by Jerry Kaye, Director

The opportunity to welcome representatives of some of the various Midwest Jewish camps to Sanctuary was a great experience just before the summer starts. This is an outgrowth of a long standing relationship between these camps that has become the Midwest Jewish Camp directors and associates and assistants. We meet every six or eight weeks to discuss common interests and concerns and have developed a common bond of trust and support.

I am a regular host of this show which divides among the various faith communities in the Chicago area and is sponsored by the Jewish Federation and the Chicago Board of Rabbis for the Jewish community. Topics range from communal support, political concerns, religious themes among others and, of course, the guests vary based on the theme of the program. Among them was a deeply intense program focused on Iran about a year ago and that show led to an Emmy nomination for the program as well as for me as the moderator.

Reaching out to this kind of relationship in every community can make issues of mutual concern a real asset not only to camps but to the ability to connect to many other streams of Jewish life. This is not dissimilar to the work of the recent Kivun project with the Ramah camps that made matters of mutual interest a chance to grow and support the wider Jewish community.

Jerry Kaye has been the Director of URJ Olin-Sang-Ruby Union Institute since 1970, and is the Emmy nominated host and moderator of Sanctuary, a Chicago television series focused on Jewish communal issues. To see the most recent episode, click here.