FAQ ABOUT CAMP AISH

For questions concerning Aish Mesivta please email [email protected]

Our dates are Thursday July 20th – Tuesday August 15th.

Camp Aish is located in Woodburne NY on the Campus of Camp Oraysa (Darchei Torah). We have exclusive rights to the campus which includes a beautiful bais medrash, gorgeous gym, brand new baseball fields and outdoor basketball courts, brand new bunk houses, a pool (with lights) and access to the camp lake. 

We are aiming to be a Camp for Bnei Torah who want to have a blast in the summer but at the same time will grow from their experience in camp. There will be an expectation from all our campers and staff that being part of Camp Aish means that you act like a ben torah from the moment you wake up till the moment you go to sleep. This means the way you dress for davening, for learning, the songs you sing, the way you react when you lose , and perhaps  even more importantly, the way you react when you win. Our Campers will be from yeshivos in the tri state area and many from out of town throughout the country. 

We will be a small camp (there are around  250 beds for Camp Aish campers and another 120 for Aish Mesivta) which allows us to  focus on the needs of the Rabim and the Yachid. 

In addition, in order to help ensure that the ruach and atmosphere of camp is consistent with our standards, we will not be allowing any phones, any video games, or video capable devices in camp. We will have protocols and standards in place so that the emphasis in camp is not on the external (no private fridges, private grills, etc… we will provide a fridge for every bunk). 

Our learning program will be a mix of shiur in the morning (between 1.5 and 2 hours), a short night seder toward the evening, and some other voluntary/incentivized programs throughout the day (Coco club, hasmadah track, shabbos afternoon programs…) . We feel that while it is important in the summer that the boys maintain the skills that they learned during the year, at the same time having the boys choose to learn on their own time can be even more productive. 

We are excited that Rabbi Pinny Fishelis has agreed to be our Learning Director. Rabbi Fishelis, a 5th grade rebbe at YSV of Monsey, is a super star Mechanech who is incredibly devoted to helping each and every Talmud. 

One of the advantages of being a “second half” camp is that we are able to use  bais medrash  bochurim who are real Bnei Torah and Bnei Aliyah as counselors. These are Mature, responsible bochurim who are  interested in giving of themselves for the camp and campers.

While Aish Mesivta will be its own division and have its own schedule, The hashpa’ah of having serious yet normal and fun yeshiva bochurim in camp who are learning the whole morning, as role models for the younger boys,  is an incredible opportunity. Whether it  be learning together , singing zemiros, or dancing at a melava malka, we are hoping that it will be a summer of tremendous growth for those who are on the receiving end and for those who are on the giving  end as well.

The engine of most boys camps is sports. We hope to have competitive and organized leagues that will include all sports including  flag football. That being said, there will be one period every day in which each camper will get to choose whether he wants to join another specific league (baseball league, basketball league…) or perhaps sign up for something else outside of sports (chess club, double swim, hasmadah track, guitar lessons…). The goal is that each camper will feel that the schedule is tailor made just for them.

Glad you asked 🙂 You can apply online at campaish.com

Looking forward to an incredible summer,

Rabbi Ari Schonfeld