Ckids Gan Israel Goes International
Chabad Houses around the world work hard to bring Yiddishkeit to kids through Hebrew School, holiday clubs, and Shabbat programs. But nothing over the years has proven more effective than summer camp. Now, following the great success of Ckids Gan Israel in Florida, a Ckids overnight camp is set to open up in Denmark this summer.
“Summer camp is a completely immersive way to reach kids,” says Rabbi Zalmy Loewenthal, director of Ckids. “We’ve seen remarkable growth in the children through the Ckids Gan Israel experience that in unparalleled by any of our other programs.”
The Ckids overnight camp will be launched in Denmark, reaching kids all over Scandinavia, including Norway, Sweden, Iceland, Finland, and throughout Europe. The camp will be run by Rabbi Yitzi and Rochel Loewenthal, who both have experience running successful overnight camps for many years. They will be transforming their local overnight camp into a central one, catering to kids from all across Scandinavia and broader Europe.
The Lowenthals have been the Shluchim in Denmark for 25 years. During which time, they have run camps, both overnight and day, every summer and winter. As such, they will bring a broad range of real-life knowledge and experience to the new camp.
“We are excited to dedicate our talents and energy to this great initiative,” Rabbi Yitzi Loewenthal said. “It’s been a longtime dream of ours to launch an international overnight camp, and Ckids has given us the resources and backing we need to make it happen.”
The first Ckids overnight camp launched two years ago with 33 campers and doubled every year since. The camp services the communities of South Florida and was founded by Rabbi Levi and Chaya Plotkin, who moved to Florida last year to run the camp full time.
“The positive effect that camp has had on the kids has been unbelievable,” says Rabbi Levi Plotkin, who was featured in this year’s Kinus program along with a thirteen-year-old camper, Hayden, who shared his journey from not knowing anything about Judaism to wearing a kippah and tzitzit every day.
“We are constantly doing whatever it takes to reach new horizons—literally,” says Rabbi Moshe Kotlarsky, vice chairman of Merkos L’inyonei Chinuch. “We are proud to announce this new opening, which will, G-d willing be the second out of ten Ckids overnight camps we hope to launch before 2030.”
Like the Gan Israel day camps that have become an iconic part of many Jewish childhoods across the world—and have become the most extensive Jewish day camp network in the world—Ckids overnight camps are the next frontier.
