July 31, 2025

I am currently on the edge of my seat as Major League Baseball’s trade deadline approaches, hoping my Red Sox make the moves they need to finally return to the playoffs. But even the excitement at Fenway Park can’t compare to the incredible energy I’ve felt this week at our Adolph & Rose Levis JCC’s Marleen Forkas Camps. Color War broke out last Friday, and our “White Disco Fever” and “Blue Neon Vibes” teams have been competing nonstop in cheers, tug-of-war, and friendly challenges. The events concluded yesterday with our song, plaque and skit competitions where “Blue Neon Vibes” claimed victory. Beyond the competition, I see every single one of our 700 campers as a winner. Each summer, I find it deeply rewarding to connect with our campers and witness our staff’s extraordinary love for camp put to practice. I started my own Jewish journey at a JCC day camp and now, after a nearly 40-year career in Jewish communal service, I get to help new campers create those same formative memories. I feel like the luckiest person in the world.

As part of Color War, each summer our campers participate in a camp-wide mitzvah project benefitting the Ruth & Norman Rales Jewish Family Service’s Jacobson Family Food Pantry. Our camp families donate non-perishable goods, and the team with the most items donated wins points toward their overall Color War score. This year’s response has been incredible, with our Blue team donating 1172 items, and our White team donating 699 items! I cannot think of a better way to end this wonderful summer than by collectively giving back to our community. It feels even more meaningful because our wonderful partnership with JFS includes their camp scholarship program, which generously helps several local families send their children to our summer camps.

This week’s Torah portion is Devarim (The Words), the first portion in Deuteronomy, the fifth and final book in the Five Books of Moses. In it, Moses gathers the Israelites to retell the story of their forty-year journey from Egypt to Sinai and, eventually, the Promised Land. The lesson for us today is that in order to move forward, we must remember where we’ve been. As the High Holidays approach, this message feels especially relevant for our community as we step together toward our next great chapter.

Light Shabbat candles Friday evening at 7:49 pm.
Shabbat ends Saturday evening at 8:43 pm.

Shabbat Shalom
Am Yisrael Chai!

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Marty