A Rabbi’s Journey from Camper to Faculty at URJ Camp Kalsman

As I drove down Jordan Road, to the place I belong, Camp Kalsman, in the mountains, my 10-year-old self – a camper at UAHC Camp Swig – was in awe. There I was decades later, no longer a camper nor in California, but still able to go to Jewish summer camp! Animated by Jewish values, anchored by Jewish time, and aligned with modern life camp is a place where we get to embrace who we are and be at home.

I have had the pleasure of serving on the faculty at the PNW’s URJ Camp Kalsman since 2014. This week, there are six of us here, rabbis and musicians, whose congregants and own children spend 1, 2, or 3 weeks as campers or summer-long staff. As a faculty member, I arrive with eyes and ears wide open hoping to support the entire camp community with Jewish content, teachings about prayer, my open heart, and willing hands. And summer after summer, it turns out that far beyond what I’m able to give is the incredible amount of inspiration I receive in just 7 days here. The time at camp catapults me into planning for the year-round work I get to do as a rabbi in a congregation with fresh energy and enthusiasm.

Rabbi Kate Speizer ’08 serves as the Endless Opportunities Director at Temple De Hirsch Sinai in Seattle, Washington.