Rivky and Shlomie Saffer have been bringing their warmth, commitment to chinuch and love of Eretz Yisrael to our machane for the past 2 years.  Rivky grew up in America until she was 15 and then made aliyah with her parents.  Shlomie's family made aliyah when he was 9 years old.  They lived in Gush Katif in Neve Dekalim for 23 years with their 7 children- the oldest of whom now lives in Sderot.  The transition from Gush Katif to Nitzan, near Ashkelon, after the disengagement, has been difficult, as has been walking away from a community they helped cultivate, a beautiful house they recently renovated, and from the part of Eretz Yisrael where they were most at home.

 

And yet, they consider themselves lucky because they are teachers, and, unlike many other former Gush Katif residents, they have jobs.  "And," said Rivky, "we also have hope that one day we will go back to what we miss so much."

 

At camp, Shlomie is the Shaliach of Machal.  He gives shiurim, goes on tiyulim with Machal and is a warm, supportive, encouraging presence on their campus.  Rivky is part of Moshava's chinuch team, building the Yerushalayim curriculum and peulot, as well as working toward creating a feeling at camp of being immersed in Jerusalem.

 

They speak of the very strong feeling at Moshava of everyone working for the good of the camp without competition, and of everyone working to make it a better place, like a successful kibbutz.  "A lot of people smile here," they've noticed.  Certainly, they see in others what they themselves possess.  Despite the hardship of being uprooted, Rivky and Shlomie are quick to smile.  They are role models in the deepest sense.

 

Before even stepping into 'Teva', the care that goes into creating its enchantment is evident by the lush, flowering window boxes embellishing the cabin's windows.

 

Rena Schaum, aka the kind, knowledgeable 'Teva lady', is a nursery school Morah and science enrichment teacher who has been bringing her love of outdoors, animals, and plants to Machane Moshava for the past 17 years.

 

 

Rena shares kids' curiosity about things in our natural world.  "Even if insects aren't beautiful, per se, or even are a little scary, they're fascinating", she says.  The Teva cabin's menagerie includes a land and an aquatic turtle, Dassi- the corn snake (so gentle even the most snake averse camper acclimates to her), a leopard gecko, hermit crabs, a lionhead rabbit, caterpillars undergoing metamorphosis, and ducklings the campers are helping to raise and are delighted to observe, especially when the baby ducks are splashing around the wading pool.  Teva also houses many interesting natural objects to look at under microscopes, art activities, and nature games, all of which are invitations to campers to gain respect and reverence for many different forms of life.

 

Teva fosters a deep connection with and love for the natural world.  Naturally, lots of exploration occurs outside the cabin.  There are opportunities to tend to the lettuce, radish, zucchini, chives and tomato plants in Teva's garden, some of which the chanichim will harvest before summer's end.  There are creek walks to take, edible berries, plants and salamanders to collect on nature hikes, and the Teva dock at lakeside is the perfect setting for campers to catch frogs and toads, and is a favorite place for fishing aficionados.

 

 

As many campers concur, "I love Teva, it has the best stuff.  It teaches us about animals and nature.  We used to be afraid of animals and bugs and now we're not afraid of them anymore.  Teva is amazing because it's not competitive."

 

Most gratifying for Rena is seeing the wonder and enthusiasm kids exude, and having the opportunity to foster it.  After experiencing all that encompasses Teva, it's clear the chanichim's awareness, that we are here to nurture and guard G-d's creation, has been raised, since the Teva pledge they coined states, 'We are to protect and care for the precious gift of nature Hashem has given us.'