Category Life

Research into access issues at Jewish overnight camps

The field of Jewish camp has become increasingly aware of and responsive to the numbers of children with special needs and physical disabilities in recent years. As a first step towards initiating field-wide changes in this arena, Foundation for Jewish…

Precursors to menorah are many

image -A menorah-like drawing from Kuntillet Ajrud

A menorah-like drawing from Kuntillet Ajrud. Source: “The Asherah, the Menorah and the Sacred Tree” by J. E. Taylor, Journal for the Study of the Old Testament (1995). Though the religious symbolism of the menorah is consistent with Jewish mythology…

Inclusivity is a priority at Camp Shalom

screenshot - Camp Shalom website banner

Working side by side with the inclusion services department at the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver, the Camp Shalom team is looking at a modified version of its counselor-in-training program, as several of the campers have stated they would…

Win for inclusion

screenshot - TIPTOE 1st Place - Simone Rotman | Camp Ramah in California

The Ramah Camping Movement and the Ruderman Family Foundation have announced the winners of TIPTOE (The Inclusion Project: Through Our Eyes), an inclusion-themed video contest for participants from Jewish camps. The goal of TIPTOE is to increase awareness of the…

Mystery photo … Dec. 19/14

photo - Group in formal attire, State of Israel Bonds, 1965

Group in formal attire, State of Israel Bonds, 1965. (photo from JWB fonds; JMABC L.14517) If you know someone in this photo, please help the JI fill the gaps of its predecessor’s (the Jewish Western Bulletin’s) collection at the Jewish…

Empathy, failure ‘n’ improv

Ilana Ben-Ari at work, play. (photo by Laynna Meyler) For her design diploma thesis project, Ilana Ben-Ari created a toy that people with visual impairments could play with their sighted classmates, developing a language around communication and empathy. The formation of…

Generosity gene

My wife is a lovely person. She reads every word I write. The last time I wrote a light, humorous commentary describing her few imperfections, she raided our mailbox and mugged the mailman (depriving a magazine of a great story).…

Gators, jazz and more

photo - Honey Island Swamp tours take passengers through a landscape untouched by time

Honey Island Swamp tours take passengers through a landscape untouched by time. (photo from louisiananorthshore.com) Our Jeep is stationary and I’m marveling at the scenery when I feel someone nuzzling my back very gently. Turning slowly, I find myself eye to…