Dear Camp Wise Families,
Second Session Noar Shabbat is here!
Tonight, our American and Israeli campers will come together to lead Shabbat for the entire camp community. It is a true blessing to once again welcome teens from Kibbutz Kissufim, one of Cleveland’s beloved partnership community in Israel, back to the Home of Happiness! This summer, 15 incredible teens are joining us, bunking in our 8th–10th grade Noar and Solel cabins, fully immersed as part of the Camp Wise family. Many are returning from last year, and their presence this summer feels nothing short of miraculous given the uncertainty in Israel earlier this season.
We are deeply grateful to the Jewish Federation of Cleveland’s Overseas Department, the Jewish Agency for Israel (JAFI), and the many generous donors who made this life-changing experience possible for our campers and staff alike.
Israel at Camp Wise
At Camp Wise, one of our core values is Ahavat Yisrael – Love for Israel and the Jewish People worldwide. In a post–October 7th world, when conversations about Israel and the ongoing conflict can feel heavy and divisive, we believe camp can be something different—a place of connection, openness, and hope.
Here at Camp Wise, we approach this value through an inclusive lens. We recognize that each person—whether Jewish, from another faith background, or identifying as secular—has their own unique relationship with Israel: as a land, as a people, and as a modern Jewish state. Rather than expecting one “right” way to feel, we create space for dialogue, shared experiences, and, most importantly, relationships.
Those connections—between Israeli teens and American campers, between staff and families, between cultures and stories—are the heart of what makes this program so powerful. It’s through these friendships that we nurture a genuine, lasting love for Israel and strengthen the bonds between the Jewish communities of Israel and the United States.
As the session continues, we can’t wait to see these bonds deepen and for our campers to experience Shabbat—and every day at Camp Wise—as a celebration of community, connection, and shared Jewish joy.
Let’s check out below the awesome cabin photos from this second week of camp!
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Dan Utley
Camp Wise Director