Camp Kesher Blog—Day 6 and 7
Fraytik (Friday in Yiddish) began with challah bread-making. Campers practiced their braiding skills with the dough and made personal challah loaves they would enjoy later on during our Erev Shabbat dinner. This rotation set the tone for the day, preparing our hearts and minds for Shabbat. The kids decorated beautiful challah loaves with chocolate chips and sprinkles—and they turned out to be delicious!
With Shabbat approaching, you could tangibly feel the pace of the campers slowing down throughout the day. By lunchtime, everybody was ready for a much-needed rest. Campers were given an extra forty minutes of daily Shabbat time in their cabins to relax and practice Bible verses.
During the afternoon, campers divided into teams and the traditional Capture the Flag games commenced! The two teams battled for multiple games. In the end, the heat and humidity tried to get the upper hand, but a cannonball in the pool brought relief!
Campers were giving a few extra minutes of free time in order to prepare for Erev Shabbat. Counselors encouraged everyone to shower and put on clean clothes for our special Shabbat dinner. It was wonderful to see all the clean clothes and smiling faces.
The team captains for Cream Cheese and Lox led our Shabbat dinner with song, candle-lighting, and the kiddush over the challah and cup. The kitchen staff prepared a delicious meal for us with roasted chicken and potatoes. What a beautiful evening to usher in the Shabbat!
Our evening Mishkan service focused on the Parable of the Unforgiving Servant from Matthew 18:21–35. Robert Walter presented a living PowerPoint using our counselors to act out the parable. The theme of forgiveness was a powerful reminder to consider God’s great forgiveness in our lives and then to extend it to others.
Our evening ended with a night swim and baptism. Seven individuals chose to enter the baptism waters to publicly share their faith. It was a sweet moment hearing how God has pursued each one with His love. Truly transformative! Praise the Lord for His kingdom is expanding!
On Saturday, our last full day of Camp Kesher, we started things off with a beautiful Shabbat morning service. We sang the Shema, prayed together, worshiped the King through song, and heard a powerful message from Ryan Karp on the Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector from Luke 18:9–17. By the end, campers understood how important it is to seek Yeshua humbly.
After our morning Mishkan service, Team Cream Cheese and Team Lox split up and prepared for the camp-wide steeple chase—and we have to share that this year was epic! There were four lead changes throughout the event, which included running, boating, archery, street hockey, gold, Bible verse memory recitation, paper airplane flights, a thirty-yard frisbee toss, rock wall climbing, a half-court basketball shot, relay races, swimming, and more! In the end, Team Lox came out victorious—but every camper gave it their all. The rest of the day saw more back-and-forth with the color team mural competition, the team song performances, cabin outreach skits, and of course the Slip ’N Slide followed by cornstarch and water balloons. By the end of our evening Mishkan service, it was clear the color team war had its winner—and it was Team Cream Cheese! After the momentary rejoicing over their victory, we all came together and ended our Mishkan time with the beautiful traditional Havdalah ceremony. All the campers and staff crowded around the table as we sang the blessings over the cup, the spices, and the fire. Havdalah is a way to bid farewell to the Shabbat and bring a taste of its holiness into the week. At Camp Kesher, we also like to bid farewell to camp and take a taste of it into the rest of the year. Before bedtime, we all enjoyed kosher s’mores around a big campfire.
Until next year, Camp Kesher, we pray the Lord blesses you and keeps you in Messiah Yeshua!
