Tuesday morning, Machon prayed and ate breakfast at Camp Shalom in Madison before heading to Milwaukee. The first stop in Milwaukee: Discovery World, an interactive museum and aquarium. The building, which stretches out along Lake Michigan, is full of water animals, a “Dream Machine” that uses basic engineering tools to design toys and other products, and other science-related activities. Machon campers enjoyed exploring the museum, before eating lunch overlooking Lake Michigan.
After leaving Discovery World, Machon walked along the pier to the Milwaukee Jewish museum. While there, they learned about the history of the Jews in Milwaukee and saw the special exhibit “Jews Who Rock.” The exhibit focused on famous Jewish rock stars, including everyone from the Beastie Boys to Bob Dylan to Drake. They ended the day with a trip to Comedy Sportz, a comedy show full of audience participation. Machon enjoyed laughing and watching the comedians.
On a tour Wednesday morning through The Hunger Task Force, a food bank in Milwaukee, Machon campers learned about their resources and the food distribution practices. Split up into groups, they were given personas of food bank clients. Using these personas, they performed a simulation in which they had to buy nutritious meals for their families. It was an extremely eye-opening and educational experience for all of the campers. After the simulation, Machon put their new knowledge into practice: they went to a fully-stocked grocery store to buy food. They were given a specific family to buy food for–families of various sizes and income levels. Machon bought these fictional families a balanced meal, and then all of the food was donated to The Hunger Task Force.
From there, Machon drove to Green Bay for the final site of their Wisconsin tour. Riding down the Giant Slide, swinging through the air on Chair Planes, and flying along the Zippin Pippin, Machon enjoyed an afternoon at Bay Beach Amusement Park. That night, Machon ate dinner at Cnesses Israel Synagogue, before heading to the Green Bay Bullfrogs game. Rosh Aidah Adina Allen threw the opening pitch, and all of Machon jumped up and cheered! They beat the Wausau Woodchucks, ending an exciting game and trip for our campers who returned to camp earlier today.
