Color War and More.

The Maccabiah Lie

I have always found it funny that counselors and Kerem are able to convince younger kids at camp that “Maccabiah is not happening this year.” I remember in 1999 there was a water shortage, and Kerem said that there would be no Maccabiah that year because there wasn’t enough water. In 2000, there was too much rain, and Kerem said that there would be no Maccabiah that year[1] because there was too much water and the cesspool was going to run over. Guess what - Maccabiah happened both years and it has happened every year since its first year of existence,  in the 60’s. It is a time of competition for every possible skill at camp, the biggest leadership opportunity for Kerem, and the culmination of the summer. I could not imagine a summer without a Maccabiah, it is just one of those things that must happen in order for camp to end. In fact I have never heard of a normal summer camp that does not have a color war. Most camps use 4-6 teams in their color war (in fact I have not heard of another camp that uses only two, but I could easily be wrong). Usually the teams are colors (hence the name color war) but often you will have teams at other camps called the ‘red dragons’ or the ‘blue bombers’[2] to give them their own identity. Camp Yavneh, as we all know, uses Hebrew words with deep Judaic meaning, for the team names. Once you are in Kerem, you realize how much revolves around the team name that Rabbi Dov chooses for you: songs, tekes, shelet, cheers, and obviously rekah. This is basically everything that earns points. Machaneh Yavneh cares about Jewish education, and this is clearly demonstrated by the point allotment. Usually other camps do color war anywhere from 1 to 4 days. Yavneh does it for 5-8 days depending when Tisha Bav is that particular year.

My point is after seeing how our camp’s “color war” compares to that of most other camp’s, I think Maccabiah says a lot about the character of Yavneh. As long as Yavneh is still running, so too will Maccabiah. And a note to all current/future Gurim and Kfirim campers: when they say there is no Maccabiah, they’re lying.[3]

What are some of the ‘secrets’ of pre-Maccabiah breakout that I can reveal?

So much emphasis is placed on Maccabiah breakout and what follows, but there is so much effort and planning that goes into it even before the initial “there is no Maccabiah this year” rumors start to surface. As a camper I always had a lot of questions when it came to  behind the scenes of Maccabiah. Here are five questions (and answers) that I always wondered about.

1.     Who picks and writes the songs for Lechu Neranenah, and who writes Tekes?

a.     This usually depends on the roshes. I think the most effective way to pick and write songs is to use a committee comprised of both roshes and non-roshes so that no one has “special say” because he/she is a rosh. Other teams just have a rosh or two decide and don’t let the rest of the team help out.

2.     Where are the team shelets made?

a.     Ceramic room.

3.     How are the team mascots decided and where do they find so many stuffed animals?

a.     First, the aydah brainstorms different types of pairs, and through a vote, the winning pair is chosen. Afterward the mascots are usually decided by a coin flip. Finding them can be a little harder. Before the Internet, it was probably a lot harder to find such obscure mascots. Nowadays, Kerem finds them on the Internet and they are shipped to camp.

4.     When Kerem says, “We fought for everyone on this team,” is it true? And are the teams created by  a draft?

a.     I don’t want to say all the Kerems in the past have been lying when they say the fought for everyone but it certainly is a bit of stretch.  First of all, the team splits do not even slightly resemble a draft. This is how it works: the counselors divide their bunk into team A and team B, noting which campers are good at sports, singing, acting, dancing, intelligence, and enthusiasm. In addition, siblings of members of Kerem are taken out of the overall list and matched up with an equal, so that they can be guaranteed to be on their Kerem siblings’ team. This list is handed over to the Kerem so they can discuss the strengths of each team. If the Kerem is diligent enough, they will know each camper and figure out what he/she brings to the table. When the time comes, Lisa Rubins facilitates a coin flip for each bunk. The team that wins the coin flip gets to choose either team A or B. There certainly is a lot of fighting for individuals especially if the Kerem think that one team is stronger than the other. But overall it is a fair system where almost every camper is looked at and discussed.

5.     Does someone actually keep score throught Maccabiah or is the whole process rigged in favor of a predetermined winner?

a.     There is no question that the answer to this question is yes. Scott Rubins keeps score. I have seen with my own eyes the Excel spreadsheet that Scott uses to tally the points. This is how the scoring system works: the shoftim record the results of a particular game, give the score card to Scott in the office, and he enters in the data for the points. The victor is decided by points not by a theoretical coin flip.

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[1] Kerem 2000 really did not want to do Maccabiah. Supposedly they protested.refusing to organize it, and had to be convinced to run it.

[2] I just made these up on the spot, but they sound real, right?

[3] Kerem 11- Feel free to use this as an excuse for why Maccabiah is not happening this year.  I think it would be funny and ironic.