Coming to Sababa Beachaway Camp in Virginia as a Campers2Gether participant this summer gave Itamar, 14, from Moshav Ein HaBesor in southern Israel, a chance to make new friends with North American Jewish teens and have a break from his daily reality.
“When I came here, I didn’t know anyone except my Israeli friends, but the Americans were very kind and welcoming, and they made it easy for me to talk with them,” Itamar says. “Before coming here, I didn’t have a lot of self-confidence; I’m a quiet kid… But now I’m so much more confident, and feeling that way is really amazing.”
Originally launched following the October 7 attacks and continuing amid the current prolonged conflict in Israel, The Jewish Agency for Israel’s Campers2Gether program was created to enable Israeli teens like Itamar to step away from the stress and uncertainty of war while forming meaningful relationships with Jewish peers around the world.
“After Oct. 7, there was a question of what we could do in a world where Israeli teens experienced trauma and the impacts of an extended war,” says Nathan Schachter, director of Campers2Gether.
The initiative was initially intended as a stopgap emergency program, but has since evolved into one of The Jewish Agency’s flagship models for peoplehood and connection, fostering lasting bonds between world Jewry and Israel during an especially difficult period for the Jewish people. Campers2Gether is made possible with support from the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Supporting Foundation, Wilf Family Foundations, Adnim Foundation, William Davidson Foundation, Zalik Foundation Fund, Mosaic United – an initiative of the Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism Ministry, and other donors from around the world.
This summer, in its third year, Campers2Gether brought over 700 Israeli teens to 34 Jewish summer camps across North America. Schachter shares that the Campers2Gether project was created with two goals in mind – first, to provide Israeli teens from the country’s northern and southern borders with respite from their daily lives, providing them an opportunity to experience joy and have fun, and second, to enable North American Jewish children to connect and get to know their Israeli counterparts.
Many Jewish teens in North America and around the world have had limited opportunities to experience Israel firsthand in recent years. International travel disruptions during the COVID-19 pandemic were followed almost immediately by a prolonged period of war in Israel that significantly reduced educational and teen travel to the country. As a result, initiatives such as Campers2Gether have become one of the few opportunities for young Jews worldwide to build authentic personal relationships with Israelis like themselves and develop a deeper understanding of Israeli society beyond headlines and social media. Through shared daily experiences at camp, participants can strengthen a sense of global Jewish peoplehood and connection at a time when those bonds are more important than ever.
After the program’s first year, its broader impact on teens from both Israel and North America was evident. The Campers2Gether organizers decided to repeat the program the following year because it was clear that the sense of shared peoplehood it fostered helped strengthen teens’ resilience.
Eytan Graubart, director of Camp Ramah in the Berkshires, says that the camp has hosted Israeli teens in the Campers2Gether program since its inception. “When the program started a few years ago, we felt an obligation to do something for Israeli kids who needed a space to get away to enjoy just being children again.
The program has now become an integral part of Camp Ramah itself, he adds. “Now that we’ve been doing it for a few years, it has become such an ingrained part of who we are that we can’t even imagine not doing it. Bringing Israeli culture in the form of these awesome campers brings a lot to our own community.
“We try to celebrate Israel as often as possible; we bring in a delegation of Israeli staff, and we’ve always had some Israeli campers. But to be able to make Israel feel that much more personal by having campers who are literally living it every day and then becoming part of our community in the summer makes it feel more alive and more real and less ethereal.”
Israeli campers participating in Campers2Gether are fully integrated into camp life alongside local Jewish teens, taking part in outdoor activities, communal programming, sports, and informal day-to-day interactions designed to foster authentic peer-to-peer connection. Participants travel in cohorts with trained Israeli counselors and mental health professionals to ensure a safe, supportive environment throughout the experience.
At Sababa Beachaway Camp, Itamar reflects that disconnecting from technology paved the way for connecting with new friends. “We don’t have phones here, and it’s really great not having a phone, staying away from the Internet and social media, because the only way to talk with people here is face-to-face, panim el panim,” he shares. “And obviously, once I’m back home, I’m going to stay in contact with my new American friends; I love them all.”
From Itamar’s perspective, Campers2Gether further solidified the bonds between Israelis and Jews worldwide, which have been growing since October 7. “It’s not something that everyone gets. It’s something really special,” he says.
Thirteen-year-old Noga, from Mevo Hamma, a kibbutz in the Golan Heights, says she was welcomed by the American campers at the camp, which was held in the Poconos. “The Americans were really excited to know we were coming, and as soon as we got here, they came up to us and hugged us,” Noga said. “They were so happy we were here and immediately connected with us, and we became friends. “I really love the camp; it’s such a beautiful and peaceful place. The lake gives me joy and a sense of calm, and I laugh and smile a lot when I’m here.”
Itay Avivi, who has worked as a counselor for the Israeli campers at Camp Ramah in the Berkshires, says that from the moment the Israeli teens arrived, it was clear that they would be welcomed with open arms. “When we arrived at the camp’s gate, everyone was very nervous about how they would be accepted. The moment the doors opened, a human bridge [of campers] welcomed the Israelis. They didn’t even know them, but they wanted them to be a part of the camp.”
For camp director Graubart, the moment he knew the Israeli teens were fully integrated came when a group of Jewish Agency officials visited after a week, wanting to see how the Israeli campers were acclimating. “They asked to see all the kids,” he recalls. “I brought them to where I knew most of the Campers2Gether kids were. I couldn’t find them all, because they had become so fully immersed with the other kids of that age.” Several had gone with other campers to play basketball, while others had gone to the lake with their counterparts. It was a proud moment to see that they had become a part of Camp Ramah and were not just Campers2Gether.”
Graubart, Schachter, and Avivi also note that the friendships formed between the Israeli teens and their North American counterparts continue beyond the two-week camp experience and could last for many years to come. For the North American campers, living with Israeli teens allows them to see Israel beyond the headlines and social media, offering firsthand insight into what it means to live in Israel and be Israeli today.
“At a time when Israeli youth have grown up under the shadow of war, Campers2Gether offers them respite and the opportunity to experience firsthand the strength and diversity of the global Jewish community,” says Mark Wilf, chairman of The Jewish Agency Board of Governors. “At the same time, Jewish teens around the world gain authentic friendships and a personal connection to Israel that no classroom can replicate. The unique bonds formed through shared summer experiences strengthen Jewish peoplehood and ensure a vibrant, connected Jewish future.”
Campers2Gether is now expanding with a new initiative that will send 300 children of IDF reservists to Jewish seasonal camps in Europe, Latin America, and more, providing respite, resilience, and connection. Since Oct. 7, more than 300,000 Israeli reservists have been mobilized for extended periods of service, placing enormous emotional strain on families and children across the country. The new pilot of Campers2Gether was specifically developed to support children of reservists, many of whom have experienced prolonged parental absence, repeated deployments, displacement, and ongoing instability throughout the war.
The Jewish Agency sees Campers2Gether as a long-term initiative with the potential to become a flagship program for building relationships between Israeli and North American teens from an early age. It is committed to continuing the program over the next several years and beyond.
This article was written in cooperation with The Jewish Agency.