Alumni Memories
The year was about 1985, and Rabbi Kushner had recruited some twenty kids from Mexico for Moshava. They had arrived with a translator. Friday afternoon, I had just finished jogging,and was about to enter the doctor’s trailer to get ready for Shabbos, when Moish ran over (from his neighboring trailer) and said:”I put one of the Mexican kids on your bed, he’s had a stomach-ache all day”.
I went inside, to find a 12-year-old writhing in pain on my bed-with no translator, and my Spanish in nil. Examination revealed the boy needed immediate medical attention that the camp could not provide. I ran to Moish and told him that we had to go to Oshkosh Hospital quick, before Shabbos. When we got there, there was a sign at the entrance:”On-call Doctor, Pedro Gonzalez”. I told him :”Great, at least you can speak Spanish with the kid”. He laughed:”You’re from the Jewish camp, what do you need Spanish-translation for;you need someone who speaks Hebrew!”.
In any case, he said that Oshkosh couldn’t help us, we needed the facilities in Nina. We drove like crazy back to the camp, and while Moish filled his old station-wagon with food for two for Shabbos, I ran to find long-time nurse Rosalie Novick. She and I looked up the kid’s medical records, and to our horror, Joseph Goldberg’s parents hadn’t signed the medical authorization. We called them in Mexico City, and told them to call Nina.
Then Moish sped off, with only one hour till the real time of Shabbos. I didn’t hear from Moish after Shabbos, and it wasn’t till Sunday afternoon that Moish showed up again. His speeding had attracted Wisconsin’s finest, but when they pulled Moish over and found out the reason that he was speeding, the state-trooper escorted “The Rabbi” to Nina’s Hospital. There, Joseph had surgery and was OK. But Shabbos morning Moish got a shock when two sets of “parents” showed up. It turns out that I hadn’t noticed that we had two Joseph Goldberg’s from Mexico City, first-cousins named after the same grandfather. Min Hashamayim,by pure luck, I had called the right set of parents. But they weren’t sure that I had called the right parents, so, scared over the boy’s fate, all four of them flew up Friday. Landing at O’Hare,they all took a cab(for the then exorbitant price of $450) to Nina,Wisconsin. With Joseph OK,they all spent a nice Shabbos till the long afternoon.
Moish shared his Shabbos meal with them, but he had packed only food for two, not five(Joseph was in no shape to eat). Moish quickly ran out of food, and in the long afternoon, became dizzy and told the nurses about it: so they admitted Moish and kept HIM overnight. I don’t know the moral of this story, except to say that Moshava must be so much fun that a kid will suffer pain all day and, of course, not go to the doctor till an hour before Shabbos(which,thank G-d, is on Moshava Time, and one hour early).
Larry Hirsch
Chanich Years: 1961-1965
Tzevet Years: 1979-1989,2006
Tafkidim Held: Doctor
My favorite Moshava memory is talking to the nurse in Wildrose Memorial Hospital. She was trying to make me relax after a severe asthma attack, so she told me: “Don’t worry, you’re being taken care of by a very good doctor. He delivered me.” I may have been mistaken, but I was reasonably sure that she was in her mid forties or older. Needless to say, I immediately began to worry …
Larry Rublin
Chanich Years: 1971,72,73,75,76,77
Tzevet Years: 1979
Tafkidim Held: Radio guy
My favorite Moshava memory is singing in the Chadar Ochel on Shabbat.
Shari Feifel
Chanich Years: 1970s
Tzevet Years: 1982
My favorite Moshava memory is Seuda Shlishit every Shabbat at camp.
Ricky Fleischer
Chanich Years: 84, 86-89
Tzevet Years: 90-92
Tafkidim Held: Madrich, 1st & 2nd period and Avoda
One of my favorite memories is staying up all night the last night of Machal and Mach Hach helping to paint the Shelet.
Another favorite memory is Mifkad on Erev Shabbat when everyone was dressed in Kachol V’lavan and we sang the Shir HaMoshava and Hatikva.
Finally. a good Ash Laila was always fun especially when the Shaliach would get lost!
Margaret “Novick” Matanky
Chanich Years: 68,69,70,71,72,73,74,75
Tzevet Years: 76,77,78,79,81,etc.2009
Tafkidim Held: madricha Machal, Rosh Mosh’s secretary
My favorite Moshava memory was meeting new people.
Ilene Cutler
Chanich Years: 1977
My favorite Moshava memory is laughing into the microphone to wake up the camp.
Stewart Kety
Chanich Years: 1972-73
My favorite Moshava memories were late night BBQs and golf cart rides.
Daniel Bornstein
Chanich Years: 96 -’01
Tzevet Years: 02 – ’06
Tafkidim Held: MIT, Madrich, Kollel, Madrich Machal, Madrich Mach Hach, Rosh Mach
My favorite Moshava memories are Avodah, kabbalat shabbat, and cookies and milk.
Ronnie Schaechter
Chanich Years: 3
Tzevet Years: 3
My favorite Moshava memories are night tochnits like “capture the flag”.
Robert Render
Chanich Years: 1968
My favorite Moshava memory was meeting kids from other cities.
Judy Kershner
Chanich Years: 1968-1974, 1979
Tzevet Years: 1974-1979
Tafkidim Held: Madricha, waterfront
My favorite Moshava memory is getting off the bus and seeing all my friends and making new ones.
Melissa Lustman
Chanich Years: 2007-2011
Every day spent at moshava was a special memory. too many to mention
David Maeir
Tafkidim Held: driver, madrich avodah, madrich for kids
My favorite Moshava memory is teaching a new song at EVERY MEAL for 3 weeks.
Levy Van Leeuwen
Chanich Years: 2
Tzevet Years: 9
Tafkidim Held: Madrich,Lifeguard
My favorite Moshava memories are playing capture the flag and telling stories around the campfire.
Chana Kovalsky
Chanich Years: 1950, 1951
My favorite Moshava memory is Shabbat!
Jordan Lustman
Chanich Years: 2007-2010
My favorite Moshava memory was being a chanicha surrounded by great friends and nature.
Faigie Deri
Chanich Years: 1977
Tzevet Years: 1983
Tafkidim Held: sports madricha
My favorite Moshava memory is Mifkad on Erev Shabbat.
Don Kates
Chanich Years: 1959-1964
Tzevet Years: 1965, 1967-70, 1973-74
Tafkidim Held: Madrich, Rosh Avoda, Rosh Mach . Rosh Moshava
I loved all the friends I made. Being Machal was the best summer. There are so many great memories, I cannot single one out right now!
Dikla Weitzner
Chanich Years: 1991-1995
My favorite Moshava memory is “pass the stew”.
Ozer Katz
Chanich Years: 1990 – 1996
Tzevet Years: 1997 – 1999, 2001
Tafkidim Held: Madrich, Shekem, Madrich Avodah, Rosh Avodah
Our favorite memory of Moshava is meeting each other on our machal golan 1975
Yogi and Shu Rimel
Chanich Years: 1969-1977
Tzevet Years: 1978-1981
Tafkidim Held: madrich machal, Madricha Machah, Avoda, truck driver, madrich machach
It was July 4, 1978 at supper time, when nature called… So I left the Chadar Ochel because the bathrooms were located in a building outside of the Chadar Ochel (is it still like that?). Anyway, I came back to an empty Chadar Ochel and empty campsite. No one was anywhere to be found. I was 10 years old and really nervous. Finally, someone from the Tzevet drove by (can’t remember who) and took me up the hill to Machal where all the campers had been “kidnapped” for a reinactment of the Entebbe hijacking/hostage taking.I was probably the only “hostage” in history who was thankful to my “captors”.
Cindy Kline
Chanicha, 1978,1980,1982
I had lots of fun during the three summers I went to camp and enjoyed making new friends – but the most memorable moment was when my parents came to pick me and my sister Elana up from camp a week early in order to put all of those Zionistic ideals into action by going straight to the airport to make Aliyah!
Uri Bank
Chanich, 1978-1980
How do you pick a single memory? There are so many, driving the truck and tractor around back when chanichim were allowed to ride in the back of the truck. Doing Garbage run, the intercamp years. The memory that still follows me today actually is one from the Wild Rose dump. For many years on of the things I did at camp, amoung the many others, was garbage run and going to the dump. One year, the guy that ran the dump left me a message, which anyone that went to the dump that year still mentions to me from time to time. The message painted on a large piece of wood was “lesl dump here.” Avodah that year learned that it was important where in the dump we dumped the garbage.
Leslie Brody
Tzevet, 1985-1990
Tafkidim Held: Rosh Avodah, Rosh Mitbach, Truck Driver, all of the above at once.
Campers detecting me, screaming “I want to see you OH-HO!”.
This One time we were sailing in the Wisconsin Dells river, and we made a “Don’t laugh during the “Bap-Bap-Shu-Bap”” contest.
After that, 2 girl campers made up new versions of the “I want to see you OH-HO!” and we stormed through the boat yelling it.
Ariel Weiss
Tzevet, 2010
Besides for Kabbalat Shabbat of course, my favorite Moshava memory was when several different machanot throught WI, regardless of their religious affiliation, came to Moshava for a rally in support of Gush Katif. So powrful!
Sarah Robinson
Chanicha, 2005-2007
Attending Farmer Jo’s funeral with Rabbi Shandalov giving a hesped.
The tremendous “garbage runs” with some really crazy guys.
The life long educational tool of how to fix toilets.
Working with Steve Benson and believing why he was missing part of his finger.
Chaim (Larry) Horn
Chanich, 1966-68; Tzevet, 1968-1973
Tafkidim Held: Avodah, Madrich, Rosh Machal 72+73
Meeting good friends like Amy Goldstein, Sheila Jelen, Norm Revsine, Bennett Shwartz, Udi Rosenblum! I LOVED my counselers – especially Sari Wachs! I wonder what happened to her – she lived in Toronto I think? Anyway – the friends I made at camp made it possible for me to go to Ida Crown for high school as an out of towner!
Rena Durn
Chanicha, 1982-1985
When I came back to my kfutza at about 10pm and all 9 of my 9 year olds were crying because a bug bit one of them “in the eye”. I never saw such a sight as this one. They were pretty funny! I loved being a madricha, and would love if any of my girls got in touch with me.
My friends and acquaintances are the best memories of all. I’ll never forget the fun we had, and the bonds we made.
Cara Ernstein
Tzevet, 1984
The most inspirational memory is of the remember the inspiring “spiritual seudat shlishit” with the darkness encroaching, the songs, and “the story”.
I remember rushing to get to “mifkad” in the alloted 3 minutes; once I felt woozy and asked the girl near me if I could rest on her shoulder; the next thing I knew was that I had fainted on the big white gravel stones, but it felt like a feather bed.
I also remember feeling such regret when Moshava decided to eliminate the tents for the cabins. I loved the tents!
I remember dressing in white for Shabbat, the Friday night walks. the “eclipse” of the sun and the ensuing tiyul. I just remember loving all of it!
Esther Friedman-Samber
Chanicha, 1949-1950, 1955
Tzevet Years: 1957
Tafkidim Held: Madricha
Sugar cookies on shabbes from a bakery in South Bend, riding on the camp truck driven by Yossi Schechter,Shabbes benching and singing, Marshall Kaplan telling the story of Bonshe Shveig around a medura(campfire), learning to make our beds with perfect hospital corners(our clothes sat in a trunk on the floor next to our beds in our primative tents) and following Mordy Swimmer’s “Amod-dom, Amod Noach” commands every morning at the beginning of the day’s activities. Met new friends from other cities. These were two memorable years.
Sema Menora
Chanicha, 1949-1950
Planning activities to ‘surprise’ our Madricha. Getting to know new campers. The singinig at a “spiritual” level. Getting to the lake for swimming in back of the truck. Mrs. Siegel, Fleishig taffy apples, (Yum). Learning new songs and song contests. Tisha B’Av, late at night, after Aicha, sitting in front of the Medura.
Sarah Leah Saffir
Chanicha, 1951-1954
I don’t remember one thing in particular, other than I loved being a camper the first years then Machach and Seminar—I loved it all!!
I was in Shevet Nachshon.
Giselle Harlap
Chanicha, 1963-1966
Tzevet Years: 1966-1967
Tafkidim Held: arts&crafts/lifeguard/madricha
I had a great time meeting new friends from other places other than Chicago. Also the Shabbos strolls with friends were nice. I remember being about 12or 13 going to Moshava. Wild Rose was great. The cabins were nice but the showers were awful. I am very glad my children loved camp and now my grandchildren are loving it. Thanks for a great time
Vivian Morgenstern
So many. Winning the Maccabia, the smell of wet grass after a storm, the Tisha B’av staff/chanich baseball game, Rabbi Shandalov’e bike on the top of the migdal, Seudah shlishit slow shira, the omega, ataff bowling night in Wild Rose, etc, etc, etc.
Ozzie Samuels
Chanich, 1963-65; Tzevet, 1969-73
Tafkidim Held: Madrich, Sgan Rosh Mosh (73)
It was first time that I coming from the South had been with such aliya minded “chevra”…remember the constant conversations with certain friends about visiting and living in Israel…a big influence on my living here today!
Debbie Dan
Chanicha, 1964-1965; Tzevet, 1968
Shabbat, Moish Kushner being my Rosh Mosh and singing, “Michael Row Your Boat Ashore” around a medurah, walking up the hill to Mach Hach after ghost stories downstairs, and getting to know Debbie.
Lori Lennon
Chanicha, 1967-1972
The Rosh Mosh calling my father telling him not to send me back to camp. Then my father had to beg them to take me back
Jeffrey Goffstein
Chanich, 1971-1973
My favorite memory from camp moshava is all the friends that I made while at camp but the shabbat cookies would be a very close 2nd
Oneg Plisner
Chanich, 2000s
shabbat, mifkad, milechad yad, learning on shabbat afternoon, bond fires for tesh ba’av, and machane chutz.
most of all friendships and FUN
Tamar Fleischer
Chanicha, 1980s
In 1995, when I was 12 years old, I headed to Moshava for the first time. I was nervous as I got off the bus; I had been there before to visit my brothers, but I had never gone without my parents. I was in a kvutzah with some friends from Chicago and new people from Minnesota and Phoenix. I was relieved when I found out that my madrich was Avi Karesh because our families were friends.
Soon after we had unpacked it began to pour, the likes of which I had never seen before, but I soon found that this was a good thing, as I went outside with some friends who had been to camp before. We went slip n’ sliding on the grass, down various hills around camp – they called it mudsliding.
After I had finished mudsliding and changed into dry clothes, I wrote a letter home to my parents.
“Dear Mom,” the letter said, “I’m coming back here next year and for the rest of my life. I love it.”
I’ve stayed true to my word; over the past 15 summers I have spent 23 months at Moshava as a chanich and tzevet member and haven’t missed a summer and don’t plan on missing one anytime soon.
Daniel Kroll
Chanich, 1995-2000; Tzevet, 2001-Present
Tafkidim Held: Madrich, Madrich Machal, Madrich Mach Hach, Rosh Eidah, Kollel Member, Rosh MIT, Rosh Kollel, Rosh Moshava, Rosh Machal
I loved the physical camp. I loved being there.
I never wanted to go home when camp was concluded! It was a wonderful part of my childhood.
I loved going up on the train!
I loved the songs and the enthusiasm of the camp. I loved looking out the windows of the Beit Kenesset while davening. A four star experience of the 6 weeks I was there. (Two, three periods!)
Charlotte Kaplan
Chanicha, 1960-1964
One of my favorite memories from Moshava was singing on shabbos. I also remember playing capture the flag as a night activity and I layed in the grass cause I was so scared someone would find me from the other side.
Esther Zukowsky
Chanicha, 1964-1965
My Moshava memory is that ….
It was last year when it was a hot day and it all started when my amazing counselor Hartley Schwartz started a huge water fight. This water fight lasted from after mincha till around an hour befour dinner. This was a crazy water fight because it started with only B6 aka my bunk and ended up to almost all the boys. It was also special because the israelies got involved and started tackling us and making everything muddy.
Aviel Golbari
Chanich, 2009 – 2011
Our favorite Moshava memories are:
corn bread
MF – who remembers what that is???
capture the flag
canoe trips
A&W root beer in Wautoma
long tiyulim
omega – “kfotz!”
being “Upstairs”
paying for your melted ice cream with your taktziv
the coldest milk and greatest cookies between shacharit and musaf on shabbat
yedid nefesh in the outdoor beit knesset upstairs in kabbalat shabbat
ash lailah
the red moshavah truck
Uri and Shelli Karzen
Chanichim, 1970s
Having outstanding madrichim such as Prof. Zev Lev A”H, Rabbi Dov Leibenstein and Rabbi Josh Levinson A”H. Living in tents and having the tent collapse on you and being rained upon. Going on overnight hikes and getting lost. Establishing friendships that have lasted a lifetime.
Returning to be camp doctor from 1967-1993. Seeing my children and grandchidren so active in Camp Moshava.
Oscar “Osher” Novick
Chanich Years: 1944-47; Tzevet Years: 1948-1952
Tafkidim Held: Madrich
When I think back to the many years I spent in camp as a young child through my teenager years, I recall many water fights until the wee hours of the morning, maccabia, bunk night skits & a special love for Shabbat from the davening and singing at Kabbalat Shabbat continuing all day and culminating with slow shira at seuda shilishit and havdalah. The friends I met at camp from different cities gave us yet one more thing to look forward to as we went back to camp each summer. Throughout the school year, we all discussed our memories of camp and counted the days until camp would start again. As a young parent, I felt strongly about sending my children to camp since, for me, it solidified the lessons learned at school with a “hands-on” experience and a large dose of fun.
My memory includes Rabbi Moshe Kushner, former Director of Moshava. I was a young girl at the time and Rabbi Kushner was my shiur teacher. He was teaching us the law of tevillat keilim. One morning he asked the group to meet him at the chadar ochel. There, we were each given a pot and then followed Rabbi Kushner to the lake. By the time we realized why were rowing through “Leech Lake” with pots in our hands, Rabbi Kushner said repeat after me, “baruch atah Hashem…” Just as he finished the “…al tevilat keilim,” He dipped his hand into the lake in order to immerse the pot in water and then gestured to us to do the same.
His instructions echoed in my head Place your pot into the water, let go of it for a split second and then quickly grab it out of the water. I watched as all of the other girls run through the motions as I scurried to do the same. I remembered the lake’s namesake and cringed at the thought of leeches so as I let go of the pot for that split second, I was afraid to put my hand back in the lake and let my pot sink to the bottom of the water.
When the camp recently cleaned out Leech Lake, I secretly wondered if they found my corroded pot.
Shayna Schechter
Past Assistant Director, Camp Moshava of Wild Rose, WI
Chanicha 1963-1971; Madricha 1972; Adult Staff 1992-2010
I will always remember the Tzevet-Chanichim baseball game that I hit a homerun. The 3 or 4 guys who were up before me each hit a deep home run. I was a sports madrich that month and I didn’t want to be embarrassed and break the streak of home runs. I aimed for right field and luckily the ball went that way and rolled down the road and into the valley. It rolled far enough for me to go all around the bases, so it was a home run and I got to keep the streak and my dignity intact.
Another favorite memory of mine is on the night of Tisha B’Av when all the chanichim and tzevet were gathered at the ampitheater. I got there a few minutes late and I was on the outer edge of the crowd. Someone was speaking about Tisha B’ Av and the destruction of the Beit Hamikdash, but it was spoken in such a polished and professional way that I thought for sure that I was listening to a taped speach. I was truly spellbound by the speaker. It was only later when the crowd disbursed that I found out that it was not a tape, but it was Rabbi Don Well, Avoda’s shiur teacher. I will always remember that speach he gave..
David Pelzner
Past Director, Camp Moshava of Wild Rose, WI
Chanich 1967-1971; Madrich 1972,1974,1976
Hello Everyone,
This is Alum Rivkie Esformes (now Rivkie Lafer) writing to you one of my favorite Moshava memories. When I think of Moshava and all the years I spent at camp (1984-1989), this (and of course hundreds of others) pop into my head.
This memory is from my time on Avodah. Nothing, I mean nothing, beat the nights our Rosh Avodah, Steven Kirshner, cleared out the entire Chadar Ochel for a mean game of floor hockey back in the days before the camp had its own outdoor hockey rink. You were always guaranteed a win if Steven was on your team.
Now that my sons goes to Moshava, I can only hope it brings them the same kind of happiness my days at camp brought me. I hope they come away with as many loving memories and lifelong friendships that I have.
P.S. I can still crochet a kippah…thanks to Jordan Gorfinkel!!!
Rivkie (Esformes) Lafer
Chair Camp Moshava Comittee
It is hard to have a single favorite memory from my years at Moshava – since those years span a lifetime.
However, among my earliest memories was my first year at Moshava. Rabbi Moshe Kushner was Rosh Mosh and Rabbi Chaim (Irwin) Pollack was sgan. My madrich was Ozzie Samuels (now Oz Ben Shalom) and that year because of timing we didn’t have a maccabia. Instead we had a “Yom Korach” where the chanichim took over the camp.
I was selected to be the madrich of our kvutza and had the great privilege of entering the chadar madrichim and even getting some bug juice from the machine that was all normally off-limits to chanichim. The rest of the details of that day are a bit fuzzy – but I do remember that Moishe successfully regained his position by performing a “miracle” – he poured water over wood and yet with a single match the wood caught fire. It was truly amazing (despite the fact that the water he used smelled suspiciously like gasoline!).
Rabbi Dr. Leonard Matanky
Chanich 1969-1975; Tzevet 1976-Present;
I have many great memories of my summers at camp. The most long lasting memory is that I met my future husband there. I was on Avodah and Brad was the Rosh Mitbach. Don’t worry- We were only friends then and did not start dating until I got back from my year in Israel!!!
Being on the “Hill” for Machal was also amazing. I loved the 3 day chutz that included 1 day bike riding and 1 day canoeing. So far 3 of my children have gone on Machal and have done pretty much the same exact trip. It is amazing to them when I talk about biking through the “tunnel”- that they biked through the exact same tunnel many years later!!!!From their stories they had as much fun as I had (not) so long ago!! I have a daughter who will be on the hill this summer and I look forward to reminiscing with her about the trip too!!!
Beth (Geller) Alter
Chanicha 1974-1981; Tzevet 1982-1983
