Young Judaea
Ensuring the safety, health and wellness of our campers and all members of our community is our highest priority every summer.
Nutrition and Diet
As part of Camp Tel Yehudah’s commitment to the Jewish value of Briyut (health and wellness), we provide three healthy, balanced and kosher meals a day to all campers and staff. Every meal includes a fresh salad bar, vegetarian, gluten free, nut free and lactose free options. Camp Tel Yehudah’s kitchen is under Orthodox rabbinical supervision. Additionally, while Tel Yehudah is not a nut-free camp, we are happy to make the needed accommodations for all dietary restrictions teens may have on a case-by-case basis.
Bunk and Personal Cleanliness
A clean bunk is a happy bunk! One of the most impactful aspects of camp is teaching our campers’ the value of cooperative responsibility through sharing the work of keeping their bunks clean throughout the summer with a system of rotating cleaning tasks between campers. Every day, we set aside time for campers to tidy their personal areas and cubbies and to thoroughly clean the bunk, including cleaning the showers, toilets, porch areas, and taking out the garbage. Additionally, camp provides regular laundry-service for campers to help maintain personal hygiene with clean clothes.
Exercise and Physical Activity
Camp’s daily schedule places an emphasis on healthy living with regular physical and exercise based activities. Tel Yehudah’s pool, sports, and rikud (Israeli dance) staff specialize in creating regularly scheduled group activities that integrate exercise and fun in the sunshine and rain! All camp programs also include outdoor adventures (hiking, biking, kayaking, etc) that involve moderate to challenging physical regiments. Additionally, all staff members help all campers to stay hydrated throughout the day by encouraging them to carry a water bottle around camp and allowing breaks for drinking water and refilling their water bottles.
Health
We have a full-time medical staff of registered nurses and assistants with a fully equipped infirmary for the use of all campers and staff at all times. With your support before camp begins, we will be ready to handle all of your teen’s health needs:
Health Forms
The information you share with us on the Tel Yehudah health forms is critical in providing the best possible care for your teen. All forms can be located in the Documents and Forms section of your CampInTouch Account and must be submitted to our office by May 15th.
Vaccinations
The vaccination of all members of the community is essential in order to maintain a safe environment and decrease the risk of transmission of preventable illnesses. The establishment of a safe environment must therefore include the requirement that all members of the Tel Yehudah community be adequately immunized against all of the preventable diseases as recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices. While parents may choose to defer the vaccination of their children, for Tel Yehudah this is not an issue of individual rights and choice, but an issue of public health and policy. The routine vaccination of all children, staff and visitors is an important public health matter especially in the confined environment of a residential summer camp, with round-the-clock communal living and with some vulnerable populations present.
Please take a close look at the VACCINATION POLICY in the Camper and Parent Guide. Along with all Young Judaea camps, the Union for Reform Judaism, Ramah Camps, the Jewish Community Center Association and many other Jewish summer camps, Tel Yehudah requires that ALL campers and staff have up to date immunizations. We believe that this is a serious matter of public health. The online Health History Form will ask you for your child’s immunization history. T
Medication
All medication administered on a regular basis at camp MUST be pre-packaged by CampScripts, Please refer to the Camper and Parent Guide for important information about our medication policies. Any medications in pill form brought to camp that are not packaged through CampScripts will incur a $100 processing fee unless camp was previously notified and permission granted.
We do understand that some Israeli and other international campers will not be able to use this service because of health insurance. Please contact us if this is the case.
Lice
Before any camper is allowed to enter their bunk at the beginning of the session, they must first have their head checked for lice. Due to the alarming amount of Lice epidemics in the schools, we will be bringing in a professional team to check every child’s head, in order to ensure a healthy and easy start of the summer. Should your child be found to have lice you will have two options: you can either take your child home to treat him/her until all lice and nits are gone or you can have the Lice team at camp treat your child for a beginning fee of $225.00 This treatment policy also applies to any camper that is found to have lice during the session. If a camper is taken home for a lice treatment, the Tel Yehudah Health Center professionals must examine the camper prior to rejoining camp activities.
Lyme Disease
Camp Tel Yehudah is located in an area of the country that has a dense population of ticks, including the deer tick. It is the deer tick that is responsible for the transmission of Lyme disease. These ticks are often found in woody and overgrown brush areas. We are in the process of having the entire camp treated with an organic spray designed to greatly reduce the tick population. While we take special care to limit the potential of attracting deer ticks we cannot guarantee they will not be in our area.
Parents and campers can take preventive measures to lower the possibility of exposure to infected ticks. According to the Center for Disease Control, these include wearing light colored clothing so ticks may be seen more easily, tucking pants into socks or shoes and applying an insect repellent containing DEET to both clothes and exposed skin. Daily tick checks by the camper are also recommended. The camper can do these at night while the camper is getting ready for bed. If a tick is noticed and removed within a 24-36 hour period the likelihood of getting Lyme disease is significantly decreased. The Health Center is knowledgeable in matters related to ticks, including proper tick removal and post exposure treatment. For more information on Lyme disease please consult the following link from the Center for Disease Control http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/lyme
Emotional Support
Sometimes being away from home and in a new environment can be difficult for our teens. Our staff is dedicated to caring for the emotional well-being of all of our campers. In addition, Tel Yehudah has a social worker or psychologist on staff, available to support campers and staff. Tel Yehudah also has a parent liaison, because sometimes parents need support too.