From Rabbi Black - February 2006

Dear Friends,

We all have experiences that shape our lives, moments of transcendence that help us to see clearly the paths that lay in front of us. If we are lucky, we have these experiences at a time in our lives when we are young enough to see them for what they are, and build upon them for the future.

The summers that I spent at Jewish Summer Camp were truly life-changing. The life-long friendships that I forged, the rabbis, cantors, teachers and counselors who taught and inspired me, the many diverse skills that I learned such as swimming, camping, arts and crafts and music, helped shape my values and the way that I view the world. The weeks spent in a supportive, exhilarating, caring community showed me the potential for creating and building my own community back home as well.

As I have said on many occasions, we at Congregation Albert are absolutely committed to sending as many of our students as possible to Jewish Summer Camp. We have scholarship funds set aside for this purpose. No child from our congregation will ever be denied the experience of going to camp due to lack of funds. Period.

I will once again be serving as faculty at our movement's Camp Newman in Santa Rosa, California this summer. The photos below were taken last summer. One is a group of Congregation Albert campers and staff; the other was taken at a Shabbat service. One of the more beautiful customs of Camp Newman is when the counselors bless the campers on Friday night by holding a tallit over their heads. Praying outdoors underneath the beautiful Northern California skies adds yet another dimension of holiness to this life-changing experience.

For more information about Camp Newman please contact me at the Temple or go to www.campnewmanswig.org.

B'shalom v'yididut,
Rabbi Joseph R. Black

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