Welcome to our 8th Jookender Family Camp!
This time, our camp will take place at the grounds of Camp Ramah NE, in Palmer, MA. This is just 1 hour from Boston, and a little less from Western Suburbs.
This camp is much larger and much more sophisticated in terms of facilities and lodging. The Kitchen has more strict rules for Kosher, but other than that, things will be just the same as at Camp Avoda – the Camp provides with room and board, lake frontage and boats, facilities for classes and campfire. Jookender provides with teachers, volunteers, supplies, and classes.
This time, expect unexpectable and we sure won’t leave you unexcited. The camp allows us to use their “Beit Midrash” building (in Russian, simply, Школа), and this opens a few opportunities to provide cooking classes and clay classes on a higher level, which we certainly take into consideration. The camp also equipped with a huge stage that can be open as to inside, so to the outside. We’re still thinking if we could make a deal out of it, as well. In addition, the camp has ample amount of space for art projects, grass games, hiking, biking, swimming, fishing, and boating. With 3 lakes and a river surrounding the camp, the place is fantastic for nature lovers. We even have a huge Tree House that we can use… for Nerf Wars, perhaps???
This camp doesn’t allow tents, or RVs, but the Bronze (not yet open for sale) and Silver Units cost similar to the tent sites, and we’ve got plenty of them to replace the need of tents completely. Although, most families, will get a private room for themselves, we reserve the right to place more than one family in some larger Silver or Bronze units that may accommodate them.
Silver, Gold, and Platinum units are all winterized (heated, with windows, full bathrooms, etc). The Bronze units, should they open them for us, when all other units are gone, are not heated, but still have windows and bathrooms inside the houses. Gold and Platinum units have also private/or semi private bathrooms attached to the units, while Silver and Gold units all share hallway bathrooms.
Personal use Refrigerators available in most Gold and all Platinum units. Small Kitchens open to the living rooms with Ranges w/oven available in some houses with Gold units only.
Since all rooms are of different size and bedding, we do not allow to add more people to the same unit automatically. If you need to add anyone in your unit, first you should get our approval and to make sure your particular unit has space to add more beds or mattresses there. For the same reason, we’re not displaying the number of units left – they are so different, so at least at the first year, we need to manually monitor and adjust the placement, based on the family size. That means, that the number of units may end up unexpectedly. If it happens, we will upgrade you free of charge, or downgrade you with difference in cost returned, making sure that you’d agree to that change. The only fixed number of units we have — is for Platinum level.
Camp Ramah is a NUT-FREE Facility, so please, do not bring nuts with you to the camp!
Camp Ramah offers kosher meals. To meet your Kosher requirements, please refer to this document. If you wish to bring your own food to the camp and store it in the personal/housing refrigerators, please, make sure, your food consists of one of the symbols from the referred above document.
As mentioned in prior, this camp is much larger than previous one, therefore, requires more attention from parents and volunteers, but mostly, from parents, as volunteers are just high school students who cannot be trusted with kids. Volunteers job is to deliver your children from one class to another, and to help the teacher or conduct the class. Volunteers are not babysitters. They won’t stay with your kids, just because you want to attend a class. They will not take your child to the bathroom or change the diaper. One of the Parent or Guardians MUST be present on all activities with a child under 5 years old. If your child is older, but has a history of running and wondering around, we suggest that a parent keep an eye of such child as well, or at least understand that a high school teenager will not replace you on such quest.
Since this camp is new, we would suggest and hope, you agree with us, that children under 12 MUST be accompanied by a volunteer or by a parent everywhere.
Bikes and Fishing Poles are suggested to be brought from home. All other equipment will be available at the camp.
Menu, Schedule, Map, Bracelet arrangements, etc. will become available on this website, instead of this description, at least a week prior to the camp. You will be notified, what kind of beds your particular unit has at least 1 week prior to the camp, so you can prepare accordingly. Platinum unit members will have it all, as if they are would be staying in a Hotel.
This time, there will be activities for Moms, and Dads, and Parents, and Families, and children. We hope you’ll enjoy this camp and be hungry for more!
• Early Bird Registration Deadline is July 15, 2019
• Volunteer Registration Deadline is August 15, 2019
• Regular Registration Deadline is September 6, 2019
• Refund Policy: on or before August 10, 2019 — 100%, August 11 — August 31 — 70%, No refund September 1 and further, unless you find a suitable replacement.
We cannot wait to see you there! Aren’t you excited?