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PHOTOS COURTESY OF CAMP TAMARACK

There were two boys that were 
going to go home within the first 
couple of days. They told Weinstock 
it wasn’t easy for them, and they 
needed to go back to Israel. Plans 
were being made for just that. 
But then, Tamarack magic 
happened.
“On the first Shabbat, you 
saw something change in these 
campers,” Weinstock said. “You 
saw them accept our community, 
trust us and say, ‘OK, this is a place 
where I can be a kid and have fun.’”
The next night at Havdalah was 
even more magical, Weinstock 
recalls. 
“I was sitting with a social 
worker and she said to me, this has 
been five days of healing, but it’s 
equivalent to five years for these 
kids. They’re not in therapy at 
home. They’re not going through 
anything to heal from this horrible 
trauma they’ve gone through, and 
camp did that for them, and you 
saw a change in five days.” 
The second session campers from 
evacuated areas were from Kibbutz 
Be’eri. They all know someone who 
was or still is a hostage. They all 
know people who were murdered. 
At their request, Tamarack began 

doing a prayer for people who are 
not yet home, which includes those 
who are still hostages and those 
in the army, before dinner and at 
Shabbat services. 
Throughout the summer, Israeli 
campers opened up about what 
they’ve experienced and how they’re 
feeling, which manifested itself in a 
beautiful way.
At the end of the second session, 
many girls from Kibbutz Be’eri did 
an art show with the theme being 
“Our Story,” with part of their 
story being what happened to their 
kibbutz on Oct. 7.
They created beautiful art pieces 
— tributes for the hostages, for 
every person murdered in the 
kibbutz and for specific friends who 
were murdered.
“Again, these kids have not done 
any kind of therapy since Oct. 7,” 
Weinstock said. “And this was a 
huge therapy for them.” 

A HEALING EXPERIENCE
Therapeutic experiences were 
provided for Israeli staff as well. 
One program took place where 
Israeli staff shared with other 
camp staff what they went through 
on Oct. 7 and their experiences 

since. Weinstock estimates 95% of 
Tamarack’s staff were there to hear 
their stories. 
“It was emotional. I took it as 
a compliment that we created a 
magical space at camp that they 
felt comfortable enough to share,” 
Weinstock said, pointing out that 
wasn’t necessarily the case when 
they first arrived. “By the end, we 
were family, and they felt that.”
At the end of each session, 
Weinstock had a special meeting 
with the evacuated kids. 
“They felt the support and 
love from camp, Federation and 
everyone we put into place. They 
were very appreciative of their 
experience,” Weinstock said. “They 
were able to just be kids, which is 

really the magic of the program.”
Jewish Federation of Detroit 
CEO Steven Ingber says bringing a 
large group of young people from 
Israel to Tamarack was uniquely 
important this year.
“The Elaine and Michael Serling 
Israeli Camper Program, and the 
incredible partnership between the 
Jewish Federation and Tamarack 
Camps, underscores the critical role 
we play in fostering connections, 
resilience and the enduring strength 
of our Jewish community.” 
Jennifer Levine, senior director 
of JFD’s Israel & Overseas 
Department, added, “These kids 
arrived with heavy hearts, burdened 
by the precarious situation in Israel, 
and left with new friendships, 

Camper Ariel 
Dubchak of Migdal 
HaEmek performs a 
beautiful rendition 
of Eden Golan’s 
“Hurricane” at 
Tamarack Idol.

These art projects displayed at the Kaufman Specialty Art Show were creat-
ed by Israeli campers. The theme of this year’s show was “Our Story,” which 
inspired beautiful, thoughtful, powerful and often therapeutic expressions in 
the safe place of camp.

American and Israeli campers at Schuchman 
Family Israel Day, an all-camp celebration of 
Israeli culture and highlight of the summer