This week, Torah tells the story of the scouts who entered the land of Canaan to explore the territory the Israelites will occupy and possess (Numbers 13). On their return, all but two scouts gave ominous reports and predictions. They said, “We looked like grasshoppers to ourselves, and so we must have looked to [the inhabitants of the land] (Numbers 13:31). The produce of the land was so large and plentiful that even a cluster of grapes had to be carried by men on poles over their shoulders (Numbers 13:23). Today, this image is the logo for the Ministry of Tourism in Israel. Only Joshua and Caleb give a report that was at once honest and encouraging. They were rewarded for their faith in God’s plan for the Israelites and for their personal courage.
Last Sunday, I left Houston to do some scouting of my own. I drove to Bruceville, Texas, to spend six days as a visiting rabbi at Greene Family Camp (GFC), our regional Reform summer camp. I come every summer. So far I haven’t found any giants or overgrown produce, but I can report that the land of Greene Family Camp is flowing with hundreds of campers and outstanding counselors and staff.
On any day, you’ll find some of the most fun activities you can imagine. Beyond arts and crafts and swimming (great on hot Texas days), there’s zip-line, Alpine Tower, ropes course, a zoo, mountain biking, basketball, soccer, digital photography, and more. The food isn’t bad either. Since it’s a Jewish summer camp, there’s also a focus on Jewish values that start in the morning when the campers wake up and continue through the end of their busy day. Jewish values are part of the rhythm here. No one takes them for granted. And, if you asked campers if Greene Family Camp is “too Jewish” they wouldn’t know how to respond. It just is what it is: A great summer camp for Jewish kids to be kids in Jewish time. As a rabbi, I sit on the ground with the kids and teach; I lead informal worship experiences, and I support the counselors and staff along with my colleagues who share the week with me.
As I scout out the territory of GFC every summer, I see everything I expect to find here. There are cabins, a dining hall, a sports facility, a fantastic swimming pool, and a beautiful outdoor chapel. There’s only thing that is glaringly absent. There’s a master plan that’s sitting on a drawing board waiting to be funded. I’ve seen it. There’s a new larger sports center that must be built so that the old sports center can become the new dramatic arts center, and the old arts center can become another needed gathering place. Every family who sends their children to GFC knows the value of this critical building program. Every Jewish family who sends their children elsewhere or whose children have grown should also consider supporting GFC. It’s our own regional Reform Jewish summer camp. My colleagues and I come every year because we believe in its purpose and its place in the lives of future Jewish adults and leaders. We see the difference GFC makes in Jewish children who love being here, and who return home with enthusiasm for Jewish life.
I urge you to visit the GFC website at www.greene.org, to scout out for yourself what lies behind the gates of GFC in Bruceville, Texas. If you’re excited by what you see on the website, just imagine what roughly 850 campers every summer enjoy when they are here. Perhaps you’ll see yourself at Greene Family Camp; maybe not as a camper or counselor, but maybe as a benefactor to our Jewish children who want GFC to be better than ever.
When I return to Houston after Shabbat, I’ll resemble Joshua and Caleb who, in the Biblical account of their scouting adventure in Canaan, reported that “the land that we traversed and scouted is an exceedingly good land…flowing with milk and honey.” Greene Family Camp isn’t flowing with milk and honey, but it is certainly an exceedingly good land, especially in June and July.
From my desk to yours, Shabbat Shalom.
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