Written By: Staci Goldblatt (Keshet)
I can honestly say that Netzer Ligdol Nobunye Machane was the most incredible camp I have ever been on. Wonderful memories were made as well as great friendships too. If I could summarise Netzer in three words they would definitely be -‘One Giant Family.’ At the end of last year, the camp Maddies made my year, in just two weeks. They put in so much effort and time for camp to be a success and all the hard work definitely paid off. Every single Channie, including myself have made new bonds and relationships with people from all over South Africa.
A memory that absolutely stood out for me was Seminar. That is when the oldest group on site – Keshet leave the campsite for three days. This year we stayed at the Wynberg Shul and had the most incredible time. During Seminar we – the oldest group, planned to take over the campsite for a whole day while the Maddies left the campsite and had a day off. This experience brought every single one of us together and it taught us some amazing leadership skills.
Channies day was an absolute blast! Everybody came together and Keshet took over the campsite. This was honestly one of the greatest experiences I could have ever imagined. I learnt so much about myself and everybody around me. We all worked together and yes, it was chaotic but with everyone’s help I think we pulled off an amazing Channies day! I know that everybody had an unforgettable time.
One of the biggest highlights for Netzer South Africa has always been the famous Colour Wars. Almost every single one of us lost our voices from all of the ‘Ruach’ that took place during Colour Wars. Everybody tried their hardest however the Red team came out victorious! It was an incredible day!
Another one of my favourite camp memories has always been the Friday night and Saturday – Shabbat. Everybody dresses up and we all unite. It’s truly beautiful to watch. This is exactly where you can see us being one giant family. We sing, we dance, we eat, we bond and most importantly we come together as young Jewish Zionists to celebrate the end of the week while we welcome in the next week.
A huge part of Netzer has always been the environmental focus and Tikkun Olam – Preparing the world. We had Ma’amad services outside so we could be amongst nature. We went on Tiyul where we walked along the Beach Front and sang many songs.
Netzer Machane Ligdol Nobunye was definitely the most amazing two weeks of my life and I wouldn’t have changed it for anything! I would love to thank every single Maddie that made camp 2014 an unforgettable experience.
Nilmad v’na’aseh!