Author: cgi

Download an enrollment form here

5772 – 2012

1st trip: Tuesday JUNE 26 (6 Tammuz)—Monday JULY 23 (4 Av)
2nd trip: Monday JULY 23 (4 Av)—Monday AUGUST 20 (2 Elul)

By COLlive reporter

Camp Gan Israel in Parksville, NY, announced its head staff for the summer of 2012 – and more than one of the names will sound familiar.

Levi Shemtov of Uruguay and Nochum Schapiro (ben R’ Gavriel) of Crown Heights will be joining Rabbi Nachman Dov Wichnin as Head Counselors of Chabad’s oldest overnight camp for boys.

“This will be Nachman Dov’s fourth summer with us,” the camp director Rabbi Yossi Futerfas told COLlive.com.

Hiring a married man for the job is a rarity among Chabad summer camps, relying instead on single bochurim and girls who are on break from the yearly learning routine.

“We are lucky to have him,” Futerfas admitted. “The dream was always to have such staff coming back summer after summer.

“Nachman Dov is very responsible and has tremendous people skills – with children and parents alike. Having him on board brings a certain consistency.”

Futerfas likened his hiring to that of Rabbi Sholom Baras who has been the learning director for years now, and is joined by bochurim as co-learning directors (this year Menachem Altein of Crown Heights and Shazi Perman of Chile).

By COLlive reporter

Construction work at the parking lot of Camp Gan Israel in Parksville, NY, has landed the known Chabad boys overnight camp a rare find.

A 1940’s Dodge Woody Beach Wagon was unearthed in a hidden shed while excavating the lawn used for parking across the Parksville Road which belongs to the camp.

It is estimated that the car has been inside the shed for over 40 years. Amazingly, everything inside the car remained intact, with air in 3 of its 4 tires.

The grounds once belonged to Klein’s Hillside Hotel, one of the largest resorts in the Catskills during the Borsht Belt era. It was able to host some 350 guests.

“Klein’s was a huge hotel complex. It had professional basketball players on its staff. It booked only the best entertainers on weekends. The grounds were enormous,” Stanley Greenberg recalled in the Plainview Old Bethpage Herald.

When the camp director Rabbi Abraham Shemtov purchased the property, moving the Gan Israel from its rented grounds in Swan Lake to Parksville, the shed was part of an unused maintenance building.

It sunk some 7 feet in the ground with its roof at street level and hidden by tall trees. It was recently ordered to be demolished.

The Dodge Woody is a rare find, and is sought after by antique car collectors. A fully-restored Dodge Woody Beach Wagon can fetch a nice amount at auction.

The Woody has been carefully removed from the sunken shed and is expected to be sold.

Watch the trailer for the video of Camp Gan Israel – Parksville, NY, summer of 5771, now available for purchase.

The exciting video includes A Day in Camp, footage of trips, overnight and visits to NY and the Ohel, Staff Play, Color War and much more.

Also includes hit color war theme song ‘You are my home’ music video and other bonus features.

One fine Thursday morning, the campers awoke to find a few changes in staff. It seems there was a
mass camper revolution, and key positions like head-counselor and even EMT were commandeered by
campers. Such a revolution is referred to as topsy turvey day, when campers get to be staff members
(or at least think they are). All throughout the day, the announcements on the PA were given by a not so
familiar camper voice. The ECADs GMs, counselors, and even head staff were “replaced” by campers.
The campers had a blast running the show, while the staff cringed in fear at incurring their wrath
and receiving punishment, for truly, nothing is more embarrassing than getting yelled at by someone a
quarter of your size.

For a few days the campers had been noticing some strange activities going on in the soccer
field. The staff seemed to be building and painting for something. All claims of “a new shed for the
camps bus” did nothing to satisfy their curiosity, and besides, who really would believe such a
preposterous story? There had to be something bigger and better going on. And it had to be soon
because all of the staff seemed to be more and more tired by the day. On Thursday night the questions
were answered (as if they didn’t already know), with the announcement of the grand staff play. The
play, which was about the destruction of the Beis Hamikdash, opened up with a scene of the Simchas
Beis Hashoeiva in the Beis Hamikdash, a scene of great dancing and celebration with real fire juggling
and acrobatics, all performed by our talented staff. The following scenes showed the infamous story of
Kamtza and Bar Kamtza, in which ECAD Eli Lipsker through HC Rafi Steiner into a cake. This was followed with the story of Bar-Kamtza’s appearance before the roman emperor – a
hilariously entertaining character portrayed by HW Simcha Raskin – to propose that the Jews wish to
rebel. He is then sent with a Korban from the Emperor to see if the Jews will bring it. The korban is given
a blemish by Bar Kamtza and is rendered unfit for a korban. Then Abba Sikra – a Jewish zealot played by
HC Moshe Shemtov – threatens to kill Bar Kamtza, and Bar Kamtza pleads for his life and tells Abba Sikra
when the Romans are attacking. They watch, from a guard tower (a fire escape covered with a
backdrop), as torches flare up from all sides, and the entire Roman Army surrounds the
wall that the staff built. The Roman attack scene was led by Vespasian, played by LT Mordy Touger. He
rallied them with war cries and prepared to attack Yerushalayim, but the battering ram (yes, they
actually built a functioning battering ram!) is no use. The walls are too strong and they are forced to
make a siege and wait. Fortunately for the Jews there are rich men in Yerushalayim with enough
supplies to last for tens of years. Unfortunately, we once again saw how our destruction always comes
from within, when some zealots burnt down the storehouses, in an attempt to force the Jews into a
fight with the Romans. Then came the story of Rabbi Yochanan’s escape from Yerushalayim to see the
General/Emperor, and the famous request to leave the yeshiva of Yavneh alive. Then came an epic battle and, sadly, the destruction of Yerushalayim. But the play ended of on a happy note as in the final scene
Rabbi Akiva and the Chachamim seeing the aftermath of the destruction of Yerushalayim and the fox coming out of the Beis Hamikdash, may we all see it rebuilt, may it be speedily in our days. AMEN!