Staff Families Get a Taste of Tawonga
Over the weekend, between Session III’s tearful farewell and the exuberant arrival of Session IV campers, our hard-working summer staff had the opportunity to re-energize by welcoming a different group of campers to Tawonga: their families!
Now in its fifth year, Staff Family Visiting Day welcomed 50 families to Camp Tawonga.
“Eve is in her happy place here,” said the parent of a staff member during our Tawonga-style Shabbat. Many of the parents visiting Camp last weekend had never before stepped foot on our property; for some, their only Tawonga memory was dropping their kids off at the bus years ago.
This is not the case for all parents: “I was a Tawonga camper in the 70’s,” said Kayla’s father. “This place brings back so many memories. It’s great that my daughter can have the same wonderful experiences.”
For all who visited, this 24 hour experience is an opportunity to open Camp’s beautiful and tight-knit community to the family of our dedicated staff, and for those staff members to enjoy their families and return to work renewed for our final session of the summer.
Really getting into the Tawonga spirit, some family members chose to camp out in their tents right on our property on Friday, beneath the willow trees near our organic garden. “This is G-d’s Country. We love it here,” one parent gushed.
In addition to exploring the grounds and experiencing Shabbat at Camp, including a festive freilach dance party, staff family members also had the opportunity to hear from Associate Executive Director Jamie Simon and Camp Director Becca Meyer about the powerful Tawonga staff experience. “Being on staff here is one of the most professional job experiences you can have in life,” Jamie said, elaborating on the robust professional development, training and supportive supervision staff enjoy.
Living at Camp for 10 weeks, the staff experience is highly immersive. The bonds forged while working here take “lifelong friendships” to a whole new level. “Our daughter keeps in touch with friends from all over the country she’s met working at Tawonga,” said one parent.
Thank you to all of the families who spent time with us last weekend and for bringing such joy to our beloved staff members.
Until next summer!