Visitors' Day - Camp Ramah Wisconsin

In the spirit of hachnassat orchim (welcoming guests), camp spent the last two days opening the gates to hundreds of visitors from across the country. Moms, dads, grandparents, aunts, uncles, siblings and friends started lining up on Buckatabon Road at 11 am Sunday morning to spend a busy afternoon visiting with their campers and experiencing a bit of camp life for themselves. The mood on the road was one of excitement and anticipation. Guests stood outside their cars, visiting with each other and making new connections; kids sat on top of the cars or explored among the trees along the road. People couldn't wait to get into camp.

Michael (first in line): I've been here since about 11 am this morning. We always enjoy coming up to camp. We're visiting our daughter in Machon–we also have a son who went through all the eidot. We just really enjoy coming up here, spending a weekend in the great Northwoods. It's very relaxing and rejuvenating.

Robin (Morton Grove, IL): I'm looking forward to seeing my daughter in Solelim. It's a lot of fun. We're excited to be here.

Greg and Shelly (West Bloomfield, MI): We're feeling pretty excited to be here. We were up last year as well. We're looking forward to visiting our son in Tikvah.

At 2 pm, the line of cars started to move and people rushed back to their cars to get inside camp and see their loved ones. Inside camp, a band played on the kikar as families reunited. Blankets and chairs were set up across camp for the day of relaxing and schmoozing. Between Sunday and Monday, there were many activities for guests to try. Campers met by eidah so guests could get a sense of what each eidah does on a daily basis, the waterfront put on a boating show, the education department had a display on their classes, the high ropes course was open for guests to try, the camping staff had a tent set up with homemade pita and tea, and the list goes on. Of course, there was a minor setback on Sunday evening as a huge storm blew in just as everyone was getting ready for dinner–but we don't let rain stop us at Camp Ramah–and Monday was a perfect day.