Source: Havurah
Havurah, a unique program for teens from the North American Russian Jewish community, had its inaugural session during the 2009 summer at Camp Tel Yehudah in Barryville, New York. The program gives the opportunity for teens entering 9th through 12th grades to spend three and a half weeks with their peers at Camp Tel Yehudah, the national teen leadership camp of Young Judaea.
The sixth season of Havurah will take place in the summer of 2014. The program dates will coincide with second session at Camp Tel Yehudah: July 21st – August 14th. The full-session program includes overnight trips throughout the Northeastern United States, Maccabia games (color war) and numerous opportunities for fun, learning and making new friends.
Through a variety of innovative informal educational and recreational experiences, Havurah participants explore and deepen their relationships with Israel, Jewish traditions, and Jewish culture and identity. With a commitment to Jewish pluralism as one of its core values, Tel Yehudah is a comfortable setting for Russian Jewish teens from a wide array of backgrounds. Each year, campers come to Tel Yehudah from all over the United States, Britain, and Israel, with a wide range of Jewish affiliation, education, and commitment. Sharing some of the activities and free time with the campers of Tel Yehudah’s leadership program, Havurah teens have an opportunity to develop friendships with Jewish teenagers from outside their own community. With a strong focus on Israel at the core of the camp program, the counselors and educators from Israel, alongside the ones that come from North America, guide all aspects of the Jewish lifestyle we strive to maintain in camp.