Original Article Published On Facebook
Noam Zinger’s road to working in the Tikvah Program at Ramah Day Camp Philly was anything but straightforward. The Israeli emissary, who has a great deal of experience working in Israel with people with disabilities, dreamed of working as a madricha (counselor) in a Tikvah Program at a Ramah overnight camp. When she learned that the job may involve walking long distances on hilly terrain and assisting in such self-care activities as showering campers, she know she would have to consider other options. Zinger was up for the challenge, but she knew that having Cerebral Palsy might prove to be difficult for the job.
Zinger eventually accepted a position at Ramah Day Camp Philly, and started working in Sha’ar (Hebrew immersion program). She was reassigned to the omanut (art) department, and eventually found her way to her true calling—the Tikvah program, for campers with a range of disabilities and support needs.
Zinger spent her days at camp walking RDC’s grounds, checking on and supporting campers in the various edot (divisions), and consulting to fellow staff members. Her travels take her up and down the stairs of the Perelman building—to the sensory room and to indoor cooking—and to the athletic fields, gan (garden), and kikar (field). While the walk sometimes felt tiring, Zinger remained upbeat and always smiling.
Zinger, who worked for five years with the Krembo Wings disability organization in Israel and hopes to study special education, is very satisfied with her summer. The work at camp was satisfying, and her host family was kind and accommodating.
Zinger had discussed her personal challenges, support needs and her sincere desire to work at Camp Ramah with the sochnut/Jewish Agency. By working at RDC, she could return “home” to her wonderful host family, the Cherry Family, each afternoon–after a long, hot, tiring day on the job. “She was very above board about what she needed,” reports Rabbi Shai Cherry, rabbi of Congregation Adath Jeshurun in Elkins Park, a short walk from camp, housed on the campus of Perelman Jewish Day School. “She asked us if we had a bannister and if we had a lip she would need to step over to get in to the shower. Those were the only logistical concerns. We jerry rigged a step up—there were no other physical accommodations.” The Cherry’s enjoyed hosting Zinger—they just wished their own children were around to get to know her more and speak Hebrew with her. One of the Cherry children, Rina, was a counselor this summer in the Tikvah Program at Camp Ramah in California (Ojai). Zinger enjoyed her time with the Cherrys, where she learned about Judaism in the United States. “There are lots of ways to see Judaism. You can practice Judaism in so many ways!”
While Zinger would love to return to Philly, she is hopeful that she may be able to return to work in one of Ramah’s overnight Tikvah Programs. She is up for the challenge!