This summer has already been incredible. Not only is it my first time in Israel since I was one and a half, but it is just a blessing to be able to come to Israel to do Chessed. The first part of the day was so incredible. We went to a museum that honored Gush Katif. The museum was all about the  planting that took place on the kibbutz that got bombed almost daily. The people of Gush Katif were FORCED out of their homes by the Israeli Government at that time. It’s crazy to think of how many miracles that have happened there. I was so inspired by their strength, that they kept going each day, even if one had a piece of a bullet in their leg or terrible nightmares. They kept going because their faith in Hashem made them believe they would be okay.

Afterwards,  had the opportunity to plant trees in Israel. I remember at the time of my Bat Mitzvah, many people planted tree’s in Israel in honor of my Bat Mitzvah. I was so confused, “What so special about planting tree’s in Israel,” I would always think to myself. Now, I see what so special about it. I’m like the tree, I was put into this world and I have lots of branches that spread in different directions, and in order to make the right choices I have to go the wrong way sometimes. I’ll always find my way or the right branch. Also the tree’s we planted in Israel hopefully one day when I  come back and look at how my tree has grown I will see me strengths and weakness. I’ll be so thankful I was able to plant such a strong tree that I like to think represents me. You can tell it’s my first time in Israel because Im inspired by each and every little thing. We went to a beach and  the view was so gorgeous. How can something be so beautiful? Because Hashem made it so magnificent.

After the beach we went to daven at Rabbi Meir’s Kever. Most people that go to Israel aren’t able to have such an amazing opportunity like the ones I’ve had so far. This has already been a summer of a lifetime and I cant wait for more to come.

Today we went to the Ethiopian Absorption Center. While we were their we had the privilege of doing arts and crafts and playing sports with the kids. I felt for the kids and I decided to take initiative and crocheted the Ethiopian girls headbands. When I was younger I sold headbands, and when I saw  how excited the little kids got about them, I decided to bring a bunch for the little girls. Seeing the smiles on each of their faces made it all worth it, and I’m happy I had the opportunity to do it.

Today was packed with chessed, hiking, and holy sites. NCSY GIVE  started off the day with an incredible chessed that the girls had been looking forward too. We arrived at the Tzfat Ethiopian Absorption Center where the girls were taken to sit around small tables with young Ethiopian children. They did art projects, sand and danced with them. You saw the children’s eyes light up when they were given the upmost attention by our GIVE girls. Not only did the GIVE girls make these kids days, but they learned about a special community that is growing in Israel. Afterwards we had lunch at Shvil HaPisga right before we hiked up the mountain. The hike had gorgeous views of the north that couldn’t even be captured on camera. The girls enjoyed talking, bonding, and laughing as the hiked up to the top of the mountain. Then we went to our last stop of the day, Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochei’s Kever in Meron. The girls learned some history, and had the privilege to daven mincha in Rashbi’s Kever. After the long, but fun packed day we headed back to our campus for dinner and night activity. Everyone felt happy and accomplished  when looking back on our day!

Today was a very meaningful day for the girls and all of the staff on GIVE. We started our day off with late wake up, followed with davening. Afterwards, Miriam Borenstein, our Assistant Director, created a program for the girls to create their own cheesed projects to bring back to their home town. They split up into groups and discussed what is a major problem among teens that they could help change. Each group was create and innovative, and we were all impressed with their original ideas. The program will hopefully have a Facebook page so that the girls can keep up with each other, and see how productive they were at implementing  their own ideas. Then the girls had a few hours off to rest, up until close to the end of the fast. The girls had a very special opportunity to here from Elaine Choter, an inspirational speaker, that lost her son in the Intifada. She gave us words of encouragement and  chizuk for Am Yisrael at this time. To end off our evening our Israeli madrichot showed a video and spoke about their experience as teenagers living in Israel. The GIVE girls were encouraged in the discussion and were inspired to hear our madrichot’s perspective of life in israel. We had a kumzitz, break fast, and then night activity to end off our very special day.

Today was filled with bonding with each other and Am Yisrael. GIVE first traveled to a beach by the Kineret, where each girl was assigned a group to build rafts out of bamboo sticks, barrels, wood, and ropes. The competition was heated as each group tied together all of their materials to make their raft float. By the end the bonding experience the girls were able to work together in great speed, all while feeling accomplished by the end. They enjoyed time in the water and sun as they ate their lunch that was delivered to us on the beach. Afterwards, the girls were introduced to our cheesed activity that started out on the beach. They wrote letters to soldiers thanking them for all their dedication and work towards our country. Then we went to a supermarket to purchase snacks to give out with our letters. When we came back to our campus we had dinner and then went off to thank our amazing soldiers! The girls loved singing, dancing, and handing out their package they made especially for the soldiers. By the end of the night the chayalim announced to the girls that they truly had made their night and were so appreciative of them taking their time to show their support. NCSY GIVE sends out our warmest wishes that the soldiers should stay safe and see peaceful times.

Yesterday at Medical Clowning training was funny and informative. A man came to teach us the ins-and-outs of bringing joy into a hospital. We started off by getting out of our comfort zone by forcing loud laughter and learning how to walk with character. He taught us that awkwardness is normal and it should be embraced. The idea of medial clowning is not to change who we are to make people laugh but to just exaggerate our personalities. If someone is awkward about dressing up in clown gear, they can take that feeling and but it into their gate to make it look funny.

We went through different exercises to get us prepared for going into hospitals to cheer up children. An activity that stood up the most to me was breathing. He had us thing of something that made us mad and put on a furious face and then try to breathe. The breathing did not come easily. He then had us smile and try to breathe and the difference was amazing. Breathing was much more easy while smiling. This taught us that medical clowning was not only to release stress but to actually make the patients health better, if only for a moment.

We were told to find a partner and mimic their moves. Our only rule was to keep eye contact with our partner. A simple thing like eye contact made a silly activity a bonding experience. What I loved about Medical Clowning training was that it taught me that happiness is a language that is universal. You don’t need to crack jokes to make someone happy, something simple like a smile or laughing together can be the sweetest conversation.

Today on NCSY GIVE was full of laughs, balloons, acting and professional medical clowns. Our friend Jeff, a professional medical clown, traveled up north to teach the girls of GIVE how to be professional medical clowns. The girls learnt everything from how to walk, laugh, and create funny scenarios. We broke for lunch and afterwards Jeff taught the girls how to make balloon animals. This is especially important when we go to children centers because every girl will have the skill to make balloon animals for the children! Then GIVE left to go up to the Golan Heights and we ended our day off with an awesome night activity. On the moshav we played glow in the dark Pacman and the girls definitely dominated the advisors. After a day full of fun we are getting a full nights sleep for our jam packed day tomorrow.

Hi Im Gennifer with a G and I’m from New Jersey! The first Shabbos at Camp GIVE was amazing!!! We just shmoozed and chilled and ate… ALOT! We had the great opportunity to hear a speech from the amazing Rebbetzin Tziporah Heller about our favorite mitzvos, which was truly inspiring. my favorite part of Shabbos was Ebbing! I truly enjoyed sitting in a circle with the rest of the GIVErs and just singing your heart out. Later in the night we had “So You Think You Can Dance,” where we split into teams and danced for the judges. We all had so much fun! Shabbos couldn’t have been more fun! I wish everyday was Shabbos! Shout out to Mom and Dad Berko! I love you!

NCSY GIVE’s first Shabbos up in the Golan was a memorable one! Starting with a beautiful candle lighting ceremony guided by your Bus Head, Margot,  girls had a chance to speak about people they admired. We then had a beautiful Kabbalat Shabbat with singing and dancing, which was a prelude to our meal full of songs and hype! The annual tisch ended our night off with a bang! The next morning the girls davened, learned with our advisors, and heard a speech from Rebbetzin Tziporah Heller who happened to be staying in the same hotel as us. From there we had lunch and the girls had a few hours to rest. Some slept, played games, talked, or even took the opportunity to learn with advisors and our GIVE Rabbi, Rabbi Felberman. After Menucha the GIVE girls had another opportunity to learn with anyone they desired from our “GIVE Beit Midrash.” The “GIVE Beit Midrash” is a GIVE tradition and an extremely incredible opportunity for the girls to learn from many books that are avaiable. We ended off our night by singing, and a beautiful musical Havdallah lead by Rabbi Felberman. On Saturday night we had a very entertaining night activity, which was called “So You Think You Can Dance.” Teams were split up and given genres of dances, and every group had to perform a dance created within 30 minutes. The night ended off with dancing, singing, and pizza. The weekend as a whole was truly meaningful and the girls are looking forward for the week to come!