Annual Tzedakah Report - Camp Ramah

LETTER FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Dear Chaverim,
The Talmud teaches, “Tzedakah equals all the other mitzvot” (Baba Batra9a). How can this be?
Because through tzedakah, the other mitzvot become possible. In 2005, so many mitzvot became
possible through your generosity. The whole of this first annual Camp Ramah in California Tzedakah
Report is intended to express a Kol HaKavod to each and every one of you. Here are just a few
examples of the mitzvot your tzedakah helped make possible:
In 2005, Camp Ramah in California received a gift from Dr. David Braun in memory of his dear wife,
Sherri (z”l), to build a half-million dollar solar installation. The Torah tells us “God took Adam and
placed him in the Garden of Eden to work it and guard it.” Through David Braun’s gift, generations of
Ramah’niks will learn to fulfill that vision by making our camp the first major summer camp and, to
my knowledge, the first major Jewish institution to invest in a green energy source for a better world.
The Salkin family helped us to build a Gesher tree house and trail where kids will fall in love with
nature and learn to sing, “!v-h lagn uksd vn. How great are your works God!” as the Psalmist did.
The Deutch, Kurland and Weiner families helped us build a Friendship Circle in the girls’ tent area
where campers will learn “to love your neighbor as yourself.”
Dr. Herman Kaye made a gift in memory of his beloved wife, Dolores (z”l), to create plans for adding
a second story for adult housing to the Dr. Herman H. Kaye Infirmary.
Leadership gifts of generous annual operating support of camp through the Annual Giving
Campaign were made by David Braun, the Schneider Family and Marilyn Ziering, augmenting the
gifts made by so many others.
The Farber, Goodglick, Levine, and Meskin families, along with the LA Jewish Federation, brought
children from the Baltic States and the former Soviet Union to Ramah so those campers could return
to their home countries with a love of the Jewish people and a deepened understanding of Torah and
Conservative Judaism.
Rabbi Elliot and Marlynn Dorff and the Wolens families from Los Angeles, Dallas and London
sponsored students from the University of Judaism to come to camp to teach Torah and to learn how
to bring the magic of Ramah back into synagogues and schools around the country.
Continued on next page
2005 Expenses
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