News

Save the Date: April 18-19, 2010

"Living Jewishly Today: Contemporary Conversations About Jewish Beliefs, Family, and Rituals"

Presented by The Isidor and Rose Wagner Institute for Leadership Development of The Jewish Theological Seminary in partnership with Chicagoland Jewish High School

The Wagner Institute has been a staple of JTS's continuing education for adults since 1994, and this year it will be held in Chicago at Chicagoland Jewish High School. In 1994, Nate Wagner and Ruth Braver endowed the Isidor and Rose Wagner Institute for Leadership Development of The Jewish Theological Seminary, and the first Wagner institute was held that same year. This year's Wagner Institute will provide a dynamic forum for people to explore ancient and modern Jewish texts and traditions with some of the most creative and compelling faculty of JTS, including Dr. Eitan Fishbane, Dr. Neil Gillman, Rabbi David Hoffman, Dr. Amy Kalmanofsky, Dr. David Kraemer, and Rabbi Joel Roth. For more information, please contact Nadine Sasson Cohen, director, JTS Midwest Region at nacohen@jtsa.edu or 312-606-9086. Click here for a pdf announcement of this event.

Veteran Camper in Solomon Schechter Newsletter

(Alumni Spotlight from Solomon Schecter Day School in Chicago)
For the past three weeks, Schechter graduate Rena Forester (Class of 2006) has shared her warm and gentle spirit with students and teachers in the kindergarten classes at the Sager School. Currently a senior at Chicagoland Jewish High School, Rena worked at Schechter as part of a special senior-year internship experience.

"Rena came in and just knew what to do," says Sager kindergarten teacher Carol Jesselson. "It didn't matter whether she was helping us with administrative tasks or working with the children; nothing was too difficult or too complicated. She just took the initiative and ran with it."

Rena worked with students in both large and small groups and individually with their projects. On Tuesday, she presented a bingo game she created to help students learn about the letter e.

"It was like having another right hand -- she was just wonderful," adds Mrs. Jesselson. "Our students accepted and welcomed her from day one."

"It felt great to be back at Schechter, and it was wonderful to see so many things that are the same as well as new things that Schechter students are doing," says Rena. "I still remembered all the words from the special prayers we sang in tefillah and the songs that the students are learning for their Hagigat Hagan. Being at Schecher also reinforced my desire to pursue teaching and working with kindergarten students."

"It has been wonderful to have Rena in our kindergarten classrooms," says Daniela Gliksberg. "She has a natural gift for teaching. I hope to one day call her my colleague."

And the winner of the trip is....

Cold weather getting you down?
Don't miss out on a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to win:  

The Ultimate Ramah Experience: A Visit to Camp in the Wintertime! 

Camp will fly* your child, one of his/her camp friends plus one parent to a fun-filled, snow-packed day of adventure at camp! Sledding down the kikar, outdoor photo shoot by the point, walking on Lake Buckatabon (it's frozen - no worries), snow angels on the basketball courts, hot cocoa in the new chadar ochel; the entire day will be yours to explore Camp Ramah in the wintertime!  

To be eligible to win this All Expenses Paid daytrip, you must be a returning camper and you MUST be enrolled for Summer 2010 by December 18, 2009, at 12:00 p.m. The drawing will take place shortly thereafter and the winner will be announced in HaMirpeset Shelanu. Trip details and travel arrangements will be arranged upon notification of the winner. Click here to register for Summer 2010 now!  

*Camp will cover the cost of (3) domestic round-trip tickets from home cities to camp.

For the disabled, Birthright trips are extra special

Article by Gil Shefler, November 9, 2009, from JTA

NEW YORK (JTA) -- Pamela Saeks thought her daughter Karly, who has Asperger's syndrome, would never be able to go on Birthright Israel, the program that offers Diaspora Jews free trips to Israel.

"For years she has been so frustrated that she can't be like other kids and go on an organized trip to Israel," Saeks said.

But in December, Karly will embark on a 10-day Birthright trip tailored for individuals with Asperger's, a form of high-functioning autism. The trip will take her from the shores of the Dead Sea to the verdant plateau of the Golan Heights.

The trip is organized in partnership with Shorashim, an organization aimed at strengthening ties between the Diaspora and Israel, and Koach, the college outreach group of the Conservative movement, and has been led by special needs educator Rose Sharon.

It will be the fourth Birthright trip suited to meet the needs of people with Asperger's.

The Asperger's trip is one of a number of specially tailored Birthright programs for those with disabilities. Birthright, which has brought some 220,000 Jews aged 18 to 26 to Israel since its inception in 2000, also runs trips for the hearing impaired, the developmentally disabled and wheelchair users, and has had one trip for blind participants.

By the end of 2009, at least 28 groups of people with special needs will have traveled to Israel on Birthright since 2003, according to Birthright.

The Birthright trips for the disabled visit all the major sites of a typical Birthright trip, but changes are made to suit the participants' unique needs.

At Masada, they do not ascend to the ancient citadel via the rigorous serpentine trail. Instead, they tour the Roman ramparts at the bottom of the hill and take the cable car to the top.

At Yad Vashem, the Holocaust museum in Jerusalem, organizers highlight the persecution by the Nazis of people with disabilities. And Asperger's trips hold discussions about the Nazis' persecution of Eastern European Jewry in classrooms located next to the museum to provide a better environment for participants to absorb the information.

Despite their popularity, the frequency of Birthright trips for the disabled is limited due to budgetary constraints.

"It's an expensive trip to run, and we can't do it again," Hillel's director of immersion, Andrea Hoffman, said of a trip for the mobile impaired. "People have asked us if we could get private funding and we have a lot of requests."

The costs of the trips for the disabled are higher for several reasons. Each group has a higher staff-to-participant ratio -- one to three on the Asperger's trip, for example, compared with one to 20 for regular Birthright trips.

In addition, some groups need specific and sometimes expensive facilities. Mobile-impaired groups need special buses that can accommodate more than 20 people in wheelchairs, and organizers have to scout every destination to make sure they are wheelchair accessible.

Laura Siegel, who went on a trip for the hearing impaired two summers ago, said the experience was transformative.

"I feel that this trip would leave a long-lasting impression for every deaf Jewish young adult out there in the United States, as it did for me," Siegel wrote JTA in an e-mail.

"We started out as strangers and ended up almost feeling like a family, and all it took was 10 days up close and personal sharing this amazing journey."

Lior Baruch, an Israeli special-needs teacher who has escorted three Asperger's trips and will take part in the one in December, said one moment during his last trip sticks out in his mind.

"A few hours after the group landed in Israel, they stood on the Armon Hanatziv promenade overlooking this view of Jerusalem," Baruch recalled. "You could see the excitement in their eyes. Some took nonstop pictures. Others called their parents. It was a touching moment."

Rabbi Elsye Winick, associate director of Koach and one of the organizers of the Asperger's trip, said that one of the most powerful moments on past trips came when her group met Israelis with Asperger's.

"It was an eye-opening experience," Winick said. "It was an experience to realize that on the other side of the world there were people just like them."

Jeffery Odols, who is deaf and took part in a Birthright trip for the hearing impaired, raves about the experience. He said it included many memorable moments such as visiting the Bedouin in the Negev Desert and savoring the "wonderful shwarma and falafel."

But the 22-year-old from Rochester, N.Y., said the trip's highlight was the friendships he forged with other deaf and hearing-impaired participants.

"We learned so much from each other -- our backgrounds, our struggles, our identities and our aspirations," Odols wrote. "It was interesting observing personalities blend in together."

After returning from the trip, Odols was inspired to enroll in a course in Middle Eastern studies. He said he hopes one day to help Israel improve its ties with its neighbors.

"Going on the Birthright trip actually opened my eyes," he said.

Expanding our Leadership Team

We are pleased to announce that beginning on September 1, 2009, Camp Ramah in Wisconsin is expanding its administrative structure. Rabbi David Soloff will become the full-time Executive Director of Camp Ramah in Wisconsin, Inc., responsible for strategic planning and partnering as well as ongoing development and expansion of Ramah programming. Rabbi Loren Sykes will join us as the new Director of Camp Ramah in Wisconsin and be responsible for the year-round administration of the camp. Lori Stark will continue in her role as the Director of Ramah Day Camp in Wheeling, Illinois. Benji Bearman will become the Chief Operating Officer and continue to oversee operations of Camp Ramah in Wisconsin and Ramah Day Camp. Linda Hoffenberg will become the Director of Institutional Advancement and continue to oversee development needs for both Camp Ramah in Wisconsin and Ramah Day Camp. Jacob Cytryn will continue in his role as Program Director of Camp Ramah in Wisconsin.

We are excited to welcome Rabbi Loren Sykes to our team! An alumnus and former staff member, Rabbi Loren Sykes served as the assistant director of Camp Ramah in Wisconsin from 1993 through the summer of 1996. During that time, he was a co-founder of the Rose Crown Minyan at Anshe Emet Synagogue. Loren became the founding executive director of Camp Ramah Darom in Clayton, Georgia where he built the camp into a leading institution in the Jewish South, created Camp Yofi: Family Camp for Jewish Families with Children with Autism, and developed a traditional family camp. Rabbi Sykes has an outstanding record of Jewish educational leadership and innovation and is the winner of the 2006 Covenant Award recognizing excellence in Jewish Education. In 2008, Loren was a Fellow in the Melton Senior Educators Program of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and spent a year serving as the North American Director of the Florence Melton Adult Mini-School which is a project of the Hebrew University. Loren met Rebecca, his wife of fifteen years, at Camp Ramah in Wisconsin. They have three children - Elan (14), Mira (11) and Amalya (7). Rabbi Sykes was ordained at the Jewish Theological Seminary in 1993.

This is a wonderful opportunity for Ramah Wisconsin as we position ourselves to take on the challenges of our next period of growth and service to the community.

The following article from the Spring 2009 issue of CJ: Voices of Masorti/Conservative Judaism, highlights the partnership between Ramah Wisconsin, Koach, Shorashim and Birthright Israel.

The Highest Example of Godliness

Koach's Special Needs Trip to Israel

by Rabbi Elyse Winick

You remember the moments vividly, starkly clear against the backdrop of all other memories. The first time you stepped off an airplane onto the tarmac of Ben Gurion International Airport. Your first glimpse of the Kotel, golden in the sun. The heat and intensity of a tiny desert nation bearing down upon you. A place that was simultaneously totally foreign and totally home.

Since 2000, Koach has been uniquely privileged to accompany 17 busloads of young people on the journey of a lifetime, their first visit to their ancestral homeland. It's hard to fathom. Taglit-Birthright Israel, which is a consortium of private donors, federations and the Israeli government, has funded visits for 200,000 young Jews over the past eight years, many of them disaffected and some even negatively disposed to all things Jewish, leaving their souls deeply touched and their identities transformed.

Standing in front of the biggest Jewish mosh pit in history at a Taglit-Birthright Israel Mega Event (the program brings thousands of participants together for a cultural event and a dance), a high-ranking official was heard to say that this powerful experience could be replicated anywhere and that Israel was almost superfluous to the moment. That idea is debatable - and you can be sure he was thrilled to offer the moment as it was, heavy with the richness of culture and history - but the value of giving young people the opportunity to share that moment together was not lost on him. It's one thing to visit Israel with your parents. It's entirely different to discover Israel in the company of your peers.

If the power of a peer Israel experience has been patently obvious, what has been less simple to formulate is how to open that idea up to serve populations for whom peer travel is more of a challenge, either physically or socially. Various organizations have offered programs for people with a variety of physical and or developmental limitations. Following discussions between Koach's director, Richard Moline, and Camp Ramah in Wisconsin's Rabbi David Soloff, in 2006 Koach made small inroads to fill this void by offering a Taglit-Birthright Israel track for participants with Asperger's Syndrome. It was a logical outgrowth of the Tikvah program offered by Camp Ramah. Rabbi Soloff designated Rose Sharon, one of Tikvah's coordinators, to help bring this dream to reality, and it proved to be a breathtaking success.

In the winter of 2008, in cooperation with Shorashim, an educational tourism company that handles ground arrangements, Koach proudly offered this opportunity again, to the delight of 17 participants and their parents.

The standard Taglit-Birthright Israel experience is a whirlwind tour, characterized by early mornings, late nights, close quarters, long bus rides, and all the Israel you can possibly take in (and then some!) in about 10 days. Much of this would pose a problem for participants with Asperger's Syndrome, a developmental disorder on the autism spectrum. Characterized by difficulty with social interaction, poor nonverbal communication skills, and intense absorption in particular subjects, Asperger's Syndrome creates real stumbling blocks to social networking. A travel program for participants with Asperger's Syndrome would require a smaller group and higher staff ratio (the usual Taglit-Birthright Israel group has 40 participants and two American staff ), a shorter day, and an itinerary that opened the doors to Israel through museums rather than hiking, using such tools as drama and participatory learning.

The logistics for such an undertaking are not insignificant. Each participant and his or her parents must be interviewed extensively. His or her case workers, therapists, and life skills coordinators are consulted to confirm that the trip can be a successful experience. Detailed medication forms must be filled out to enable staff to administer drugs accurately. Participants who get to the departure city by air must be met at their gates and escorted to a waiting area. Itinerary elements must be reviewed and modified to ensure that they are a good fit. Staff must be experienced with this population, prepared to offer all the necessary supervision and to patiently answer questions - often the same questions, over and over again. (This phenomenon, known as perseverating, is a hallmark of Asperger's Syndrome.)

Costs are also notable - while Taglit-Birthright Israel covers flight and most ground expenses, those costs are based on a larger participant/staff ratio. More staff - and specially trained staff at that - means extra expenses as well. So too does the additional programming that makes this trip work for this population. Where Taglit- Birthright Israel contributed a significant amount of money, we are grateful to the donors who provided the additional $20,000 needed to bring the trip to life.

On December 16, 2008, participants who came from across the Unites States, from Minneapolis to Tampa, were met at JFK International Airport by trip staff and United Synagogue staff volunteers. They gathered in the International Synagogue, hosted by the synagogue's rabbi, Bennett Rackman. For many, this was a reunion with friends from their summers at Camp Ramah in Wisconsin. Others hung back on the periphery, reading books, listening to music, and waiting, sometimes patiently, sometimes less so. They passed the time chatting and snacking, celebrating a birthday, and playing getting- to-know-you games.

Finally it was time to go through security. Briefed in the details of Asperger's Syndrome by Ms. Sharon, EL AL opened a separate check-in line for the group, speeding them through the process. Just a few snacks and sodas later, Rose and two additional North American staffers shepherded participants through security and their adventure began. Two additional madrichim (counselors), a tour guide, a medic, and three young Israelis awaited their arrival at the other end.

They could not have imagined what lay ahead. From shacharit at the Southern Wall with Rabbi Ed Romm, the director of the Center on Campus at United Synagogue's Fuchsberg Jerusalem Center, to hiking up Masada, each day was a dream come true. They celebrated Hanukkah by lighting candles and eating sufganiot (donuts). They stood in Independence Hall and heard the founding of the state declared; they learned about the history of their people at the Time Elevator (where for the second time in as many trips, participants pointed out errors in the film). They lived and breathed Israel. By the end of the trip, one participant asked what kind of programs were available that would allow him to come back and spend the year. Another whispered to a member of the staff that when he dies, he wants to be buried in Israel. None of this comes as a surprise, until you consider that this is not your typical group of young Jews.

When two participants with physical challenges struggled to make it to the top of Masada, no one complained that they were holding everyone else back. Instead, the rest of the group waited at the top, shouting their encouragement and greeting them with raucous applause. Accustomed to being criticized for such delays, the participants glowed with delight over their welcome.

One young man was unable to pull his suitcase or carry it anywhere, from start to finish. Without being asked, another participant took charge of his luggage, along with his own, ensuring that he was never left to struggle alone.

And while in so very many ways this trip looked just like any other Taglit- Birthright Israel program, no other group attended an English-language performance of My FairLady performed by a troupe of Israeli actors with Asperger's Syndrome. No other group spent its last day in Israel at Bet Ekstein, an organization providing services to people with intellectual and emotional challenges, particularly those with Asperger's. Our travelers had the opportunity to meet and get to know Israelis with Asperger's Syndrome, to celebrate Hanukkah with them with songs and games. It was an incredibly moving experience, validating for the participants, reassuring them that they are not alone.

In reflecting on their whirlwind tour, Ms. Sharon said, "We formed a community that was interested in Israel and wanted to make the most of every minute... Best of all - many of these kids are communicating with one another via facebook, email and phone. I have heard from several and they are still so excited about the trip and the friends they made." Taglit-Birthright Israel refers to its program as a gift from the Jewish community. After just 10 minutes in this group's company it becomes eminently clear that some gifts are better than others, even when the gift is the same.

There have been people in the Jewish community who have questioned Taglit-Birthright Israel's merits. Should such a significant portion of our communal resources go toward a mere 10 days? In their book Ten Days of Birthright Israel, Leonard Saxe and Barry Chazan respond: "The program's initial goals - to promote Jewish identity, create a sense of Jewish peoplehood, and to create love of Israel - have, at least in the short run, been met. Although the story of Birthright Israel's long-term impact is yet to be written, and can only be discerned over the next decade, its short-term effects have far exceeded what its founding philanthropists [Charles] Bronfman and [Michael] Steinhardt could have hoped."

You don't have to be a social scientist to come to this conclusion. On his return from Israel, one participant asked his very secular parents if he could light Shabbat candles on Friday night. Flabbergasted, the parents agreed.

Susan Glass, the parent of a participant from Glenview, Illinois, wrote following the trip: "Our kids have never before and most likely will never again have the opportunity to travel with their peers (outside of the Tikvah day and camping trips). In fact, without Tikvah Wisconsin, Renee would not have a true peer group at all. What the school district, the state and social service agencies call her peer group is an administrative convenience, not a group of people she can meaningfully socialize with. Virtually Renee's entire social and positive emotional life revolves around the friends she has from Tikvah, the memories of past summers and the anticipation of the next. Her now strong and proud Jewish identity is entirely due to Tikvah (try as we did, family and synagogue couldn't do it, because she always felt left out) and the Koach trip. High functioning, developmentally disabled children and adults, almost never fit in anywhere - not with the normally developed community, not with the majority of the developmentally disabled community. And finding a right-fitting community of Jews is so much more remote a possibility. To surround them with loving, nurturing and skillful American and Israeli staff, a professional developmental curriculum of the highest order tailored to their specific needs, and infuse it with the unique magic of Jewish overnight camp and now a trip to Israel, or as Renee and her sisters now call it, the Holy Land, is surely among the highest examples of Godliness."

Given the realities of the economy and the current condition of Jewish philanthropy, it's hard to know when we will once again be able to offer this gift to young Jewish adults with Asperger's Syndrome. That, of course, has no impact on the regular requests Koach fields for the next one, or the one for the current high school sophomore who can't wait to come of age. What remains clear is that this is sacred and holy work, in which it is a privilege for us to take part.

Tikvah Birthright Israel Trip

An event which was the first of its kind took place in December 2008 between the Jerusalem branch of Beit Ekstein (a vocational training center for young adults with Asperger's syndrome) and a birthright Israel/taglit group from the U.S. The American group was comprised mostly of participants who also have Asperger's Syndrome, many of whom are current or former participants in Ramah Wisconsin's Tikvah programs. The trip was led by Rose Sharon, director of Ramah Wisconsin's Tikvah Atzmayim Vocational Program.

The meeting was a hit right off the bat, as a student from St. Louis mentioned that the visit to Beit Ekstein was the highlight of his trip to Israel. The groups that previously were separated by thousands of miles proceeded to literally connect through an activity that showed how countless interests and experiences were shared by all in attendance.

Israel Defense Forces soldier Eli Aizner, one of four IDF soldiers who accompanied the group on its journey throughout Israel, had taught the American group several songs over the prior Shabbat. The taglit participants showed off their newly expanded repertoire by proudly singing Chanuka songs and a fitting, celebratory "Hine Ma Tov" along with the Beit Ekstein participants. Truly, how nice it was for the American and Israeli peers to sit, sing, dance and even enjoy Chanuka sufganiyot together as brothers and sisters.

All too often, those with special needs are ignored and discarded. On the fourth day of Chanuka 5769, as Beit Ekstein warmly welcomed this taglit group, the inclusive essence of the meeting was unmistakable. It was all made possible by both the Beit Ekstein staff and the Ramah Wisconsin-Shorashim-Koach taglit staff who ensured that 17 amazing young adults could receive their birthright and connect to their homeland. The connection the Americans took home was clearly not only to Israel's historic sites, but much more substantially to her incredible people--special needs young adults and IDF soldiers alike.

by Eric Samuels, Jerusalem
Ramah Wisconsin-Shorashim-Koach taglit Staff Member

Below is an email from National Ramah Director, Rabbi Mitch Cohen

A Ramah parent recently told me that among all the great things about Camp Ramah, perhaps the best was that her children "...feel like Ramah is their second home - Who could ask for more than that for their kids?" This was one of the nicest comments I have heard, as it captures the essence of what Camp Ramah wants for all of its campers and staff - for them to feel at "home" in our summer communities. At camp they feel safe and nurtured, surrounded by adults, teens, and peers who care about them and create a wonderful community feeling.
 
In the current climate of economic uncertainty, parents have to decide, more carefully than ever, how to allocate financial resources, and what experiences they can afford for their children. In making these choices, there is nothing more important than instilling good values. Camp Ramah teaches compassion, kindness, and friendship, all within a context of Jewish tradition. When we send our children to Ramah, we are making a long-term investment in their future, an investment that, for most of our graduates, continues to pay outstanding dividends long after their camper years, as they grow into young adults, and throughout their lives. Simply put, Ramah complements all the lessons of home.
 
I am passionate about Ramah, together with tens of thousands of Ramah alumni, staff, campers, parents and supporters. We believe that a Ramah experience is one of, if not the best assurance of strong Jewish identity and Jewish leadership for the future, as well as an outstanding environment for individual growth.
 
Among other critical reasons to send our children to Ramah: 

1. Ramah builds community. Parents have myriad choices for summer experiences for their children. There are excellent camps and travel programs which offer one week, 10 day, or other short term sessions. These may be good experiences, but they do not necessarily create community. At Ramah we believe that the length of time spent at camp is essential to building community. Relationships with peers and staff members take time to develop. So much more growth takes place when everyone feels comfortable with each other and with their surroundings. Ramah camps offer that stability that creates community for our campers. At Ramah, our campers feel "at home." 
2. Ramah offers an inspiring Jewish program. Judaism and a love for Israel are woven into the fabric of daily life. Our children learn that Zionism and Jewish religious life and culture can be relevant and fun. The role modeling for our children is extremely powerful. The sports instructor, the bunk counselor, and the arts director, all young Jewish adults committed to the mission of Ramah, find ways to manifest this mission through daily activities.
3. The Ramah experience lasts through the crucial teen years.

When choosing a summer camp, parents often focus on what might be the most fun for their 8-, 10-, or 12-year-old child. Parents really should take a long term perspective, and consider where their children will be when they are 15 or 17. At Ramah, campers typically return as campers through the high school years, travel to Israel with Ramah, and return for at least a summer or two as staff members. In 2008 our retention rate across Ramah camps was 84%. Equally important, 80% of Ramah staff members were campers at Ramah! I believe that one of Ramah's greatest strengths is this retention into the crucial high school years and into young adulthood, when values are being defined and solidified, and when relationships are being established that often last for years into the future. As one young Ramah alumnus told me recently, "Even after two years at college, I still find that I have most in common with the Ramah people I meet, no matter which Ramah camp they attended. There's a whole group of us that get together on Shabbat, and it's so much fun."

We live in challenging times. The most important decisions we make may be about the experiences we choose for our children - who will be their friends, who will influence the decisions they make, who will be their role models, and what values will they embrace. Summer camp is expensive, and choosing the right one can be daunting.

For so many reasons, now more than ever, choosing Camp Ramah may be the best decision that parents can make for their children's future.