Camp Tours Israel Despite War

By Camp YTT

Camp YTT – Swerdlov for High School girls recently returned from a triumphant tour of Israel – despite the war and rocket attacks from Hamas.

It’s not easy to put such a miraculous summer into words.

It started with the warmest hospitality of Rabbi and Rebbetzin Berel Lazar in Moscow. We were treated like family, all 51 campers and staff.

The city of Lubavitch was totally inspiring. Seeing the Davening on Shabbos at Marina Roscha was a testimony to how the Rebbe has changed the world.

But the BIG miracle was when we realized that there was WAR on in Israel, and we didn’t know what to do.

We asked Rabbi Lazar and he told us the Rebbe’s stand, “Eretz asher aynei HASHEM ELOKECHA BA MIREISHIS HASHONO V’AD ACHARIS SHONO.”

It was a GO.

We acted on it immediately. We wrote to all the parents to ask for permission, they are ultimately responsible for their daughters. Within a few hours, EVERY PARENT AGREED TO SEND THEIR DAUGHTER on the strength of the Rebbe’s words.

Wow.

Rabbi Lazar said it would be a kiddush Hashem, and it was.

Hashem said it. The Rebbe quoted it. The parents believed in it. And the girls lived it.

Everywhere we went, people were shocked that we didn’t cancel. Tour guides, hotels, sites of interest, people on the street…everyone was shocked.

Most other trips were totally cancelled or were much smaller than planned.

But when the girls PROUDLY proclaimed “ANACHNU CHABAD” everyone smiled and applauded.

Rabbi Lazar was right.

It was an incredible kiddush Hashem and kiddush Lubavitch.

The girls were great.
The counselors were amazing.
The spirit. The attitude.
The pride.

We BH had only one change in the program. The shliach of the Gush Katif unsettled came to us instead of us going to Nitzan. That’s all. We even went to Chevron for Shabbos!

What an incredible summer.