Camp Avoda
Camp Avoda is a Jewish boys' overnight camp located on Tispaquin Pond in Middleboro, Massachusetts. It has been in continuous operation since the summer of 1927, making it the oldest Jewish boys' camp in New England.
History
Camp Avoda was established in early 1927 by an organization then known as the Young Men's Hebrew Association. The camp was established to serve the needs of underprivileged Jewish boys. Originally, the bunks were essentially "huts" and had no screening or walls. Today the campers sleep in basic cabins which were built at various times between the late 1950s and early 1980s. Many bunks have had extensions annexed to them after the great rise in attendance in the middle 1990s.Today the camp is a non-profit entity operated by a Board of Directors and duly incorporated as Camp Avoda, Inc. It serves the needs of 125-150 campers per session.
Camp Avoda is located on a tract of land on Tispaquin Pond in Middleborough, Massachusetts. However, more than half of that land is wooded area which is used for hiking, camping, and a high-elements ropes course which was constructed in 1999.
The camp is well known for its unique layout. All 8 cabins, the recreation hall, the C.I.T. "bungalow", the shower houses, two administrator cabins, and the "OD shack" surround the large ball field, where all field sports are played. The small size of this camp grants it what many consider a very "intimate" feeling.
Ken shifman is currently the Executive Director of the Camp, a position Paul Davis has been in since the late 1960s; he has been employed as an administrator since 1966, making him one of the longest serving camp directors in the United States. Camp Avoda has a 7½ week season, which includes a 3½ week long first session and a 4-week second session. Each summer there are 32-40 junior and senior counselors ranging between ages 17–24. Almost all counselors were once campers at Camp Avoda, and most are typically college students.
Most campers reside in New England, with the vast majority concentrated in the Greater Boston area. However, not all campers live near the camp. Each year, a large number of campers travel from states like Florida, New Mexico, New Jersey and California, and from countries as far off as Israel, to spend their summers at Camp Avoda.
Tradition
Camp Avoda is one of the only summer camps in the world, where any given summer, all or almost all counselors were once Avoda campers and successful graduates of the Avoda Counselor-in-Training program."Avodians" describe themselves as sharing a "special bond." Today, Avodians can be found throughout the United States and the World. In 2002, Camp Avoda celebrated its 75th Anniversary and over 1,000 Avodians throughout the World embarked upon Camp Avoda to revel in the festivities.
4th of July Celebration
July 4 is the first pinnacle event of the summer. The camp hosts its own carnival during the day, where each bunk creates its own booth in addition to those rented by the camp. At night is the annual Bonfire and Chip Ceremony. The bonfire is built entirely by Bunk 14, who name the bonfire and place a sign at the top with the name. The bonfire can be as tall as. The entire camp gathers in front of the bonfire to watch it burn. Once the fire has burned long enough, and has started to die down, the chip ceremony begins. Each bunk chooses a member to stand in front of the fire, and make a speech. After they make their speech, they take a wood chip, and throw it into the fire. The speech usually is about their camp experience, or what camp means to them. Many speeches often revolve around how they believe Avoda is the greatest place on earth, and how the feeling of being there is indescribable. After all the bunks have gone, Bunk 14 goes, with 3 speakers. After Bunk 14 has gone up, all of the old Bunk 14's are called up by year, until you get to the oldest staff members and administrators, and finally the director.Trips
Every Thursday, except during Color War, is a trip day. Trips include Six Flags New England, a Red Sox Game, Water Country, etc. In addition, there are choice trips, in which campers are given the option to choose which trip they would like to go on. There are also optional trips, which are different from choice trips, in that you can choose not to go on any of them. Trips designated for specific groups of campers include the annual fishing trip, the Bunk 14 overnight, and the Senior Canoe Trip.Tournaments
Avoda competes in many tournaments with rival camps including Camps Bauercrest, Bournedale, Young Judaea, Tel Noar, and Tevya. Avoda also attends many tournaments including the Bournedale and YJ tournaments. Avoda also hosts its own tournament. In this tournament the sports are soccer and basketball.Bunk 14
Bunk 14, also known as "The Betty Grable Commandos" is the bunk of the oldest campers at Avoda. Typically it houses 15-year-olds entering the 10th grade. With Bunk 14 comes special privileges and automatic "alumni" status. Many alumni are often identified and identify themselves by their Bunk 14 Year.Color War
For many staff and campers alike, Color War is the highlight and culmination of the summer. During the last week of the summer, the camp is split up into two teams, "white" and "blue". Each team typically consists of 8 staff members, usually: 1 General, 5 Lieutenants, and 2 Aides. However, in previous years, there have been 4 Lieutenants, 6 Lieutenants, and 3 Aides on a team. Color War takes place over 6 days. Each camper is placed in a division with other campers of their own age and one year above or below them. The four divisions are Freshman, Sophomore, Junior, and Senior. In each division, the two teams face each other in sports, side events, tug of wars, and other events. The point values for each event are hidden from the campers, but increase in value from the Freshman to Senior Division. Before Color War, the staffs assemble to prepare for the week. A few days before Color War is Negotiations, in which the General and 1st Lieutenant of each team negotiate out the order of picks for each division, as well as team location, and color, with the other team. A few days after Negotiations, and usually the day before or the day of Color War, is Picks. During Picks, each team is given the opportunity to pick the campers that they want on their team. One of the traditions of Color War is the silent meals. This doesn't apply to any of the Color War staff members, captains, or judges. If you are caught talking during any of the 18 meals, points will automatically be deducted from your team. The winner is usually announced through a fixed race or game of some sort, in which the counselors representing the winning team win. The winning team then proceeds to jump in the lake, celebrating for up to half an hour with their victorious teammates and staff members.Color War Record
| Year | Winning team | Losing team |
| 1972 | White Patriots General Carl Rottersman Captain Jon Bamel, Arthur Mendelsohn | Blue Braves General Steven Woolf Captain George Brockman |
| 1973 | White Cougars General Bobby Gilberg Captain Neil Sandler | Blue Brigade General Danny Bauman Captain Steven Bender |
| 1974 | Blue Israelites General Robbie Coppel Captain Phil Lukoff | White Cobras General Brad Barry Captain Gary Epstein |
| 1975 | White Wizards General Robbie Coppel Captain Jerry Gordon | Blue Tide General Mike Katz Captain David Bamel |
| 1976 | Blue Rockets General George Brockman Captain Robbie Satloff | White Eagles General Robbie Coppel Captain Bruce Bender |
| 1977 | Blue Destroyers General Stuart Bram Captain Ken Sandberg | White Kings General David Goodman Captain Mike Ross |
| 1978 | White Cosmos General Eric Yaffe Captain Glen French | Blue Diamonds General Phil Lukoff Captain Gary Greenstein |
| 1979 | White Warriors General David Bamel Captain Neil Schneider | Blue Cyclones General Mitch Rubin Captain David Snider |
| 1980 | White Avodians General Paul Kleinmann Captain Richie Mintzer | Blue Aztecs General Robert Satloff Captain Evan Yampolsky |
| 1981 | White Sabres General Steve Aronson Captain Bruce French | Blue Galaxy General Steve Camiel Captain Paul Simon |
| 1982 | Blue Sting General Mike Roth Captain Alex Sherman | White Warlords General Steve Aronson Captain Mike Saperstein |
| 1983 | White Falcons General David Snider Captain Richard I Lefkowitz | Blue Dragons General Mike Rutstein Captain Jon Lee |
| 1984 | Blue Express General Evan Yampolsky Captain Lee Kaiser | White Magic General Andy Stone Captain Larry Gold |
| 1985 | Blue Demons General Paul Simon Captain Jon Feldman | White Spray General Mark Solomon Captain Danny Gold |
| 1986 | White Spartans General Peter Spider Lebowitz Captain Josh Camire | Blue Crusade General David Wertheim Captain Brett Smith |
| 1987 | White Cougars General Davida Bones Captain Jimmy Sklaver | Blue Pythons General Gary Solomon Captain Stu Glasser |
| 1988 | Blue Shadow General Jay Yampolsky Captain Adam Kaufman | White Lightning General Russell Katz Captain Jon Cohen |
| 1989 | Blue Storm General Mark Glovin Captain Ariel Waldman | White Raiders General Ken Shifman Captain Brian Malamut |
| 1990 | White Panthers General Ken Shifman Captain Jake Farquharson | Blue Stampede General Russell Katz Captain Bobby Zuker |
| 1991 | Blue Scorpions General Jeff Blocker Captain Aaron Katz | White Knights General Andy Spear Captain Josh Kaswell |
| 1992 | White Empire General Stu Glass Captain Spencer Kimball | Blue Assault General David Wilcov Captain Darryl Malamut |
| 1993 | Blue Sharks General Jeremy Agulnek Captain Jaskon Kurtz | White Heat General Ricky Hyman Captain Jeremy Steckel |
| 1994 | Blue Predators General Jeremy Agulnek Captain Dan Gold_Pitegoff | White Seminoles General Ricky Hyman Captain Scott Bookman |
| 1995 | Blue Devils General Jeff Vetstein Captain Sam Chates | White Wolves General Bobby Zuker Captain Adam Hatch |
| 1996 | Blue Grizzlies General Jeremy Agulnek Captain Josh Schneider | White Wildcats General Mark Sokoloff Captain Jesse Fanuiel |
| 1997 | Blue Justice General Jeff Vetstein Captain Greg Lazaroff | White Bulldogs General Ken Freeman Captain Jon Ostroff |
| 1998 | White Vipers General Spencer Kimball Captain Josh Damm | Blue Rebels General Aaron Agulnek Captain Dave Pratter |
| 1999 | White Force General Eric Levy Captain Matt Aschaffenburg | Blue Tide General EJ Kimball Captain Matthew Chella |
| 2000 | Blue Dynasty General Spencer Kimball Captain Sam Glick | White Warriors General Dave Brown Captain Dave Kivowitz |
| 2001 | White Lions General Barry Morgan Captain Josh Coran | Blue Terror General Adam Miller Captain Sawyer Emmer |
| 2002 | Blue Gladiators General EJ Kimball Captain Steve Mendelsohn | White Patriots General Josh Schneider Captain Brian Norcross |
| 2003 | Blue Giants General Adam Miller Captain Matt Glick | White Titans General Greg Lazaroff Captain Jared Shalek |
| 2004 | Blue Buccaneers General Adam Miller Captain Benny Bershad | White Outlaws General Evan Traiger Captain Jonathan Katz |
| 2005 | Blue Mafia General Todd Miller Captain Justin Lukoff | White Tigers General Mike Pemstein Captain Cory Schneider |
| 2006 | Blue Venom General Sawyer Emmer Captain Eli Rodrigues | White Dragons General Mike Pemstein Captain Sam Brenner |
| 2007 | Blue Animals General Dan Gollinger Captain Eddie Bernson | White Spartans General Erik Silevitch Captain Sascha Bercovitch |
| 2008 | White Phantoms General Matt Norcross Captain Jason Hefter | Blue Army General David Fine Captain Brendan Hefter |
| 2009 | Blue Monsters General Adam Rubin Captain Paul Sockol | White Mustangs General Jonny Singer Captain Brandon Banker |
| 2010 | White Assassins General Cory Finkelman Captain Marc Gleason | Blue Heroes General Ethan Gurwitz Captain Sam Watman |
| 2011 | Blue Barbarians General Richard Katz Captain Harrison Bamel | White Legends General Josh Coran Captain Jake Alexander |
| 2012 | White Mercenaries General Ben Rubin Captain Drew Lukoff | Blue Gators General Eddie Bernson Captain Benji Satloff |
| 2013 | Blue Goblins General Jason Hefter Captain Ben Shale | White Prophets General Jacob Dennis Captain Louis Yarmolinsky |
| 2014 | Blue Vikings General Joey Sherman Captain Abe Watman | White Chiefs General Jacob Dennis Captain Dan Chafetz |
| 2015 | White Olympians General Sam Watman Captain Eli Sabin | Blue Apes General Louis Douglas Captain Max Waltzman |
| 2016 | White Villains General Jared Fixler Captain Ross Halpern | Blue Bears General Louis Douglas Captain Zac Roth |
| 2017 | Blue Wizards General Joshua Cohen Captain Sam Waltzman | White Royals General Drew Lukoff Captain Nate Goldberg |
| 2018 | Navy Seals General Abe Watman Captain Adam Alter | White Avengers General Wes Fixler Captain Sawyer Busny |
| 2019 | Blue Anarchy General Shay Wenglin Captain Charlie Zuker | White Jaguars General Ty Goldstein Captain Michael Shnidman Jr. |
Alumni Association
The Avoda Alumni Association is an active and integral part of Avoda's success. Since 1987, the Camp Avoda Alumni Association has hosted a full weekend dedicated to Alumni events, which typically takes place the weekend before the campers arrive at camp. It is common for Alumni members to stop by throughout the summer to interact with the current staff and campers. While visiting, the alumni members are able to participate in the alumni's which they have.In addition to the "Alumni Weekend" the Avoda Alumni Association has many events throughout the off-season at various Massachusetts locations, including: Billiard Nights, Family Day at Gillette Stadium, and the annual Thanksgiving Football Game in Cleveland Circle. The Alumni Association engages in many fundraising and charitable endeavors aimed at providing scholarships to campers for the summers.