22 | JULY 30 • 2020 

Free Virtual Jewish 
Summer Day Camp

Camp Fox, an all-new, all-vir-
tual Jewish day camp for kids 
in grades K-5, features virtual 
programs on Broadway theater, 
quarantine cooking classes, 
improv and comedy, sports 
trivia, breakdancing, yoga, 
songwriting, karate, Legos, art, 
music lessons, challah baking, 
zoology, American Jewish histo-
ry, Summer Reading Book Club, 
and much more.
Camp Fox runs online every 
weekday from 9 a.m.-3:30 p.m., 
from now through Aug. 14. Best 
of all, it’
s free. 

Camp Fox is a collabora-
tive effort involving nonprof-
it organizations, including 
the Kaiserman JCC, Marcus 
Jewish Community Center of 
Atlanta, Jewish Federation of 
Greater Philadelphia, National 
Museum of American Jewish 
History, Elmwood Park Zoo, 
Philadelphia Insectarium 
& Butterfly Museum, Wolf 
Performing Arts Center, The 
Bible Players, Jewish Family & 
Children’
s Service, PJ Library, 
jKidPhilly and many other cor-
porate partners. 

“With the economic down-
turn, it is a wonderful resource 
for families who would other-
wise not be able to offer a Jewish 
camping experience to their 
children,” says Camp Director 
Wendy Armon. “With the 
COVID crisis, this is an espe-

cially timely resource available to 
our community to support fami-
lies in a variety of ways given the 
economic and social issues of 
our current environment.”
Visit campfoxjcc.org for 
details or contact campfox@
phillyjcc.com with questions. 

A virtual program 
from Camp Fox

M

ore than 70 Southeast 
Michigan Jewish edu-
cators have been par-
ticipating in a month-long online 
educational conference organized 
by NewCAJE, the New Coalition 
for Advancement in Jewish 
Education. The conference began 
July 6 and continues through 
Aug. 2.
Normally held “live” over five 
days on a college campus, the 
annual conference was moved 
online because of the COVID-19 
crisis. Because the usual $1,500 
registration fee was reduced to 
$250, many more educators could 
participate. Instead of its usual 
200 registrants of day school and 
religious school teachers, the 
trans-denominational conference 
attracted more than 900.
Lectures, panel discussions 
and workshops are held through-
out the day and recorded for 

later viewing. Evenings feature 
concerts, games and other enter-
tainment. The organizers also set 
up frequent “job alike” sessions 
where participants could chat 
informally with others doing sim-
ilar work.
Rabbi Abi Taylor-Abt, president 
of the Metro Detroit Board of 
Jewish Educators and a member 
of the NewCAJE 
program committee, 
helped make it possi-
ble for so many local 
teachers and admin-
istrators from con-
gregational religious 
schools to attend.
Few Detroit religious schools 
could afford to send their teachers 
and administrators to previous 
NewCAJE conferences, said 
Taylor-Abt, who also heads the 
Yachad religious school sponsored 
by Congregation Beth Shalom 

and Temple Emanu-El, both 
in Oak Park. She negotiated a 
reduced fee for Detroit-area edu-
cators, then secured a grant from 
the Hermelin/Davidson Center 
for Congregation Excellence to 
cover the cost.
In the current crisis, Jewish 
educators have come to see 
themselves as essential work-
ers, said Rabbi Cherie Koller-
Fox, president of the Newton, 
Massachusetts-based NewCAJE. 
“Who knew that people who don’
t 
come to sit in the pews would 
suddenly appear on their Zoom 
screens on a Friday night? Who 
knew that people who saw their 
Jewish identity as second or third 
or fourth priority would suddenly 
turn toward that identity to keep 
their feet on the ground and give 
them hope in dark times?”
Conference presenters included 
Melissa Ser, director of educa-
tion at Adat Shalom Synagogue 
in Farmington Hills, and Rabbi 
Asher Lopatin, executive direc-
tor of the Jewish Community 
Relations Council/AJC and spiri-
tual leader of Kehillat Etz Chaim 
in Oak Park.

Detroit-area NewCAJE 
participants enjoyed the 
experience. 
“This has been an amazing 
conference,
” said Carrie Keogh 
of Bloomfield Hills, who teaches 
teens at Congregation Shir Tikvah 
in Troy. She especially liked the 
variety of offerings. “I love that I 
am able to not only learn for my 
students’
 sake but also for my own 
curiosity and self-improvement,
” 
she said.
Hilary Duberstein of 
Waterford, director of the Sholem 
Aleichem Institute in West 
Bloomfield and religious school 
teacher at Congregation Shaarey 
Zedek in Southfield, said she liked 
the flexibility. “If I have a conflict 
with a session, I am able to go 
back and watch the recording,
” 
she said. “I literally could attend 
all of the sessions if I so desired.
”
Francie Fruitman of Southfield, 
who teaches first grade Sunday 
school at Temple Beth El in 
Bloomfield Township, said 
attending NewCAJE has made 
her feel more confident, connect-
ed and inspired to engage her 
students online. 

Rabbi Abi 
Taylor-Abt

Jews in the D

Thirsty to Learn

Detroit educators enjoy virtual NewCAJE
Conference at reduced cost.

BARBARA LEWIS CONTRIBUTING WRITER

