David Berkman Chosen as Camp Kalsman’s First Director Reform Jewish Summer Camp North of Seattle Set to Open Summer 2007
October 18, 2006 – SEATTLE, WA – David Berkman, currently the associate director of the Union for Reform Judaism camping system, will be the first director of Camp Kalsman, the newest Reform camp that will open in the Pacific Northwest in the summer of 2007.
A product of URJ Camps, Berkman was selected as director for his expertise in informal Jewish education, his management expertise, and his love of camping. Working within the URJ Camps system since 1997, he held senior assistant director positions for URJ Camps in Texas and Pennsylvania before joining the national staff in 2005. He served with distinction as the project manager for Jacobs’ Ladder, a distribution center for hurricane relief supplies established by the Union for Reform Judaism near Jackson, MS that delivered more than 3 million pounds of supplies to those in need after Katrina.
A 32 year-old Colorado native who grew up in Texas, Berkman holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Texas and a master’s degree in management from the University of Denver, Daniels College of Business.
“I’m thrilled to be spearheading the effort to launch Camp Kalsman and I am excited to begin working with the Pacific Northwest’s Jewish community to make it happen,” said Berkman. “Together, I am confident that we will provide a fantastic opening next summer and, in the years ahead and for generations to come, incredible Jewish camping experiences for young people from throughout the region.”
“David Berkman's past URJ Camp experience, along with his love of Jewish camping are only two of the many reasons we are thrilled that he was appointed as the new director of Camp Kalsman,” said Janice Brumer, who chairs the Camp Kalsman Commission. “I look forward to working with David to make Camp Kalsman a place where children and adults alike, always want to come back, year after year.”
Camp Kalsman in Arlington, WA, is the thirteenth camp in the URJ Camps system and will serve the Reform Jewish community in the Pacific Northwest. Set on 300 acres of native Pacific Northwest forest, the camp will contain northwest style camper cabins, a large communal dining hall with stone fireplace, staff housing, and outdoor fire pit. Campers will enjoy a swimming pool, an alpine climbing tower, hiking, canoeing and kayaking, and sport fields - all within an incredible natural setting. For more information about Camp Kalsman please visit www.kalsman.urjcamps.org.
For over fifty years, URJ Camps have provided engaging and creative Jewish educational experiences that strive to create a knowledgeable and Jewishly literate community in the future. Thousands of Reform Jewish youngsters experience Jewish living for themselves through the URJ Camps across North America. Nearly 80 percent of Reform rabbis and cantors are products of the URJ Camps.
The Union for Reform Judaism (formerly the Union of American Hebrew Congregations) is the central body of Reform Judaism in North America, uniting 1.5 million Reform Jews in more than 900 synagogues. Union services include camps, music and book publishing, outreach to unaffiliated and intermarried Jews, educational programs, and the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism in Washington, D.C.
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