August 8, 2012

By: Stu Krantz

Journey to almost any Jewish camp in the greater Washington, D.C., area and programs about Israel are sure to be found. But many camps also possess another tool in fostering a connection between their campers and Israel.

The summer shlichim program was started 45 years ago in 1967 by The Jewish Agency as a small project with only a few dozen Israelis coming to summer camps in America. The program exploded around 10 years ago during the Second Intifada. Now, though, the program sends over 1,100 shlichim, the Hebrew word for "emissaries," every summer to Jewish camps in North America, as well as in Europe, Great Britain, Australia and New Zealand. Read more