YOUTH

Al

Something Swell
For The Summer

4

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Forget TV, sleeping late and Barbie dolls. These kids
find summer fun at Camp Ganeinu.

ELIZABETH APPLEBAUM

Assistant Editor

T

where counselors offered
spoonfuls of marshmallow
and chocolate chips. After
learning the bracha, bless-
ing, over each treat, the
children had to guess how
many chips were in a bite.
"Delicious," announced
one boy, his lips smeared
with marshmallow fluff.
It was the kind of day most
counselors dread: nonstop
rain. The carnival was
supposed to be outside, but
was transferred to a large
pavilion when it became

Chana Rachael Weinhouse, Elisheva Weiss, Adeena Wrotslavksy, Elisheva Roszler and Alana Tinman at Camp Ganeinu.

clear the clouds would not go
away.
The counselors remained
pleasant nonetheless, and
frequently managed to lead
the children in a rousing
version of, "We are proud,
we are proud, to be part of
Ganeinu's crowd."
Covered in shaving cream
(she just got in a shaving-
cream fight with other
staffers), counselor Efrat
Reich, of Brooklyn, said she
learned about Ganeinu from I
her mother, who was
visiting Detroit last
summer. Efrat loves camp, <-
she said.
Julie Signer, also oft-
Brooklyn, wouldn't be
anywhere else this summer.
She came equipped with
dozens of cassettes — rang-
ing from religious rock to
educational — which are as
popular with Ganeinu
campers as glitzy jumpsuits
at an Elvis impersonators'
convention.
This is the second year at
Ganeinu for camper Libby
Samet, who is 5-and-a-half
years old (remember when
those halves were so impor-
tant?). She likes arts and
crafts best.
Her tiny hands in her
pockets, Rivka Polter,
6-and-a-half, had a purple
heart painted on her cheek;
it matched the color of her
skirt. She said the carnival
and swimming were her fav-
orite camp activities.
Evan Piczenik, 7,
specifically requested, "I
want to be in the news-
and offered a con- -
templative view of his camp (c)
experience.
"What we're doing is play-
ing and playing," he said.
"We play baseball and
kickball and tetherball and
volleyball and swimming E:
and that's all."
But wait. There's more.
"Today, we're having a

r:'

Photos by Glenn Triest

wo pennies were
buried in each tub of
flour.
One little girl, her cheek
painted with a bright-red
heart, was elated. "I found
one! I found one!" she called.
Her best pal beside her
wore - a 101 Dalmatians T-
shirt. Moments after her
friend's announcement, she
held up two pennies in her

flour-covered hands. Her
declaration: "I found bofe
(both)!"
Finding pennies in the
flour at Carnival Day is just
one of the activities at Camp
Ganeinu, the Lubavitch day
camp in West Bloomfield,
which continues throughout
the summer. There also was
balloon shaving and face
painting and, naturally,
plenty of opportunities to
eat.
Several boys and girls
stood in line at a booth

,