ParentSpace Blog

Right hand on red, left foot on yellow!  All of camp participated in a giant game of twister. Following the game, we watched a performance by the hilarious ventriloquist, Jonathan Geffner. His captivating cast included puppets Shmendrick, Chippy the monkey, Aunt Sarah, and Ezra. Shmendrick even remembered one of our campers, Miriam, from last summer! The puppets delighted us with their voices, each unique and funny. Besides for singing, the campers asked puppet Aunt Sarah all types of questions. She invited one camper over for some classic Jewish gefilte fish. Judging by everyone’s laughs, Angry Birds day ended with some very happy birds!

Today’s theme is GameStop. Costumes include video games Angry Birds, Mario, and more. We had a live Angry Birds game, where campers shot Angry Birds from a slingshot at stacked boxes. Throughout the day, campers have been playing virtual video games  in the dining hall. Our older division had a trip to a shooting range. Campers decorated signs with anti-cancer slogans and used them as targets. Whether it’s with bullets or it’s with love, here at Camp Simcha we kill cancer one day at a time.

Tonight’s show was literally Cirque-tacular! We got to watch aerial acrobats and a contortionist, or as I like to call him, a bendy-man. The acrobats performed all kinds of acrobatics while swinging from purple velvet ribbons. One acrobat put his whole body into a ginormous balloon. The contortionist performed the classic pretzel and a bunch of other mind-boggling acts including bending and twisting himself out of a straitjacket. Kids, don’t try this at home. As always, the night ended in smiles.

The battlefield is raging here at Camp Simcha. Our campers march in their navy and army uniforms, as they cheer the American and Israeli anthems. With activities such as rock climbing and archery, our soldiers sure have a busy day ahead of them. During boot camp, we crawled under trenches, ran through mud, walked on balance beams, and raced through a tires-obstacle. Daniele, one of our campers in a wheelchair, was ecstatic on ropes course. As she flew in the air, smiling wide, she sang “I believe I can fly”. Our soldiers also enjoyed a concert with Baruch Levine! Some tears were shed, when he sang “Rifaeinu”, “Heal us”, yet the tears were ones of hope and joy. Fighting the battle of cancer, our campers are the biggest troopers I know. United we stand!

What do you get when you combine girls looking their best, singing, dancing, bingo, a choir, a hilarious skit, and an unbelievable amount of energy? Shabbat in Camp Simcha! Prayers and songs warmed all of our hearts. Our campers put on a skit about a Jewish mother trying to get gowns for her seven daughters. The Jewish humor left us all in giggles. The Israelis put on their very own red riding hood skit, in hebrew. We played a camp-wide game of Bingo. Chavy, Batsheva, Shayna, Shira, and Miriam all shared inspiring stories and thoughts with us. Chavy sang us a song she wrote, about cancer also being for the best. Shira told us that she finally understands why we are called Camp Simcha, because true happiness can be felt here. The Shabbat left us all on a high that I cannot put into words. After it ended we danced the night away, and our hearts will forever keep on dancing!

Hands went up, hands went down, but not one person had a frown. Simon Sez with Steve Max tonight left everyone rolling of laughter. Girls got out, but everyone was a winner in this game. Steve called up our girls to play the game while the crowd cheered them on. At the end of the game one of our very own counselors joined Steve in a chair-balancing on the nose contest.I I won’t name who lost but let’s just say that we have some talented counselors on staff. Simon says put your hands up and give it up for the best campers in the world, the campers of Camp Simcha!

Today’s game is Monopoly! Many girls are donning the Monopoly man’s mustache. Others are dressed up in all sorts of money-themed costumes. Faces flash money, literally, with huge dollar signs painted on. The dining room has a life-size Monopoly board! Activities of the day included baking, candle making, karate, wood working, boating and more. During
“jail break” our campers had to find highly wanted prisoners, also known as our staff in prison suits. Hey, they can have fun too!  The campers received money throughout the day. An auction was held with their money and bunks won prizes such as t-shirt making, a pajama party, and much more.  Looking forward to a great night activity!

Place your piece on start because our gamers have finally arrived! Welcoming them was our camp’s very own performers and live band. Singing and dancing could be heard for miles. Songs were sung to each camper individually, making them feel like the princesses that they are. Girls were thrown up in the air on chairs and put on counselor’s shoulders as they danced the day away.  After the cotton candy was eaten, and the faces were painted, the girls headed down to a mind-blowing magic show. The show was a hit but the volunteers from the audience made it all the better. Chavi was called up for a card trick.  Sari, Malka, and Troni all had their minds read. The magician ended his act with an incredible illusion that left us all with dropped jaws.  It was a magical day to say the least.

Our campers love getting e-mail! To send your camper an e-mail, include her NAME and BUNK NUMBER in the subject line of the e-mail. Please send all e-mails to mail@campsimcha.org. Unfortunately, we cannot download any attachments so please include all content in the body of your e-mail.