Like many families, the Toy Story franchise has been a part of our lives for many years. Buzz, Woody, Jessie, Slinky-Dog, and the rest of the “Toys” have been frequent participants in our play time, jokes, Purim and Halloween costumes, and mantras about friends sticking together. It was no surprise to us that Tech would be the theme of the latest Toy Story movie. It has invaded our house with its buttons, beeps, and endless videos.

Tech has become a required part of our lives. It is everywhere. From serving as our alarm clocks to streaming our favorite music to keeping us up to date with the latest news alerts, tech is an essential part of our lives. It is required for work and school assignments and is always available for phone calls or video chats with friends and family. It is an instant encyclopedia for dinner-table debates and a fact-checker for trivia contests. It is hard to imagine that we ever survived without it.

Then, summer sneaks up on us, and it is time for camp. The gigantic packing list is squeezed into duffel bags with all the required items for a summer away from home. The exception is tech. There is no tech allowed at most Jewish summer camps. A digital camera can be brought to capture memories, but there is no phone, no internet, no social media. How will a child survive?

The first time our child attended sleep-away camp, she went with a friend from our synagogue. This was reassuring to her and to us because we knew she already had one friend. Jewish camp is filled with intention and purpose. Every activity is designed to build community and welcome one another. That single friendship quickly grew to include their entire cabin and beyond. They talked, danced, laughed, sang, and created living memories. No tech required.

Jewish camp has been a special tech-free space where our child has grown and lived Jewish values in a way no other space can provide. It is a place where campers can be authentically themselves and embrace their Judaism to the fullest extent they desire. There is no tech to guide them and no screens to hide behind. If campers want to communicate with home, they must put pen to paper and write an actual letter, complete with a stamp.

As our child has grown, the time she spends at camp each year has increased from two weeks to eight. Camp is her other home and a space that has inspired her to learn and grow. She has developed friendships that will last a lifetime. Camp has given her a strong sense of who she wants to be and how to use her Jewish identity to improve the world around her.

Our Jewish Federation is a proud to offer One Happy Camper to our community. This program provides grants to help families send their first-time campers to a Jewish sleepaway camp. If you know a child who would like to attend Jewish camp, or would like to support our effort in ensuring every Jewish child in our community can attend, contact our Jewish Federation office or visit the website for details.

This is the last year our child will be a camper. She has reached the oldest age group, and while she may return in the future as a counselor, her years as a tech-free camper are gone. This year, her letters home have gotten longer and more detailed. These letters are some of our most prized possessions - descriptions of a time our child will never be able to recreate. Like the toys in Toy Story, we have watched our child grow up, and we will soon watch her walk away from childhood. But thanks to our Jewish communities and camps, she will hold on to the friendships she has made and carry Jewish values… to infinity and beyond.