As antisemitic attacks increase, there’s an urgency to send kids to Jewish summer camps.
When 10-year-old Nili Suissa first arrived at Camp Nah-Jee-Wah in July 2021, she was nervous to be away from home for the first time. “It was raining at camp, and I was crying because me and my dad were running late, and I was worried I wouldn’t have enough time to unpack,” Nili remembers. Her spirits quickly turned around, however, when she met her bunk’s head counselor, Eli Gross, for the first time.
For families like Nili’s, Camp Nah-Jee-Wah holds immeasurable importance. Named for the New Jersey Federation of Young Women’s Hebrew Associations, the camp, which opened in 1920, marked its 100th summer in 2001. Originally founded as a camp for girls, Nah-Jee-Wah is now a coed camp that serves about 425 kids annually from grades one through six.
Camp is brimming with children who are trying to figure out who they are, what they like and whom they want to associate with as they transition from adolescence to emerging adulthood. “I feel like I became more myself at camp,” Amelia Goldin says. It helps that camp is relatively free from the societal pressures normally placed on preteens. Campers don’t wear makeup, they don’t do their hair, and they don’t often have access to mirrors.
When asked if going to camp has made her feel more connected with Judaism, camper Carly Kreisler, 12, quickly answers, “100 percent. The Shabbat services, singing along with everything, saying the prayers at dinner and stuff. It’s more than what I do at home, so it just gives me more understanding of being Jewish.”Sarah Kreisler, Carly’s mom, has noticed her daughter embracing Judaism more because of her camp community.
Nah-Jee-Wah director Carrie Youngs concurs. “I worked as a high school social worker for over 14 years, and I cannot tell you how many of these high school students did not make it through one semester of college because they had never been away from home,” Youngs recounts. Youngs is the mother of three children who all attend camp. “I think that overnight camp is the most priceless experience that any parent can give their child. … It will set them up for life.
The day held extra special meaning for her family. “It was very important for us to see our daughter honor this milestone and truly have a personal connection to her religion and heritage,” Nili’s mom, Susie Suissa, says. “During and leading up to her bat mitzvah we recognized the struggle of her grandparents, who lived their lives in hiding and persecution.”
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