By COLlive reporter
Campers at Camp Gan Israel in Parksville, the founding overnight summer camp for Chabad boys, gathered Wednesday around a tree.
It wasn’t a bonfire or a survival course in the woods.
The tree which stood in the central square of the campground located in New York’s Catskills was an iconic fixture for as long as people can remember.
Nailed to it were direction signs with the signature nicknames pointing to areas in the camp. “Siberia” on the right, “Turkey” and “Texas” on the left.
While it didn’t have navigation to actual points in the camp (where exactly is the “arts & crafts” pointing to?), its creative carvings served as an introduction to the camp’s spirit for new campers and a meeting point for bunks and groups of friends.
Wednesday, as the directors of the camp, Rabbi Abraham Shemtov and Rabbi Yossi Futerfas, were strolling the grounds, they sensed the tree was especially shaky and a staff member leaned on it.
The camp’s GMs (general managers) were called and with a single push the wooden stem fell to the ground, never to be returned, we are told.
While the less sentimental ones remarked “it’s just a tree…” Others standing around watching with curiosity stated it was “the end of an era.”
i am a camper i was 6! it was a really sad moment
the tree was a sign with weird stuff and with stuff in camp debra is were certain staff and other people sleep
there is obviously a reason they took it down, it was infested!!
Just read rabbi dovvis book on healthy trees and you will see that an unheakthy tree is impossibke to replace. better luck next time.
i knew i shud look here to see comments about hammer jack and texas. did mendy put up that sign?!!! go mendy!!
are
they crying it only a tree
NO FEELINGS FOR HASHEM’S CREATIONS POOR TREE SUFFERD SO MUCH THROUGH ALL THESE YEARS! MAY HE REST IN PEACE! THEY HAVE TO LEARN TO RESPECT TREES AND ALL OF NATURE!!
I was there when it happened it was defenetly a very tragic moment
BDE
I am mourning the loss of such a great tree that’s been etched in my mind all these years.
Please make a memorial plaque dedicated in the honor of such a great tree.
I will truly miss you
A camper and friend of 5 years
so the tree was basically decor?? why dont they fix it?? what on earth does “siberia” mean? CONFUSION!!!
whats the debra one??
Glad to see some lite relief at such a gloomy time.
The arts and crafts sign was facing the direction near turkey, where the A & C is (unless it changed).
Will they make a ceremony, like they did when shmaryonke the first was taken down?
This tree has been sufering for many year from all the rusted nails which where “NAILED” in order to intertain the kids, it is a shame the people in charge did not have the proper knowledge to secure the signs with a wide variety of other options.
FUN ALTZ LERNTMEN ZICH
we will miss the texas sign
oi vey
That tree meant allot
When the Texas sign was added.
Hammer jack forever
better to take it down before it falls and causes injury, chas v’sholom.