By Max Antman, Rosh Eidah of Gesher
As we head into the final week of Gesher 2015, the chanichim (campers) are working hard on preparations for our upcoming Gesher Carnival, which will be held this Thursday, August 6th. The chanichim have prepared 14 booths, a skit and several songs and dances to perform for the entire machane, and with the addition of two inflatables, a dunk tank and tons of cotton candy, it is sure to be an amazing night. The Gesher Carnival is one of the most popular events of the summer, and that is due in large part to the hard work and dedication of the Gesher chanichim; without their passion, commitment and constant enthusiasm, the carnival could never be a success.
Aside from our carnival preparations, we have had quite a busy week in The Gesh. After a relaxing Shabbat, we had a Sunday Funday that was truly worth remembering. The day started out with a game of water balloon dodge ball (pictured below) with Tiferet, and continued with a tasty lunch of barbequed hot dogs with Tzofim and Tiferet. Afterwards, all three eidot (units) traveled to Milwaukee for the opening ceremonies of the JCC Maccabbi Games. We had a meet and greet with Garrett Weber-Gale, an Olympic gold medalist and OSRUI alumni, and afterwards, enjoyed watching the procession of athletes competing in the games, some amazing speeches and a musical performance by Rich Recht. Overall, I would say the night was a pretty fun time!
The next day was filled with even more excitement, as Gesher had the opportunity to go to a Dairy Farm out in Cambridge WI. We divided up into three groups and milked cows, held chicks and learned about agricultural farming. The kids had the opportunity to interact with many different farm animals, including cows, sheep, goats and even a pig, while at the same time learning about the lives and work of people very different than themselves. We even got to play in a very tall cornfield, which, as I’m sure you can imagine, was hilarious fun! After leaving the farm, we drove back to camp for a delicious Sundae Bar, and finished off the night with a Bar Mitzvah style dance party. Once again, a pretty great day!
This final week in Gesher is going to be quite the ride. With our two chugim (electives) wrapping up in just a few short days and carnival right around the corner, it seems like the session has just flown by. This group of Gesher chanichim has been an absolute joy to work with, and as they continue working to build a stronger Gesher community in the coming week, I know we will finish out the session even stronger than we started it.