1. The First 4 Hours of ILTC

Taking you alllllll the way back to June 25, 2025. 228 teens from all over the world are travelling to the Newark airport, where we will spend the next 4 hours walking around, running to reunite with old friends, introducing ourselves to new faces, and saying, "We've been here forever, when are the buses coming?"

2. ILTC Scranton

As many of you know, ILTC experienced some weather, leaving us without power or water for 3 days, so we took a little trip to Scranton, PA, to stay in a hotel for 2 nights. Even though it was a break from camp, we didn't take any breaks from our blueprint programming. It wasn't all work, though, because we got to go to Dave and Busters and the movie theaters for lots of fun!

3. Wegman's

You can imagine how 228 teenagers felt when we pulled up to Wegmans (aka heaven/a grocery store with lots of prepared food) for dinner.  We sat down with our cold drinks, sushi, pasta, and salads to share, and after waiting 1 minute to take all our pictures for Snapchat, we dug in. We also took this as an opportunity to stock up on all the snacks we have been craving, taking them back to our hotel rooms to share later that night.

4. PJ Shabbat

The day the water and power went out was the night of the ILTC Maccabiah, so after a long and HOT day of running around, no one was able to shower that night. The next day was the 4th of July, AND Shabbat. With most of our phones dead, no water to shower, and no electricity to plug in our hair tools, we decided upon a PJ Shabbat.

5. Intersession

The day between ILTC and Kallah was the perfect reset day. After saying our goodbyes to ILTC, we grabbed our mattress toppers and blankets to make a mega bed to sleep in all day. We spent the next day relaxing with movies, snacks, and a spa afternoon. That night, we played bingo and ordered pizza, sushi, and ice cream. It was the best break to recharge before Kallah arrived the next day.

6. Late Night DMC

Anyone who attends camp knows about a DMC (Deep Meaningful Conversation). The best DMC I had was the second Shabbat of Kallah. It started in my dorm with just a few cabinmates, debriefing about everything that happened that week, while we ate an entire challah we had gotten at dinner earlier. Slowly, everyone (including our counselors) joined in. It turned into a cabin-wide DMC that went well over our bedtimes and became one of my favorite Kallah memories.

7. BBG Empowerment Program

Another favorite Kallah moment was helping plan and host our BBG empowerment program. We invited teen counselors from Camp Morasha, a nearby Orthodox summer camp, to share how they practice Judaism in daily life. After a panel and Q&A, we split into small groups to eat spooey and discuss our personal connections to Judaism.

8. Kallah Maccabiah

Kallah Maccabiah started on a rainy morning when no one was in the mood for much, until the surprise announcement. Once we changed into our team's colors, the sun came out, and the energy shifted. We spent the day having fun with competitions like food-eating, ultimate soap, and swimming relays.