Dear NCSY Camp Sports Parents,
Thank G-d camp has gotten off to an amazing start! It has been challenging with a fast day and record heat but nothing can stop the Camp Sports family from having a great and meaningful (albeit hot) time. It is always beautiful to watch how quickly the teenagers from across the US, Canada, and Israel come together, and we are excited to see what the rest of the summer will bring!
I hope to share with you weekly reports on Fridays, but before I get to that, I wanted to let you know of other ways you can find out about what is happening at Camp Sports. We have a camp blog which will have updates on camp events, a Facebook page, and and Instagram handle which showcases daily pictures and videos of camp. All of these accounts are updated throughout the day. All you have to do is go to the Camp Sports website to check out all of the excitement of camp. https://campsports.ncsy.org/
One important note about deliveries. Unfortunately, we can only have deliveries from, USPS, UPS and Amazon. Other services, Walmart, Uber, etc. drop the packages off at any building they choose on campus and many times the packages does not have a name on it. Therefore we cannot make sure it gets to your son and it is frustrating for everyone. We go to stores every Friday and can make a trip during the week if someone needs something urgently.
Now let’s share with you some of what happened this week. On Tuesday, once all the NCSYers had arrived and been greeted we had a brief orientation program followed by dinner and a fierce four-way dorm floor vs. floor dodgeball game. The winning section of the first floor got Ritas ices to celebrate their victory. We also spent time during the earlier part of the day, explaining the rules, safety protocol and the day to day of how camp works.
On Wednesday morning, we kicked off our learning program. We have two one-hour learning sessions each day. One of the groups focuses on learning about Brachos. In the second learning group, the NCSYers choose what they want to learn with their advisors. After learning, during lunch, the teens found out which sports team they are on, which is always an exciting part of camp. Then we headed out to the fields for an energy packed afternoon of leagues. After dinner we went for an evening swim and cooled down from the long very hot day at a pool! We reminded your son many times to stay hydrated and drink with the hot temperatures.
Thursday we had a meaningful fast day, the 17th of Tammuz. Our morning was spent learning about the day and a meaningful multimedia self reflection program led by our Learning Director, Rabbi Moshe Grosberg. The NCSYers rested in the afternoon with optional movies to watch until mincha at followed by a second multi media program on vulnerability. The fast ended with words of inspiration from Rabbi Epstein who lives in Israel and a beautiful Kumzitz.
After the break fast meal we had our first mishmar learning program of the summer. The learning in the beit midrash was beautiful. The night ended with a major raffle featuring a mini fridge, shabbos lamps, TYH hats and shirts and some July 4th hats and shirts. The night ended in a way only teenage boys can appreciate with late night hot dogs
Today, we hope to play one league game after the learning program and then offer the boys a trip to Target and the local kosher supermarket. I let the boys know that they should prepare for Shabbos since it is a big day in Camp, and we should all clean our rooms, shower, and put on proper bigdei shabbos (shabbos clothing), because Shabbos is a BIG DAY!
We are looking forward to having an uplifting and fun first shabbos, getting to know one another and bonding as a camp. Our advisors and staff are absolutely incredible this year, and we are looking forward to facilitating lasting relationships between the teens and staff!
Thank you for trusting us with your son this summer. Please do not hesitate to reach out to me if I can be helpful in any way. Looking forward to a great week ahead!
Have a wonderful Shabbos,
Rabbi Jon Green