In a world that shifted dramatically post October 7th, one of the things that camp not only continued to provide, but strengthened, was our connection to Judaism and the Jewish people. In the ten months that our community spent outside the bubble, we heard countless stories of antisemitism in schools, neighborhoods, and on college campuses. […]

Our Israeli family’s love story with the “Cohen Camps Family” סיפור האהבה של המשפחה שלי עם “משפחת כהן קמפ” Guest post by Shira Dekalo, parent of three Israeli campers, one at each of the three Cohen Camps. פוסט אורח מאת שירה דקלו, אמא לשלושה חניכים ישראלים, אחד בכל אחד משלושת מחנות כהן. READ THIS POST […]

Dear Cohen Camps families, Every summer, the Cohen Camps welcome staff from Israel (shlichim) who play a vital role in our mission as Zionist camps. They come to us ready to embrace our camp culture just as we embrace them, enriching the community with their experiences and deepening our connection to Israel. Since October 7, […]

Dear Cohen Camps families, When I was a kid, my mom would prompt me to tell her about my school day by asking me to share three highlights, “not including lunch and recess.” As a parent of a toddler, I’m now on the other side of that question. I want to know everything he did […]

Shabbat Shalom from Barcelona! After a Shabbat visit to the Prado Art Museum and a spirited Havdalah Shira at a park in Madrid, it was time to begin the final week of our Dor L’Dor experience in Spain. We began the new week with a day trip to Toledo, about an hour from Madrid. Toledo […]

Shabbat Shalom from Madrid! After last week’s Shabbat, we left Gibraltar on Sunday to travel to Estepona. The TRH Paraiso was a very nice resort that reminded many of us of a family vacation in the Catskills. It had a large pool with an enclosed yard with volleyball, ping pong and pool tables, and a snack bar. […]

Shabbat Shalom from Gibraltar! After spending our first Shabbat in Porto, we left Sunday morning for a long bus ride to Covilha with a few stops on the way. Our first stop was in the Portuguese border town of Vilar Formoso, where we visited the Fronteira da Paz (Frontier of Peace) memorial. This museum, housed […]

Shabbat Shalom from Portugal! It was just a few days ago that we arrived in Portugal excited and nervous, three different camps on two different planes. And here we are now, celebrating the first Shabbat of DLD 2024! Each day, as we explored Portugal with activities in Lisbon, Sintra, and Porto, we could feel the […]

BY JONATHAN COHEN,THIRD-GENERATION PRESIDENT, THE COHEN CAMPS I’m often asked what makes the Cohen Camps “Jewish” and how we differentiate our camps from other Jewish camps. There is no simple, quick answer – it’s more than just being Kosher, observing Shabbat and reciting blessings before and after meals. We have a set of values that […]

BY JONATHAN COHEN,THIRD-GENERATION PRESIDENT, THE COHEN CAMPS In articulating our Jewish purpose in the manner of our 10 Commitments we have created a language that helps focus and guide us through the rhythms of planning and running our camps. In my previous posts I explained in general the core values that make our camps – […]