Summer camps inspire teens to take the next step in their Jewish journeys

This article was produced as part of JTA’s Teen Journalism Fellowship, a program that works with Jewish teens around the world to report on issues that affect their lives.

Spending a semester in Israel in 2023 was life-changing for Leora Schonbrun. At Tichon Ramah Yerushalayim, a high school program run by the Ramah organization, her feelings about Israel were transformed. It quickly became one of the most cherished places she had ever been to.

“My desire to learn more about Israel grew everyday there and is still growing,” the 16-year-old from Deal, New Jersey said. 

It was an experience she would have missed if not for her seven years at Camp Ramah in the Berkshires, one of more than a dozen overnight and day camps in the Ramah network, which is affiliated with the Conservative movement.

“Being run by the same organization, my camp introduced me to my Israel program and provided me Jewish values and lessons that influenced me to be a part of something that has changed my life,” said Schonbrun.

For Schonbrun, and many teens like her, camp does more than create memories. It helps create decisions that have lasting impact. From Israel programs to gap years, some teens are inspired to make life choices based on their summer experiences. They say these decisions help them develop their personal agency and lifelong connections. From starting or reinforcing their religious experiences at Jewish camps, campers go on to new experiences that connect them with their Jewish identity in even broader ways.

Schonbrun’s mother, Jane Rachel Schonbrun, the director of Camp Yavneh, a nondenominational camp in New Hampshire, has guided many teenagers to make these important decisions.

“At its best, Jewish overnight camp can give teens a strong Jewish community and solid Jewish values, both things that will likely have a big impact on their decision making, especially about their futures,” said Jane Rachel. “The unique immersive Jewish community at overnight camps gives teens a taste of living 24-7 in a community of people with shared values, interests, and religious commitments.” 

Many of the camps also integrate Israeli culture and Israeli staff, hoping to immerse campers in an environment that will connect them even further with Israel — a priority of many Jewish camps with Israel at war and facing harsh international criticism.

Haley Berger, of Westfield, New Jersey, took part in a semester abroad at the Alexander Muss High School in Israel after attending Camp Perlman in Pennsylvania for 10 years. Berger first heard about this program through people at her camp. “Camp connects me to my love for Israel because Israeli culture is ingrained into the camp,” said Berger.

“Everything that I got out of this semester [in Israel] was exceptional, and I am sure I will always carry the memories, learnings, and culture with me my whole life,” said Berger. 

She became more connected with her Judaism through learning extensively about her religion and living in the place where many of her Jewish ancestors lived before her. “Ever since this program I feel way more connected to my Judaism, and I’m sure that connection will keep getting stronger and stronger,” said Berger.

Camping professionals say that what happens after camp can be as important as what happens during it.

“All of our research shows that if you are someone who is involved in Jewish camp and has Jewish experiences as a young person that you are more likely to be involved and do those things once you become older,” said Julie Finkelstein, senior director of program strategy and innovation at the Foundation for Jewish Camp. “The most important variable in these cases is building that strong Jewish community early on.”

Teenagers are very impressionable, and spending those teenage years at a camp can have a huge impact, she says. Camp allows students to learn about themselves away from the pressures of school and home. “We grow up and become the people we are away from the pressures of the achievement-driven world,” Finkelstein said.

Jolie Waitman, a 16-year-old from White Plains, New York would not be considering a gap year at a pluralistic program in Israel if it weren’t for her seven years at Camp Yavneh, which calls itself “a place where all Jews are encouraged to engage in our traditions and practices.” She said most teens at SAR, the Modern Orthodox school she attends in Riverdale, New York are considering gap-year programs at places like Bar Ilan University, which are also Orthodox. 

Instead, she is going to look at programs similar to Hevruta and Year Course because she appreciates the pluralistic environment she was immersed in at camp. The atmosphere gave her a chance to explore and practice her own style of Jewish identity.

“I have always felt so welcome in the pluralistic camp environment, and I want to be able to recreate this type of environment in other experiences I have,” said Waitman.

Tyler Levan, 17, from Hastings-on-Hudson, New York, was inspired to take a summer trip in Israel after spending summers at Camp Eisner in Massachusetts since 2015. As well as giving him a place to connect more with his Judaism, the Reform movement camp allowed him to connect with Israel and really understand it on a personal level. 

Camp also helped him make other important decisions. “Camp really influenced me as a person and shaped who I am which in some ways has influenced me with my college process,” said Levan.

For Schonbrun, who spent a semester in Israel, camp led her to something she didn’t know she needed. “Because of my program Tichon Ramah Yerushalayim, my connection to Israel is one of the most important and meaningful things in my life,” said Schonbrun. “My love for Israel could not be stronger.”