Camp Blog

Fri – Shabbat

DATE: July 27, 2025

Shavua Tov to all parents and friends,

Let me catch you up.

Friday morning breakfast is a pretty big deal here at Machane Stone. Music plays (loudly!!) in our Chadar Ochel as everyone prepares their sandwiches for the hike. Each week spontaneous dancing breaks out and, with that, the pre-Shabbos ruach begins here 😉 It is a core memory for many chanichim. Ask your kids about “the Peanut Butter/Jelly song” (although, ironically, peanuts – and all nuts – are banned, ha!)

In shiur, we learned about the mission of Am Yisrael – to teach about צדק ומשפט, as Hashem told Avraham, and to act in ways of righteousness and justice. We spoke about real-life examples today when the Israeli government is the first to send aid to a country struggling.

Kaytana learned about Yitzchak and Rivka’s two sons Yaakov and Eisav and the lie that Yaakov told to secure the blessing.

Following shiur, each eidah got ready for their hike and headed out for a few hours. Meanwhile, back at machane, our tzevet does the cleanup all over camp and sets up the chadar ochel for shabbat dinner. There was tzevet swim for banot before their Mincha at 2:00 and tzevet swim for banim afterwards.

Our schedule Friday before Shabbat includes the Roshei Moshava going bunk to bunk to inspect the nikayon they did for Shabbat, and in the last couple of years a custom has begun where a camper gives a Dvar Torah before the check 🙂 Mifkad for the whole camp happens at 6:30  and then we enter the Indoor Beit Knesset for a camp-wide Kabbalat Shabbat. This is the only time all 800+ of us daven together, and it is beautiful and powerful!! Shabbat was full of singing, dancing and cheering-by-eidah at dinner and lunch, with an inspiring slow shira at Seudah Shlishit.

Each eidah had a fun night activity after havdalah (swimming, sports etc) and the tzevet were treated to a yummy Melaveh Malka meal of….Fettuccine Alfredo (the nine days have started so we knew it would be dairy…) .

We are looking forward to a week full of friendship, fun and learning. And the lina (campout) of course…we all know that is coming up soo, and we are excited for it!

Mandatory Staff Training:

Participation in 100% of the mandatory staff training week is required to work at Camp Stone. This is for your safety and the safety of our entire camp community. If you have a conflict, please consider applying to work for the other session. 

Continue with application

Returning camper applications will open on 10/3, new campers will open on 11/3

Registration for summer 2025 opens 10/1/24 for returning families, 11/1/24 for new families.

Please contact Randi Mashmoor with any questions at:

randi@campstone.org

or 440-465-5486. Thank You!

Staff applications will open late November.

New camper application opens on 11/3. Returning campers can register now.

Returning Camper Registration

Registration for summer 2023 is now closed. There are a few select spots remaining.
Please contact Randi Mashmoor at:

randi@campstone.org

or 440-465-5486. Thank You!

About the Chanukah Raffle

Dear Camp Stone Community,

It is an incredible feeling to reconnect with everyone once again at the beginning of our 2021 camp season.

We are writing to you today, first and foremost, to express tremendous gratitude.

Hakarat HaTov, literally “recognizing the good”, is an important and fundamental principle in our community. We, at Camp Stone, want to express our Hakarat HaTov to everyone receiving this email for your unwavering support, especially this past summer. Whether you provided financial assistance through your donated tuition dollars, participated in Indoor World, or connected with the Camp Stone community in other ways, together we had an incredibly successful, albeit different, summer experience.

There is no substitute for being in Sugar Grove, Pennsylvania, and this summer, B’ezrat Hashem, we will be back at Camp Stone, in person, in full force.

To achieve that goal, we must continue to ensure the financial success of our home away from home that we all know and love so deeply. The logo on top, featuring the slogan “Stone. Forever.” also features a Ner Tamid, an “eternal flame.” The year 1969, etched into the logo, is the year camp was founded. Symbolically, the overall image represents the idea that Camp Stone began many years ago and must endure forever, always burning brightly, and always an integral part of our collective conscience.

On that note, we are excited to announce that our annual Chanukah Campaign will be a raffle taking place over all 8 nights of Chanukah with prizes for both campers and parents/alumni!!

Please go back to the web page  to purchase raffle tickets and help us achieve 100% participation from our entire camp community!

Looking forward to being in touch with all of you in the near future.

Sincerely,

Yakov & Estee, Co-Directors