The Gan Israel Camping Network (, 'Garden of Israel') is a group of

Chabad-Lubavitch Chabad, also known as Lubavitch, Habad and Chabad-Lubavitch (; ; ), is a dynasty in Hasidic Judaism. Belonging to the Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) branch of Orthodox Judaism, it is one of the world's best-known Hasidic movements, as well as one of ...

summer camp A summer camp, also known as a sleepaway camp or residential camp, is a supervised overnight program for children conducted during the summer vacation from school in many countries. Children and adolescents who attend summer residential camps ...

s. The network claims a total enrolment of over 100,000 children.

History

The first Chabad-affiliated summer camp was a girls' overnight camp, Camp Emunah, in

Greenfield Park, New York Greenfield Park is a Hamlet (New York), hamlet in the Town of Wawarsing, New York, Wawarsing, Ulster County, New York, Ulster County, New York (state), New York, United States. The community is located along New York State Route 52, west of Ellen ...

(where it still located), founded in 1953 by Rabbi Jacob J. Hecht. In 1956, the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi

Menachem Schneerson Menachem Mendel Schneerson ( – June 12, 1994; Anno Mundi, AM 11 Nissan 5662 – 3 Tammuz 5754), known to adherents of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement as the Lubavitcher Rebbe or simply the Rebbe, was an American Orthodox rabbi and the most rec ...

, directed some young men by the name of Rabbi Moshe Lazar, Rabbi Yossi Weinbaum And Rabbi Shemtov to open a parallel boys' overnight camp under the auspices of the

Merkos L'Inyonei Chinuch Merkos L'Inyonei Chinuch ( lit. Central Organization for Education) is the central educational arm of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement. It was founded in 1943 by the sixth Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchok Schneersohn, who served as president, and appoi ...

organization. The young men chose the name Gan Yisroel ("Garden of Israel") for this camp and went to the Rebbe for approval, after the founder of Chassidism, Rabbi

Israel Baal Shem Tov Israel ben Eliezer (According to a forged document from the "Kherson Geniza", accepted only by Chabad, he was born in October 1698. Some Hasidic traditions place his birth as early as 1690, while Simon Dubnow and other modern scholars argue for ...

. Camp Gan Israel moved to its current location in

Parksville, New York Parksville is a small hamlet in the town of Liberty, Sullivan County, New York, United States. The ZIP Code is 12768. It is situated at exit 98 on Route 17 (which is expected to be upgraded to Interstate 86 in the future). History I ...

in 1969. Rabbi Schneerson visited both of these camps in 1956 (before the camp season began), 1957 and 1960 (during the camp season). Since the early 1990s, the Rebbe's visits have formed an important part of the

oral history Oral history is the collection and study of historical information from people, families, important events, or everyday life using audiotapes, videotapes, or transcriptions of planned interviews. These interviews are conducted with people who pa ...

of Camp Gan Israel in Parksville (and the other camps in the network), and are frequently referred to in song and in print. Other branches of Gan Israel overnight camps were founded near

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

(1958, in

Labelle, Quebec Labelle () is a village and municipality in the Laurentides region of Quebec, Canada, part of the Les Laurentides Regional County Municipality. Its large L-shaped territory surrounds Lake Labelle, and the village is located along the Rouge River ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

(),

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

(1961, in

Kalkaska Township, Michigan Kalkaska Township ( ) is a civil township of Kalkaska County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 2,895 at the 2020 census. The township contains the village of Kalkaska, which serves as the county seat. The western half of the to ...

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

(1960s),

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

(2007),

Kfar Tzvi Sitrin Kfar Tzvi Sitrin (), also known as Beit Tzvi (, ''lit.'' Zvi House) is a technical college and village in northern Israel. Located near Highway 4, it falls under the jurisdiction of Hof HaCarmel Regional Council. In it had a population of . His ...

(2004),

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

(2012), and others. In addition, several hundred Gan Israel day camps exist around the world.

Activities

The majority of the children that attend Chabad-Lubavitch summer camps are from unaffiliated Jewish homes. To this end, camps offer introductory classes and programs in Judaism. In addition, a growing number of Chabad-Lubavitch summer camps are now equipped to aid children with special needs. Many camps offer cyber art, wilderness survival, tennis, karate, and mountain biking. Special trips to theme parks, bowling and creative Shabbat overnights complement the spiritual programs that are the hallmark of Chabad-Lubavitch, namely daily study and prayer, Jewish song and dance, ritual arts and crafts, and a wide variety of activities designed to generate interest and excitement in Jewish history, observance and the performance of good deeds.

External links

Camp Gan Israel Directory

References

{{Chabad Jewish summer camps Chabad organizations Jewish organizations established in 1956 Chabad-Lubavitch (Hasidic dynasty)