If you’ve never been to overnight camp before, it’s hard to explain the magic. Imagine a place where everyone knows the exact right time to belt out “Lean on Me,” where Havdalah by the lake feels like something out of a movie, and where getting a new camp sweatshirt is practically a personality trait. Sounds chaotic? It is.
But, Camp Tel Noar is also the place that completely shaped who I am today and gave me friendships that feel more like family (just louder—and with way more friendship bracelets).
When I first got to camp, I was nervous. Would I make friends? Would I survive being without my phone for weeks? But somewhere between bunk nights, Shabbat dances, and Friday night services, something clicked. Camp Tel Noar became my home away from home.
At Tel Noar, no one cares what your hair looks like after being by the lake, or whether you’re “cool” by any normal school standards. Cool at camp means knowing all the color war cheers by heart, absolutely dominating the evening activity competitions, or being the one who always volunteers to lead Birkat Hamazon after meals. I learned that it’s way better to be real, loud and fully myself than to try shrinking into some version of who I thought I should be.
And the friendships? I don’t even know where to start. When you live in a bunk together, whisper about life at 4 a.m., and ugly-cry during the final song session because you don’t want to leave, you form a bond that goes way beyond group chats and Instagram likes. These are the people who have seen me with chlorine hair and tie-dye-stained hands—and still love me anyway.
One of the biggest surprises, though, was how much Camp Tel Noar deepened my connection to the Jewish community. Before camp, I knew I was born Jewish, but I did not practice regularly. Camp taught me how powerful it feels to sing at Havdalah as a group under the stars, wrapping our arms around each other and swaying (and sometimes ugly-crying again). Camp also gave me a place to connect with the prayers my grandparents—and their grandparents—once recited too.
Camp made Judaism feel bigger to me. Not just something in a prayer book, but something we live—whether in how we support each other, how we celebrate, or even how we learn from one another during moments you don’t realize are “Jewish learning.” For example, camp taught me the importance of patience, especially when your bunkmate takes 25 minutes to find her other sandal.
Camp Tel Noar didn’t just give me summers full of memories—it gave me a place where I truly found myself. It gave me friendships that are real and lasting, the kind that don’t end even when color war does. And, of course, I have to mention all the great general life skills I learned through my time at camp. I mean, where else would you become weirdly good at color war chants, showering in under 5 minutes and packing 17 sweatshirts into one duffle bag?!
Camp Tel Noar isn’t just a place I went; it’s a part of who I am, and always will be.
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