IDFWO is proud to announce the completion of its first ever Hanukkah Retreat for our teen orphans "Otzma Group", which took place Dec. 21-23^rd, 2011 in north of Israel.

91 children who attended the retreat came back with incredible memories, each and every one of them having the time of their lives while enjoying rappelling, mount biking, visiting the Beit Shean spring valley, touring Mt. Gefet and a sunrise hike to Karney Hitin area near the Sea of Galilee.

Everyone who came into contact with the group simply fell in love with the children, including the tour guides who offered to volunteer with the group over the Passover Retreat we are working on and which is to take place in the Red Sea resort city of Eilat on April 1-5^th, 2012. Swimming in the coral reef, desert hiking and scuba diving- watch out Eilat, here we come!

 

The following are words are written by Adam Adler, a young volunteer at the recent IDFWO Hanukkah Retreat. Adam is originally from Kansas City, Missouri and has generously volunteered his time, his wonderful personality and has shown sincere care for our orphans who in return accepted him as a true friend! Thank you Adam! My time spent volunteering with Otsma camp was, in one word, incredible. As campers and counselors from all over the country traveled to the lower Galilee, we celebrated Chanukah together and had a fantastic time. Our schedule was packed, and we went from activity to activity, getting to know each other along the way. It was amazing to spend time with children who have suffered such a loss, to be there as they got a free vacation, forgot their unfortunate circumstances and simply had fun with each other. Even with my small Hebrew vocabulary and funny accent (which the kids found quite entertaining), I quickly became their friend and, over the course of a few days, got to know them. As a recent immigrant to Israel from the United States, participating in this camp gave me a new sense of connection to the Israeli people. I can honestly say that it was one of the best experiences I have had since arriving in Israel. I felt honored to be one faces smiling and showing the orphans of Israel that they are important to this country, that their fathers died with honor, and that even people from outside of Israel care about their situation. By allowing them to participate in such an experience, we conveyed a message to them that they are not alone. This is something I think is crucial to the lives of these young kids; it was easy to see how much they were impacted by the camp and of course, how much FUN they had! I cannot wait to get ready and go to camp again during Passover.