B'nai B'rith Perlman Camp

Entrance to B'nai B'rith Perlman Camp

B'nai B'rith Perlman Camp (BBPC) is a Jewish summer camp located in Lake Como, Pennsylvania, United States. The camp first opened in 1954 on the site of the former Camp Windsor; it has also been known as Camp B'nai B'rith (CBB). Before being acquired by B'nai B'rith January 1954, the 365-acre (1.48 km2) campground with a 13-acre (53,000 m2) lake was known as Camp Windsor.

Camp B'nai B'rith was renamed B'nai B'rith Perlman Camp (BBPC) on 19 August 1975, after the founder of B'nai B'rith Girls, Anita Perlman, following the purchase of Burr Oaks in Mukwonago, Wisconsin, named that one B'nai B'rith Beber Camp.[1]

History leading up to B'nai B'rith's acquisition

In 1947, after hearing a report on the subject, the B'nai B'rith Supreme Lodge convention authorized the purchase of a camp to meet the growing need for a youth camp where leadership development and conventions could meet.[2] In the spring of 1949, the B'nai B'rith-Henry Monsky Foundation was officially formed with the hopes of buying real estate, including a campground.[3] The search for a campground began to come into life with a run-down property.

B'nai B'rith District 3 operated a home for orphans in Fairview, Pennsylvania for a number of years, though it had become abandoned by the 1940s.[4] In the early 1950s, District 3's leadership made an offer to make the grounds "available to the Supreme Lodge for a youth encampment."[5] Because the property was neither in good condition nor a good location, B'nai B'rith was able to close down the property, sell off the assets and transfer them, worth nearly $200,000, to the Monsky Foundation.[6]

The Foundation was then able to purchase for $175,000, in January 1954, a 365-acre (148 ha) camp with a 13 acres (5.3 ha) lake at an elevation of 1,800 feet (550 m), originally known as Camp Windsor, located in Starlight in the northeastern corner of Pennsylvania.[7] Five months later, in June, Camp B'nai B'rith was dedicated, and meetings were held there as well as a summer camp season for younger children.[8]

Youth Camp

Perlman Camp's mission is to provide children with a safe, fun, and enriching summer camp experience in a Jewish environment. The camp offers a fun and inclusive family atmosphere, which provides opportunities for growth and the development of a sense of self. This pluralistic Jewish environment enhances teamwork, cooperation and leadership in the camp community and beyond. B'nai B'rith Perlman Camp is a traditional camping experience that encompasses athletics, arts, aquatics, outdoor adventure, and fosters Jewish values, morals and ethics.

Camp sessions include a 2-week (Rookie Camp), as well as 4- and 7-week sessions. Campers entering grades 3-10 are housed in bunks, and divided into three divisions: freshmores, juniors, and seniors. Teen campers participate in a two-year leadership track program, including the 11th grade Pioneer (PIO) program, and the 12th grade Staff-in-Training (SIT) program.

Campers participate in a variety of activities on a daily basis, including swim and waterfront activities, athletics, arts, drama, and music. Each week, campers may choose to participate in two hobbies, where they can develop skills in their individual areas of interest. Special camp programs include overnights, trips to amusement parks, a 4 July carnival, Israel Day, and Maccabiah (color war).

The Legend of Marcy Diamond

Both alumni and current campers alike all know the story of Marcy Diamond. At the camp, there are two female bunks set a bit further back than all the others, known as G11 and G12. Legend has it that one night girls were smoking in their bunk, which even back in the 1970's, when the story takes place, was highly restricted. Marcy Diamond happened to be the counselor on duty, the night her campers were smoking inside. Unfortunately for Marcy, all of her campers hated her.

After they finished their cigarettes, they all threw the butts on the wooden floor and went to sleep. Not long after, the bunk burst into to flames due to the cigarettes left on the floor. Marcy was awoken by the scent of the flaming bunk. In an attempt to save all of her campers, she woke them all up and escorted them out of the bunk, despite the fact that she knew of their hatred towards her. As she was helping campers escape the burning bunk, she noticed that she did not wake one of the campers. Marcy, being the great counselor she was, sprinted back into the bunk and picked up the camper. She tried carrying her through the door, but it would not budge! Marcy went over to the window with the now awake camper and helped her go through it. After the camper escaped via the window, Marcy Diamond put her hand on the window sill to climb out, but the window suddenly closed due to the failing structure of the burning bunk and shopped off her hand. Marcy's entire body, with the exception of her now disconnected hand, burned to ashes with the rest of the bunk. What happened to her free hand, you ask? It has been roaming around B'nai B'rith Perlman Camp ever since the tragic accident.. The next morning, when the campers were asked what happened in the night, they all said that their counselor Marcy was smoking inside of the bunk and threw the ashes on the floor, igniting the fire.

Every summer, around the time of the incident, Marcy's dislodged hand vandalizes various buildings and other structures around the camp. She frequently uses shaving cream and gloves symbolizing her lost hand when making a mess of the grounds.

Because of Marcy's vandalism, it has become a tradition that the oldest bunks on both the boys and girls side, known at the camp as the OB's, pull pranks and various other practical jokes on the rest of camp. For some odd reason, it is frequent that the second oldest campers wake up in the morning claiming that they had a oddly terrifying experience during the night, in the dark, but nobody else can help them to prove this. The morning that the camp wakes up to the vandalism, the legend of Marcy Diamond is always told.

BBYO Leadership Training

Starting in 1957, BBYO began to hold leadership training programs at the camp. In 1959, the first International Leadership Training Conference was held there. In 1961, Kallah was started to be held there prior to this ILTC. For many years, up until 2005, BBYO's International Convention was held in the summer at B'nai B'rith Perlman Camp.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Baer, Max F. Dealing in Futures: The Story of a Jewish Youth Movement. Washington, DC: B’nai B’rith International, 1983, p. 301.
  2. ↑ Edward E. Grusd, B’nai B’rith: The Story of a Covenant (New York: Appleton-Century, 1966), 240.
  3. ↑ Edward E. Grusd, B’nai B’rith: The Story of a Covenant (New York: Appleton-Century, 1966), 246.
  4. ↑ Dedicated to a Great Humanitarian, [Plaque] B'nai B'rith Perlman Camp, Starlight, PA: The Adult Lodge.
  5. ↑ Max F. Baer, Dealing in Futures: The Story of a Jewish Youth Movement (Washington, DC: B'nai B'rith International, 1983), 296.
  6. ↑ Edward E. Grusd, B'nai B'rith: The Story of a Covenant (New York: Appleton-Century, 1966), 247.
  7. ↑ Max F. Baer, Dealing in Futures: The Story of a Jewish Youth Movement (Washington, DC: B'nai B'rith International, 1983), 297.
  8. ↑ Edward E. Grusd, B'nai B'rith: The Story of a Covenant (New York: Appleton-Century, 1966), 263.

External links

Coordinates: 41°51′59″N 75°19′43″W / 41.866495°N 75.328694°W