The Last Sephardiah of Shelton: November
Thanks for coming back to The Last Sephardiah of Shelton! Last time we discussed all kinds of fun things including why I am the author of this blog and how SAC 2014’s theme related to the recent High Holidays. This time around I’d like to give you a little insight into Sephardic Camp, and the way I’m going to do that is by comparing it to the one and only Walmart of Shelton.
Do you see this most beautiful piece of architecture pictured above? In case you haven’t been privileged with the opportunity to visit this 8th wonder of the world, which is just 78.2 miles away from Seattle and 12.4 miles away from YMCA Camp Bishop, I will try to help you understand its greatness as it pertains to Sephardic Adventure Camp’s uniqueness.
If you should ever find yourself near Shelton and in need of a Walmart, you’ll indefinitely be directed to the one off of East Wallace Kneeland Blvd. But, you might ask, what would happen if it were to be closed? Don’t worry, it’s open 24/7/365. But, what if, for some crazy reason, they actually did close and lock their automatic doors at the exact moment that you were in Shelton and needing a Walmart? Unfortunately for you, and any other unlucky fellow in this position, you’d be quite out of luck. The nearest Walmart is upwards of 30 miles away! Do you know what that means? Forgetting the facts that Sheltonites are the employees, chips and salsa can be found on the same aisle as fly-fishing wire, and that the most popular items are the tractors which sit outside of the building, the Walmart of Shelton is the only of its kind. There is no other such one-stop-shop in the whole of the city of Shelton, and to find anything like it one must travel for too long. If that’s starting to ring a bell for you it’s probably because you know that Sephardic Adventure Camp is the only camp of its sort- not only in Seattle, but actually in all of America! That’s right, SAC is the ONLY Sephardic, Orthodox overnight camp in these very United States, which makes us just about as unique as the Walmart of Shelton.
Planning to take a long drive by way of U.S. Route 101? Think you’ll need somewhere to stop for some good food? You’re in luck! Shelton’s Walmart has only the finest collection of snacks and other foodstuff alike. Since it’s not just any old Walmart, but a Walmart Supercenter, it actually has groceries! Fruits! Vegetables! Frozen goods! Looking for more on-the-go food? Walk straight to the back of the store, on the right side, and you will find yourself swimming in snack food. They have all the essentials: Oreos, pretzels, Whales (the cheese snack crackers), and candy bars galore… Who could ask for more? Just like the Shelton Walmart’s plethora of food choices, Sephardic Adventure Camp is home of the best camp food in the world. It might not be as proven as the previous SAC fact, but it might as well be. What other campers are treated to borekas and cuijado (Seattle Sephardic delicacies) made by the Ladies Auxillary for Shabbat lunch? Who else gets a full-on King Salmon bake, homemade meat Chinese food, and personalized pizzas? No one! Sephardic Adventure Campers (and those who frequent the Shelton Walmart) eat better than all the rest, and I dare you to challenge me on that!
Now, tell me what you’d do if you found yourself at SAC and you suddenly had the following list of things you needed to buy: a new pillow for a camper who forgot hers, matching Superman bragas (underwear) for all of B-1, a can of hot pink spray paint for an Arts & Crafts activity, a new white toilet seat to be decorated for the daily Toilet Seat award, and tealights for all the girls to light Shabbat candles with. Do you know where you’d need to go to find all of these things in one place? You guessed it! You’d take a trip to Shelton’s very own Walmart because it has everything you could possibly need inside of it. Regardless of the activity or event, we always know that we can find what we need at Walmart. Similarly, Sephardic Adventure Camp is home to anything and everything that a camper could possibly want from a camp experience. We have a huge variety of daily activities including swimming, sports, arts & crafts, hiking, cooking, and photography/media. Campers make new friends each year– some of the same age, and some older or younger– and create meaningful relationships with counselors and other staff alike. And, the SAC environment is one which provides campers with the opportunity to be immersed in Sephardic culture, and enables everyone to learn about our traditions and history in a fun and relaxed way.
So, next time someone asks you what Sephardic Adventure Camp is and why it’s unique, compare it to the Shelton Walmart to help them understand!
Sephardic Adventure Campers: In the Know
1. What is the name of a Seattle synagogue’s Rabbi Emeritus who started SAC way back when?
2. What was the color of the SAC 2013 sweatshirt?
3. At SAC 2014, which Head Staff member famously appeared in munchkin suit for our Despicable Me event?
The first three campers to answer these questions correctly will win a post-Arvit bunk party at SAC 2015!
Sephardic Adventure Questions:
Question: Are my counselors going to be the only staff members I get to know while at camp?
Answer: Absolutely not! You might get to know them the best since you’ll be spending so much time with them, but there are many opportunities to get to know all different kinds of other staff at camp. You’ll get to meet other counselors and specialty staff during daily chugim and activities, and you’ll get to know Head Staff when they visit your bunks, hang out with you at lunch, or participate in activities or sports with you!
Question: Who is going to help me if I get hurt or I’m not feeling well?
Answer: The lovely Tia Barbara, our camp Nurse-and-so-much-more, is there to help! She has her own cabin, just up the hill from the Mess Hall, which is fully stocked with medical equipment and special treats alike. Aside from treating whatever is going on with you, she’ll leave you running down the hill to your next activity with a huge smile on your face from all of her love! Sometimes, even, Sephardic Adventure Campers go to Tia Barbara just to say hi and check in with her.
November’s (very applicable) Ladino Saying: “Me vas a tratar un ayiscrin” — “You are treating me to an ice cream.”
Al vuermos,
Julia Owen
Victor says:
1. Rabbi Maimon
2.Blue
3. Shimra
Hazaka u’vrucha “last Sepharadia..” (Joya)..
I am now savoring the rich metaphor you whipped up. (note for b-1 and g-1 readers a metaphor is like a simile). I say “bravo” because now I can explain to all my friends -the Jambaz’s( who like jumping around in a wacky way) ,the Bovos ( who don’t know much and, who ,strangely, like to eat honey) , the Hadrozos ( always doing show-offy hotdog moves on skateboard or bmx or doing hakamah very high and wide (showing 7 columns…) and especially the kinda dense Timbels (“dunces”) why Camp is great like Wal Mart.
I’ll say ” Just like you can get a tractor at Walmart, you can get one at SAC”. and ” You remember how many Burekas and squares of cuijathu you can get at Walmart? Well, at SAC , you can get TWICE as much”. and ” Just like Walmart shoppers make new friends each year-some the same age, some older etc. Well! the same thing happens at SAC.
Actually, I read your piece kinda quickly so I’ll have to go back and read it again to polish up my presentation. I’m pretty sure it will work and we can expect to see many new Jambaz’es , Bovos, Hadrozos and even timbels at SAC this Summer.
Yay!,
Joha
p.s. I just re-read your post and…. never mind
Hazakim u’vruhim “last Sephardiah”,”Victor” and … even “Joha” (if that really is your name),
I’ll try to “entrar kon boka chika”(= come in with a “small mouth”) even though I usually end up “salir”ing(=going out) “kon boka grande” (=with a big mouth). En otras palavras, (=in other words), I’ll try to keep it short-but I’ll fail.
My family like to shop in Walmart too! WE always say “kita de la boka, mete a la bolsa” (= take it out of your mouth ,put it in the bag (take the money you save on food and put it in your purse). In our familia we are “sca(r)su”(=cheap) and proud of it. ( we do give a good part of our savings to support the really poor.) Sorry for all the (over)explaining but I’ve noticed that Outside of Shelton, if you want people to understand even a little ‘Spanyol” (= Judeo-Spanish, Ladino..) you need to “Dar a entender kon kuchara a la boka”(= give them to understand with a spoon to the mouth).
I’d better finish up here with my boka grande. Two sayings with translations -but no EXPLANATION about what they really mean. people can write in guesses in the comments.
1) La supa tapa la boka (= the soup puts a lid on the mouth)
2)Un bokado,un dukado (= one mouthful,one gold coin)
If “Sephardiah” writes about noses in the future, I’ve got some good sayings up my sleeve.
Ajenu….OUT!
Whoa. Did you say you have a full-on King Salmon bake? This is a surefire way to attract us bovos (It saves us so much trouble trying to catch them in streams with our paws). If you want to attract our Strong friends ,the Leon’s you might need to offer lots of raw, red meat…
On second thought, maybe they belong in Sephardic Safari more than SAC.
I’m thinking of sending my son Bob-Boo Bovo this year. Please send brochures to the forest in Jellystone National Park.
Mr. Bovo
Ya, bovu.” Lonsu” is the word which means “fool” -and bear literally..
From Shimon G.
The answers to the questions are:
1.Rabbi Maimon
2. Blue
3. Shimra