healing Archives - Page 49 of 51 - Camp Simcha & Camp Simcha Special

The Sky’s The Limit: Night Activity August 8th

August 8, 2013Leave a Comment

Performers at halftime for every team in the NBA, led by Ken Kovach – 3-time National Trampoline Champion, and current holder of a Guinness World Record for the most revolutions through a hula hoop while jumping and somersaulting on a trampoline – the Skyriders graced the Camp Simcha gym, clad in red, white, and blue. With a repertoire of complex sequences of forward and backward flips, twists, and somersaults, the acrobats elicited roaring cheers from the audience.

Then it got even better. One performer strapped on a bounce-board (like a flexible trampoline snowboard), and held poses in the air, flipping and spinning even higher. Next, they pulled out a pair of 150 cm snow skis. Then a wakeboard. Then a snowboard. Spinning, flipping, somersaulting, almost hitting the ceiling, the acrobats were unstoppable.

When Ken pulled out bouncy neon-green ball, he selected a few camper volunteers – our very own Mika L., Grace F., Jordana K. and Tallie E. – to participate in a stunt! Each threw the green ball at the precise moment that the acrobats somersaulted, and they had to try and catch the ball mid-flip.

Throughout the show, Simcha-spirit was exploding from the bleachers. The acrobats nearly hit the gym rafters a couple of times, but if was definitely the Simcha energy that raised the roof! Ken Kovach said it best himself after the show: “This is the best camp ever! It’s the best energy of any camp we’ve ever [been to]. We love coming here; Camp Simcha rocks!” Then he grinned. “Zai gezunt” (take care).

-T

The Stars of Camp Simcha: Miriam

August 8, 2013Leave a Comment

Miriam dove straight for the red button when she got into the time machine.
“What would you do if you could travel back in time?”
“I would go back to the time when everything cost a nickel.”
“What would you buy?”
“I would buy a diamond necklace and then I would travel back to regular time, and I would buy so many things!”

-J

The Stone Age Life

August 8, 2013Leave a Comment

Era: Prehistoric/Stone Age

Campers and counselors walk the grounds as dinosaurs, cavewomen and, in particular, the Flintstones. In Stone Age fashion, campers made Stepping Stones; they took wet circular slabs of gray, red, or brown concrete and decorated them with stones, small colored pebbles, shiny bottle-caps, seashells, and colored glass. These beautiful, one-of-a-kind pieces of stone-art now decorate the pathway of Erica’s Garden.

In addition, campers are now proud pet owners! Campers transformed small, black stones with metallic marker decorations and created their very own pet rocks.

In Caveman Storytelling, they rolled picture dice and wove together an original story with contributions related to the images. What does a kid playing baseball, a turtle in a fedora, prayer, medicine, Camp Simcha, dancing, and a megaphone have in common? One story went as follows: A man was driving when he ran over a turtle. Devastated, he rushed the turtle to the hospital to receive immediate care, but the terribly unlucky turtle was hit by a baseball. The man prayed intently for the welfare of the turtle. Soon after, the turtle was traveling past a stop-sign when he met his best friend: a caveman in a wheelchair. They went to Camp Simcha together, where they danced and had a huge celebration.

At the Archeological Dig, the campers once again displayed their creative flairs. They were presented with ancient artifacts recovered from an archeological dig right here at Camp Simcha: chess pieces, dinosaurs, pirates, and Silly Bands. From these relics, they pieced together history, and acted it out.

Once upon a time, a very long time ago, Camp Simcha was just a barren wasteland where dinosaurs roamed freely, until a band of pirates arrived and plotted to capture and kill the dinosaurs with their arsenal of Silly Bands. The pirates were wildly successful, and they celebrated their skill until they realized that with no more land to plunder or dinosaurs to trap…they were actually quite bored. So one pirate mastermind invented a new pastime, a game he called chess, which the pirates soon grew quite fond of and played every waking moment. And that is the real history of Camp Simcha. And chess.

-T

Camp Simcha’s Very Own Time Machine

August 8, 20132 Comments

In Camp Simcha, just past the entrance in the dining hall, to your right you will find… a time machine. Constructed with astonishing stylistic detail, entering the dimly lit time machine is an experience all in itself. As the campers sit in the time machine chair, they face dozens of knobs and dials, and a screen that runs videos on a loop, a new one each day in conjunction with the theme. Today, while Camp Simcha is in the Stone Age, campers can watch the Flintstones, see cavemen invent the wheel, among other classic Stone Age scenes.

Oh, AND the time machine seat gives massages. Best. Time. Machine. Ever.
-J

Stone Age

August 8, 2013Leave a Comment

HUH? Did we mean to dial this far back in our time machines?? Well, the stone age has been awesome to us so far, so the unanimous decision has been to stay for the day. Following a good night’s sleep after yesterday’s excitement, the campers arrived in the dining hall for breakfast to a dining hall that had magically transformed overnight. Boulders, stone fire pits, bones (no humans or animals were harmed in the decorating of the dining room) and talking, walking, real life Flint Stones characters. Welcome to Camp Simcha! After a delicious breakfast, we all gathered by the fire pit and made introductions. We cheered, we sang, and made sure to provide each Camp Simcha camper with a warm, energized welcome. There are plenty of special activities scheduled for the day, so make sure to stay tuned for more updates throughout today! So far Camp Simcha is off to a fun, super energized, incredible, MAMMOTH start.

-J

CSG Arrivals

August 7, 20131 Comment

Picture 150 pumped up girls at a crazy dance party. Multiple that energy by a gazillion, and that should give you a glimpse of the energy here at Camp Simcha as we rocked out with arriving campers. It involved a lot of cheering, singing and all-out intense dancing. Decked out in wacky headgear and crazy costumes, the staff danced up a storm. Psychedelic colors everywhere. Intense booming music. Pink fluffy cotton candy and freshly popped popcorn. Mass flashmob-esque spinning on the grass to welcome the busses. Exploding energy. Welcome all Camp Simcha campers – you rock!

Keeping in Touch: E-mail

August 7, 2013Leave a Comment

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.

If you are a registered user of ParentSpace, you can also use our ParentSpace e-mail form to easily send e-mails to your camper.

For technical assistance, please email zahavah@campsimcha.org

About ParentSpace and our Galleries

August 7, 2013Leave a Comment

Before the session begins, we would like to clarify some things about our Facebook galleries, public galleries on our website, and ParentSpace galleries.

First, if your child is photo-released “in camp only”, he or she will only appear in the ParentSpace gallery. Your child will not appear on Facebook, nor on the public side of the site. So if your child is a camper, go ahead and sign up for ParentSpace. Not only will you see more pictures (2x more pictures than on FB), but you will also be privy videos that are produced special for you (almost) every day, an exclusive blog, the daily camp newsletter, camp schedule, and more exciting features.

Second, please follow the instructions below for the proper way to log in to your account. If you haven’t applied for an account, please go ahead and apply for an account. You should be verified within 48 hours.

To log into your ParentSpace account, go to campsimcha.org and click LOGIN in the top right corner.

Then type in your username and password.

You are now in ParentSpace!

A COMMON PROBLEM: If you attempt to visit campsimcha.org/parentspace directly, and login there, you will be bounced to another login page. If you type in your username and password there you, will be granted access to ParentSpace. However, until we correct this glitch, we ask that you instead login by going to campsimcha.org and clicking login in the top right corner.

If you are still having trouble with ParentSpace, or if you have any questions, comments, requests, or suggestions for the blogs, please contact zahavah@campsimcha.org

Behind the Scenes: CSG 2013

August 7, 2013Leave a Comment

Behind the scenes, the puppet-masters pull the strings together, and the hidden workings of Camp Simcha come alive. Bright papers, ribbons, and funky designs overtake every visible surface as counselors pool their artistic abilities to create personalized, individual decorations for every camper. The passion is palpable as the anticipation builds with every snip of scissors and every dab of glue. Piece by colorful piece, the staff members create funky signs, hang decorations, and the finishing touches all fall into place.

The camp’s resident band, Faux Real (check them out on facebook!) rocks out in preparation in the cafeteria, shaking the floorboards (and quite possibly the ceilings, the walls, and the rooftops as well).

I don’t want to give too much away, but… be prepared for the TIME of your lives!!!!!

The Future: Robotic Age; Last Full Day of Camp Simcha Special Boys

August 4, 2013Leave a Comment

It’s hard to register the fact that Camp Simcha Special Boys 2013 is coming to a close. As we look back and acknowledge what was accomplished here and the fun we had together, it was definitely the best summer ever, in the greatest camp in the world. The greatest finish line in the world. It is hard to fathom how much fun was packed into these few weeks, hence the hard work and effort which went in on the staff’s side. Everyone worked hard together to collectively make this summer the best ever. From the shows to concerts, to Color War and workshops, the memories and accomplishments of this summer will last a lifetime.

Oh, I’m getting side-tracked here. Well, while we are physically waving good-bye to each other, inside we are still closer than ever. Not only counselors to campers, but within the entire Camp Simcha family, everyone to each other.

For ‘the future,’ a huge rocket ship with fire blasters and another colorful robot stood erect next to the stage, not far from some smaller robots, made of aluminum and other shiny, silver paraphernalia. This morning the campers got a chance to complete any unfinished projects in any of the variety of workshops camp has to offer. It was ‘open workshops’ activity. Afterwards, the camp went to the Social Hall to watch a Duvie “The Legend” Becker presentation: “Curious Yoel in the Fancy, Shmancy Airplane,” a musical play performed by staff and campers. It was very amusing and we enjoyed the singing and acting in the performance.

Following lunch, we were treated to another surprise Social Hall performance: Edon, a young, Jewish singer who starred on America’s Got Talent last year. He sings while playing guitar and while playing piano, and stunned the crowd by his amazing performance. It was a privilege to have him come to Camp Simcha, to end off on a ‘high note.’

Camp is packing up now and preparing for the grand banquet being held tonight, which will be followed by the camp video and a fireworks show by the lake.

From my side of the desk, it was a pleasure writing the blogs for Camp Simcha Special, and wish you all the best. This was my first session in Camp Simcha and it was an unbelievable experience I will never forget. Well, believe it or not, camp is almost over, but the memories are not… So long until next time!

Sincerely, Yaakov Z. Drebin