Camp Ramah in New England
| Location | Palmer, Massachusetts |
|---|---|
| Chain | Ramah Camping Movement |
| Opening date | 1953 (as Ramah Connecticut) |
| Management | affiliated with the Conservative Movement of Judaism and the National Ramah Commission |
Camp Ramah in New England (CRNE), located in Palmer, Massachusetts, is one of the oldest Ramah summer camps, organized by a Jewish conservation center. The camp traces its roots to Ramah Connecticut in 1953, followed by Ramah at Glen Spey, and has evolved into Camp Ramah in New England.
The camp provides campers with a Jewish educational experience. Campers are known as "Ramahniks." Ramah New England is known for its programs in sports, arts, Judaica, and Hebrew. Billy Mencow was director of the camp from 2000–2005. Rabbi Ed Gelb has been the director of the camp from 2006–present.
The camp is broken into different age groups, or edot (עדות) (s. edah):
Kochavim (stars) : 3–4th graders (2 weeks)
Ilanot (young trees): 4–5th graders (4/8 weeks)
Solelim (roadpavers): 6th graders (4/8 weeks)
Shoafim (strivers): 7th graders (4/8 weeks)
Magshimim (achievers): 8th graders (4/8 weeks)
Bogrim (mature ones): 9th graders (4/8 weeks)
Machon (institution): 10th graders (4/8 weeks)
Nivonim (wise ones): 11th graders (8 weeks)
Amitzim: (brave ones) campers with special needs, as old as 21 (4/8 weeks)
Tochnit Ha'avodah (vocational education or "voc-ed"): former Amitzim'ers who are employed by camp
After Nivonim year, rising 12th graders attend the Ramah Seminar, a trip to Israel, and spend six weeks traveling around the country with other Ramahniks of the same age. They also have the option to attend an option week long trip to Poland. The camp has a program for developmentally disabled youth, entitled the Tikvah Vocational program.
The camp is divided into two sides: A-Side and B-Side. A-side hosts Kochavim through Shoafim and B-Side hosts the rest of the edot along with the dining hall, infirmary (marp), ropes course, tree house, and Beit Midrash complex, and beit am gadol. The oldest edah, Nivonim, is housed in a building complex called the K'far.
Palmer, as the camp is also nicknamed, has a number of traditions, including Color War (Yom Sport), an annual sports competition within the camp, yamim meyuchadim, "special days", an ongoing sports rivalry with Camp Ramah in the Berkshires, Zimkudiyah, a song and dance festival, trips to Rondeau's, a local ice cream store, plays performed by the four older edot entirely in Hebrew (in 2007 Toy Story, Grease, High School Musical, and The Prince of Egypt were all performed), and singing the Camp Ramah song, Shir Ramah. They play the rival camp in the Berkshires under the unofficial mascot, the "Palmer Fighting Roos." The "Roo" has its own songs as well as merchandise. Each edah participates in a camping trip known as "etgar" (the Hebrew word for challenge); younger children camp out within the grounds of the camp while older edot are given the opportunity to travel off the grounds and choose from a number of hiking, canoeing, biking, rock climbing and rappelling, and spelunking trips. A delegation is sent each year to ArtsFest, an annual gathering of regional Jewish camps featuring a variety of songs and dances. Their reputation has been noted and recognized by the Jewish Theological Seminary of America.
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