Kids at Camp Galil mug for the camera. Bart Davis, who turns 69 soon, will be
a familiar face to them, having worked there for more than two decades.

CAMP Continued from Page 15
to ensure that everyone is enjoying their summer while also pro-
viding support to counselors and campers.

It may not always be exciting, but it’s a core part of running the
camp smoothly.

“Sometimes it’s as mundane as ‘my son needs to make some
course selections for next year,’ and sometimes it’s more detailed
than that,” he explained.

A retired elementary school teacher from Northeast Philadelphia,
Davis enjoys spending his summers with “energetic, intelligent
young people.”
He went to Boy Scout camp when he was a kid — Treasure Island
in Point Pleasant, which has since been shut down due to storm
flooding damage.

At Galil, Davis runs activities like teaching kids how to carve a
soapstone, which he’s been doing since 1995.

Treasure Island was a different type of summer program than
Galil, but things like bonfires and campfire songs are always relatable
across camp lines.

He added that Jewish summer camps foster a special connection
for campers and staff alike.

“If they’re very well connected” in the Jewish community,
Davis continued of his campers, “it will not have much of an
impact. If they’re not very well connected to the Jewish com-
munity, they become very aware of Israel and very aware of
Jewish culture. They’re immersed in it 24/7.”
For example, teaching Israel can be as simple as baking and dec-
orating a cake in the shape and design of the country in order to ex-
plain what Israel looks like and where major cities are located.

“There’s a lot of education that goes on, but it’s all informal Jewish
education,” he said. “And they make lifelong friends in the Jewish
community, and that’s important.

“In the long run, we push a lot of responsibility on our campers.

Most of the people who work at the camp besides our Israelis are
homegrown. What I enjoy most is watching kids grow up and learn
to take responsibility and learn to work as a team with their friends
to accomplish things.

“That’s probably the most satisfying thing: watching young people
grow up and become leaders.” l
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