One of the best parts of working at Ramah Darom is witnessing so many moments of Jewish joy. Whether during summer camp, at one of our Ramah Darom retreats, or at a simcha with one of the groups that rents our campus, joy seems to reverberate steadily inside the gates of 70 Darom Lane.
It’s become particularly important to find and celebrate moments of Jewish joy during these difficult times.
As we look ahead to the new year—and, admittedly, as I begin to feel a bit nostalgic in light of my pending return to Toronto in December—I wanted to share a few of my favorite moments of Jewish joy at Ramah Darom from 5784:
Over 60 teens gathered on our campus this past February for the first-ever Delet Darom Teen Retreat. The absolute joy of being back together for a Shabbaton on our campus was clear from their nonstop smiles (and from their tears on Sunday afternoon). For many of these teens, Ramah Darom is truly the center of their Jewish life.- Ramah Darom’s legendary Passover Retreat is always filled with joyful Jewish moments. This year, Eliana Light’s “Light Lab” seder offered two solid hours of absolute joy, including an energetic rendition of her reimagined Dayenu.
- One of our secrets at Ramah Darom is that we actually run TWO simultaneous summer camps: one for our campers and one for our college-age staff who come to Camp to re-energize their Jewish neshamah (soul). During this summer’s staff week, I witnessed almost 200 young adults join together for an incredibly spirited Kabbalat Shabbat, filled with joyful singing that reverberated through the North Georgia mountains and could likely be heard all the way to the town of Clayton!
Our theme this summer was, appropriately, “Am Yisrael Chai,” and it permeated Camp in so many wonderful ways. My enduring memory from the summer is something our Israeli staff added at the conclusion of the Mizmor L’David during Kabbalat Shabbat. Every week, after singing
יהוה עז לעמו יתן; יהוה יברך את עמו בשלום
our 50+ Mishlachat took over the service, created a giant circle and led the community in a continuous and energetic round of song using the same tune, but replacing the words with:
בכל מקום שאני הולך, אני הולך לארץ ישראל
Loosely translated, that means, “Wherever I go, I go to the land of Israel”. It often went on for 10-15 minutes, with over 700 people dancing and singing in unison at the tops of their lungs—pure, unadulterated Jewish joy.- Camp Yofi is a joyful experience from start to finish. For me, a highlight is always Shabbat morning services where this year, four Yofi campers joyfully celebrated their B’nai Mitzvah surrounded by a supportive and loving community. It was absolutely beautiful.
Lastly, one cannot write about Jewish joy at Ramah Darom without mentioning our legendary Havdallah during summer camp. If you’ve never been to Havdallah at Camp Ramah Darom, I strongly encourage you to watch this video that was taken from my “perch” at the top of the amphitheater (or one of the many others you can find online). It is the definition of Jewish joy.
It’s truly a gift to witness the joy all year round at our beautiful mountain home.
Wishing you and your family a sweet new year filled with nothing but Jewish joy and, hopefully, some time at Ramah Darom!
Wally