if you would like to discuss anything further.
Rabbi Eliav Bock, Executive Director
Gil Rosenthal, Board Chair
Dr. Marcus Oginsky, Medical Chair
