Hello Everyone,

This is Alum Rivkie Esformes (now Rivkie Lafer) writing to you one of my favorite Moshava memories.  When I think of Moshava and all the years I spent at camp (1984-1989), this (and of course hundreds of others) pop into my head.

This memory is from my time on Avodah.    Nothing, I mean nothing, beat the nights our Rosh Avodah, Steven Kirshner, cleared out the entire Chadar Ochel for a mean game of floor hockey back in the days before the camp had its own outdoor hockey rink.  You were always guaranteed a win if Steven was on your team.

Now that my sons goes to Moshava, I can only hope it brings them the same kind of happiness my days at camp brought me.  I hope they come away with as many loving memories and lifelong friendships that I have.
 
P.S. I can still crochet a kippah…thanks to Jordan Gorfinkel!!!

Rivkie (Esformes) Lafer

Chair Camp Moshava Comittee

It is hard to have a single favorite memory from my years at Moshava - since those years span a lifetime.
However, among my earliest memories was my first year at Moshava. Rabbi Moshe Kushner was Rosh Mosh and Rabbi Chaim (Irwin) Pollack was sgan. My madrich was Ozzie Samuels (now Oz Ben Shalom) and that year because of timing we didn't have a maccabia. Instead we had a "Yom Korach" where te chanichim took over the camp.

I was selected to be the madrich of our kvutza and had the great privilege of entering the chadar madrichim and even getting some bug juice from the machine that was all normally off-limits to chanichim. The rest of the details of that day are a bit fuzzy - but I do remember that Moishe successfully regained his position by performing a "miracle" - he poured water over wood and yet with a single match the wood caught fire. It was truly amazing (despite the fact that the water he used smelled suspiciously like gasoline!).

Rabbi Dr. Leonard Matanky

Chanich 1969-1975;  Tzevet 1976-Present;

I have many great memories of my summers at camp. The most long lasting memory is that I met my future husband there. I was on Avodah and Brad was the Rosh Mitbach. Don't worry- We were only friends then and did not start dating until I got back from my year in Israel!!!

Being on the "Hill" for Machal was also amazing. I loved the 3 day chutz that included 1 day bike riding and 1 day canoeing. So far 3 of my children have gone on Machal and have done pretty much the same exact trip. It is amazing to them when I talk about biking through the "tunnel"- that they biked through the  exact same tunnel many years later!!!!From their stories they had as much fun as I had (not) so long ago!! I have a daughter who will be on the hill this summer and I look forward to reminiscing with her about the trip too!!!

Beth (Geller) Alter
Chanicha 1974-1981; Tzevet 1982-1983

I will always remember the Tzevet-Chanichim baseball game that I hit a homerun. The 3 or 4 guys who were up before me each hit a deep home run. I was a sports madrich that month and I didn't want to be embarrassed and break the streak of home runs. I aimed for right field and luckily the ball went that way and rolled down the road and into the valley. It rolled far enough for me to go all around the bases, so it was a home run and I got to keep the streak and my dignity intact.

Another favorite memory of mine is on the night of Tisha B'Av when all the chanichim and tzevet were gathered at the ampitheater. I got there a few minutes late and I was on the outer edge of the crowd. Someone was speaking about Tisha B' Av and the destruction of the Beit Hamikdash, but it was spoken in such a polished and professional way that I thought for sure that I was listening to a taped speach. I was truly spellbound by the speaker. It was only later when the crowd disbursed that I found out that it was not a tape, but it was Rabbi Don Well, Avoda's shiur teacher. I will always remember that speach he gave..

David Pelzner
Past Director, Camp Moshava of Wild Rose, WI
Chanich 1967-1971; Madrich 1972,1974,1976

When I think back to the many years I spent in camp as a young child through my teenager years, I recall many water fights until the wee hours of the morning, maccabia, bunk night skits & a special love for Shabbat from the davening and singing at Kabbalat Shabbat continuing all day and culminating with slow shira at seuda shilishit and havdalah. The friends I met at camp from different cities gave us yet one more thing to look forward to as we went back to camp each summer. Throughout the school year, we all discussed our memories of camp and counted the days until camp would start again. As a young parent, I felt strongly about sending my children to camp since, for me, it solidified the lessons learned at school with a "hands-on" experience and a large dose of fun.

My memory includes Rabbi Moshe Kushner, former Director of Moshava. I was a young girl at the time and Rabbi Kushner was my shiur teacher. He was teaching us the law of tevillat keilim. One morning he asked the group to meet him at the chadar ochel. There, we were each given a pot and then followed Rabbi Kushner to the lake. By the time we realized why were rowing through "Leech Lake" with pots in our hands, Rabbi Kushner said repeat after me, "baruch atah Hashem..." Just as he finished the "...al tevilat keilim," He dipped his hand into the lake in order to immerse the pot in water and then gestured to us to do the same.

His instructions echoed in my head Place your pot into the water, let go of it for a split second and then quickly grab it out of the water. I watched as all of the other girls run through the motions as I scurried to do the same. I remembered the lake's namesake and cringed at the thought of leeches so as I let go of the pot for that split second, I was afraid to put my hand back in the lake and let my pot sink to the bottom of the water.

When the camp recently cleaned out Leech Lake, I secretly wondered if they found my corroded pot.

Shayna Schechter
Assistant Director, Camp Moshava of Wild Rose, WI
Chanicha 1963-1971; Madricha 1972; Adult Staff 1992-Present