The countdown is on… 58 days until 1st session begins! As we gear up for summer, I am excited to share with you 5 of the things I am most excited about:
- Our NEW Lake WATER PARK!
We have expanded our inflatable offerings to create an amazing new lake water park! (See picture below) Everyone at camp gets to experience the fun of Lake Jake.
- Expanded Pool and Lake time!
We have extended the time we spend in the water this summer! And we are bringing back Instructional Swim for our younger campers.
- Security Enhancements
We have consulted with our representative from Secure Community Network, who is finalizing our site assessment. We are finalizing our security enhancements based on this assessment– more info to come closer to the summer. Further, our team is receiving additional security training from Secure Community Network and our trainer, David Berkman.
- Israelis at Camp!
Once again, we are welcoming Israelis into our GFC community this summer. We are looking forward to welcoming over 20 shlichim (Israeli staff) to camp as counselors and in leadership roles. Teens from the Israel Movement for Progressive Judaism (IMPJ) will join our S’ganim and Kibbutz units during 2nd session. Finally, I am excited to announce that we will welcome up to 40 teens from a new program through the Jewish Agency for Israel (JAFI) called Campers2Gether for two weeks during 2nd session. This program provides a summer camp experience for groups of Israeli teens in areas directly impacted by the war. I am grateful to the Jewish Federations of Houston, Dallas and San Antonio and Shalom Austin for pooling funds together to support this important initiative.
- Continued Quality Communication
We are committed to continuing quality, timely communication with our camp families. Campanion has proven to be a fantastic tool for viewing pictures during our camp season. This app uses facial recognition technology to find your camper quickly – no more scrolling through thousands of photos! Photos are uploaded daily; last year we uploaded almost 65,000 pictures throughout the summer!
Weekly communication to our enrolled camp families will begin later this month and continue through the summer, giving highlights and important news from camp. For our greater community, be sure to follow us on Facebook and Instagram to stay up to date on our summer adventures!
I cannot wait to welcome our 2024 campers and staff home to GFC!
Shabbat shalom,
Rabbi Erin