Needs Assessment

Since URJ summer camps have long sessions and function as sleepaway, the fees are high. Some parents cannot safely spare the money to pay for the entire session. In addition to the cost of the camp itself, parents often need to purchase new clothes or items for their children before they go to camp, such as sunscreen, bug spray, toiletries etc. The camp shopping costs are especially high on the parents of first-time campers, who must buy reusable items such as sleeping bags and fans.

Scholarships are available for URJ camps, but Sinai Temple is located far enough away from all of them that area scholarships do not apply. Sinai Temple does have scholarships for summer camp, but they only cover a fraction of the cost. Grants through the Foundation for Jewish Camp are available, but they are usually for first or second year campers, while grants for returning children give minimal help.

In order for URJ summer camps to have the maximum effect, it is important for children to return multiple times -- especially after their Bar/Bat Mitzvahs. There is currently a huge problem in Jewish communities all over the country, where children stop attending synagogue services or event after their bar/bat mitzvahs. Sinai Temple suffers from this phenomenon as well; the Bnei Mitzavah class of 2012 numbered thirteen students, while the Confirmation class of that same grade numbered three students. Studies by the Pew Research Center show that children who went to Jewish summer camp are far more likely to remain active in the community as they grow up. Former campers get involved with and lead their youth groups, become assistant teachers in their Hebrew schools, and are active in the Jewish community when they go to college

Executive Summary

Champaign Urbana Temple Youth (CUTY) works to connect Jewish teenagers from the East Central Illinois area, and is part of Sinai Temple. CUTY works to create educational, religious, community, and social programs. CUTY also provides opportunities to learn leadership skills, as it is led by a youth board which holds yearly elections. CUTY also travels to regional North American Federation of Temple Youth (NFTY) events. Teenagers involved in a Jewish youth group often develop a strong sense of Jewish identity and a connection with their community.  

But only so many CUTY events can take place during the busy school year, and in the summer the kids and staff travel. Studies from the Pew Research Center in DC show that the strongest contributor to a sense of Jewish identity and connection is Jewish summer camp, which perfectly fills the time between school years.

Union for Reform Judaism summer camps aim to:

• Enrich the lives of Jewish youth lives by strengthening their sense of identity
• Give a broad Jewish education and illustrate Reform values
• Cultivate lifelong friendships and teach leaderships skills

The goals of URJ summer camps are essentially the same as those of CUTY. Most URJ summer camps are sleepaway, and can last between two weeks to two months. Thus they are expensive, on average $3,000 for a one month session.

In light of these costs, Champaign Urbana Temple Youth requests the Robert & Toni Bader Charitable Foundation to consider a grant of $15,000 to fund scholarships for the youth of Sinai Temple that will enrich their lives and strengthen their Jewish identity.

Editorial: Give Dandelions A Chance

Hundreds of potential salads are waiting for us. In our public parks, in our backyards, and probably right beneath the windows of this classroom. You all know the flower: Taraxacum officinale, or the common dandelion. Yet familiar as they are, I know many people who strongly dislike dandelions. They classify the flower as a weed. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, a ‘weed’ is:” A[n] herbaceous plant not valued for use or beauty, growing wild and rank, and regarded as cumbering the ground or hindering the growth of superior vegetation.”

While it’s definitely true that dandelions are widespread and grow wildly, I would like to remind everyone that they are strikingly beautiful, fragrant, and soft. Dandelions’ classification as a weed rests mainly on the biology of their growth pattern, which leads them to open/disturbed soil, which is usually found in areas inhabited by people.

The negative attitude towards dandelions is actually very recent, arising in the 20th century. The ancient Greeks ate dandelions, and the flower was used in traditional Chinese medicine. In Medieval Europe, people loved dandelions and removed grass from their lawns to give the room to grow. The pilgrims brought dandelions to America on the Mayflower; likely as a foodstuff and medicine.

The dandelion’s rumored medicinal benefits have recently been proven by numerous modern scientific studies. The plant has many nutrients, and the leaves are full of antioxidants which help protect the cardiovascular system. Most notably, dandelions helped the liver function, reduced insulin levels, and stimulated fat metabolization in mice.

In Europe, dandelions were prescribed for almost all ailments as a kind of catch-all. The plant was so popular because of its commonality, and gentle chemical nature. In short, it acts as a diuretic to clear the body of toxins, provides nourishment, and helps the digestive system function efficiently. In fact, dandelions have more nutrition than many common garden vegetables; more vitamin A than spinach, more vitamin C than tomatoes. The range of ailments they are reported to have cured is astonishing; dandruff, baldness, sores, toothache, fevers, rotting gums, lethargy, weakness, and depression. It was only in the 20th century that people discovered the underlying cause of much of these problems: vitamin deficiencies.

Now that we know the dandelion has practical benefits, why did attitudes about their character change so suddenly? Originally, dandelions were praised for their beauty, and there are hundreds of folk traditions and myths involving the puffy seeds. In Europe people used to write poems for the flower. The “war on dandelions” came with the rise in popularity of a closely cropped, uniformly green front lawn, often used as a status symbol. The practice of lawn maintenance has its roots with the aristocracy, who used to be the only people rich enough to pay someone else to clear their yard with a scythe. After World War II and with the rise of the suburbs, many Americans were moving into their own homes, with their own yards. Naturally they wanted to impress their neighbors, and lawns seemed to be the way to go.

Unfortunately, dandelions are attracted to areas with open or recently disturbed soil – almost the definition of a lawn. They are tough plants which grow quickly, produce a lot of seeds, are impossible to get rid of, and largely got in the way of the perfect lawn or flowerscape. I think the dandelion’s interference with lawns and landscaping in general is largely what got them such a negative reputation.
Nevertheless, I really appreciate dandelions and think we should re-evaluate our stance on them. Just because they are common doesn't make them any less wonderful -- take the sun, for example. Dandelions are gorgeous flowers just as much as the rose, and they don't even have thorns. Besides their beauty, dandelions can have medicinal benefits, and who isn't up for free salad? Think it over.