Meet the Camp JCC Israeli Counselors!

Every year, Camp JCC is fortunate to host shlichot, Israeli counselors. They work at camp while living with host families in Greater Raleigh. Our shlichot for this year are Maya Bar-Lev and Yali Meiri. We were excited to ask them a few questions to get to know them better. 

Yali Meiri (L), Maya Bar-Lev (R)

Q: Where did you grow up?

Maya: I live in in the beautiful Emek Hefer region of Israel, in Kibbutz Bahan.

Yali: I am from a small village in Israel called Gan Hayim, about 25 minutes from Tel Aviv.

Q: What are your jobs at camp?

Maya: I’m the Tarboot (Israeli culture) specialist.

Yali: I’m the Rikud (Israeli dance) specialist.

Q: What are you looking forward to this summer at camp?

Yali: I hope we will find some friends and get to know each other better. I hope we do our best with our specialties.

Maya: I want to bring the spirit of Israel here.

Yali: Yes, we want to bring the culture and values.

Maya: We want the kids to know Israel better through the dancing, the songs, the culture.

Q: What are your plans for after this summer?

Yali: We are going to New York for a little bit, and then going back to Israel.

Maya: We are both just out of the army, and it takes about a year to process everything. Get a real job, start studying something, see the world.

Q: What do you like to do for fun?

Yali: Dancing, of course! I also like to travel a lot, be with my family, and bake cookies.

Maya: I like listening to music, going on walks, and drawing.

Yali: I like the beach. I go every day if I can!

Maya: I like animals, especially dogs.

Yali: Yes, both of us love dogs!

Q: What is your favorite summer treat?

Maya: Popsicles.

Yali: Watermelon, strawberries, fruits in general.

Q: Is there anything you would like our readers to understand about you, camp, or Israel?

Maya: We are here to introduce our culture. We would ike everyone to come to Israel and see what we are bringing here. We just want to spread love and peace for everyone.

Yali: There’s a lot of difference between living here as a Jewish people and in Israel.

Maya: A lot of differences, but we also want to show that we are not as different as we tend to think. We are all in the same boat. Together, we all have the same values, especially here at camp.

Yali: The Jewish community is one big family, I think.

We are still looking for families to host our Israeli counselors this summer. To learn more, click here.