Quest Guidebook 2021
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Guidebook Overview We are so thrilled to welcome your child to a Tawonga Quest this summer! This 2021 Quest Guidebook has everything you need to know to get ready for your adventure, including helpful information on: ❖ COVID-19 Policies ❖ Screen-Free Policy ❖ No-Package Policy ❖ Drop Off and Return Information ❖ Mail Information ❖ What to Bring and What Not to Bring ❖ Food Including Allergies and Dietary Restrictions ❖ Behavior Expectations ❖ And Much More! Please help prepare your child for a safe and happy summer by reviewing this guidebook and discussing it with your child before their trip. Keep This Guidebook The information it contains is updated annually and will be useful before and throughout the summer, whether this is your family’s first summer participating in a Tawonga program or you have attended for many years. The guidebook is also available on our website at tawonga.org under the “Forms and Resources” section. If you have any questions or concerns, please call us at 415.543.2267 or email [email protected]. After you finish reading this guidebook, please sign the authorization and release forms for your Quest. 1 The Family | Tawonga Partnership Congratulations! You’ve registered for a great summer program with Camp Tawonga. We hope to make this summer a positive experience, and your help is essential. Reading this manual is a key step in preparing for your adventure ahead. This guidebook is intended to be read both by teens participating in a Quest and by their parents. Whether your family is new or returning, please carefully read this guidebook, discuss its contents together, and save it for future reference. We also invite you to join us this spring for the Adventure Quest Town Hall on Wednesday, May 12, 2021 from 7:30-8:30pm online on Zoom. The first 15-20 minutes are required for all Quest families. Following this, new families are invited to stay for a pre-Quest presentation to learn more about Quest, ways to prepare for a successful summer experience and to get your questions answered by a director. Camp Tawonga’s goal is to help you raise children who have a strong, positive Jewish identity and who will be caring, concerned and committed citizens of the Jewish and secular communities. We achieve this by: • Creating a loving and accepting environment in which each quester feels good about themselves and develops, through this confidence, a greater sense of integrity. • Modeling and teaching group living skills like cooperation, making new friends, and getting along with people (including those who may be very different from ourselves). • Using the outdoors as a classroom where we can observe firsthand the harmony and beauty of the natural world and begin to understand our role in protecting and caring for our Earth. • Sharing the language, music, customs and traditions of Judaism in welcoming, open and inclusive community practice and programming. Going on Quest involves these joys as well as challenges. Some challenges are physical, such as hiking to the top of a mountain. Others are interpersonal, such as learning how to get along with everyone in the group and collaborating to resolve conflicts as they arise. We ask your family to recognize these challenges as opportunities for growth and for building self-confidence, and to accept them in a positive way. Whether you are a teen participant on Quest or a parent sending your teen on Quest, you are entering into a partnership with Camp Tawonga. We sincerely appreciate your trust and support. Together, we can do great things for youth and for the world. Sincerely, Myla Marks Associate Director 2 Table of Contents Topic Section The Family | Tawonga Partnership 2 Adjusting to Quest 4 Preparing for Your Quest, Missing Home, Missing your Teen, Meeting with the Directors, After-Quest Feedback, Visiting Health and Medical Information 5 Medications Working Together: Some Speciic Behavior Expectations and Guidelines for Quest Living 7 Attitude: What We Expect from You, What You Can Expect from Your Quest Leaders, Work Group Responsibilities, Nightly Check-Ins, Separating from the Group in Public Areas, Judaism and Jewish Rituals on Quest, Swimming on Quest, Skinny-Dipping Policy, Photos, Alcohol and Other Drugs, Amnesty Bag Consequences for Misbehavior 10 Covenants and Contracts for Good Behavior, Behaviors that Result in Director/Parent Contact, Behaviors that Result in Sending a Quester Home Early, Send-Home Procedures Relationships and Sexuality at Tawonga 11 Our Philosophy, Relationships Between Questers, The Thick Black Line Between Campers and Staff Quest Logistics 12 Quest Groups, Itinerary, Grocery Shopping and Meals, Sleeping, Campsites, Showers, Mail, Phone Calls, Outfitters and Release Forms, A Note About Quest Forms Screen-Free Policy 13 What Not to Bring 14 What to Bring 14 Spending Money, Clothing, Optional Items, Lost and Found Quest Packing List 15 Quest Departures and Returns 16 Drop-Off and Pick-Up Procedures, Questing from Outside the Bay Area Camper To-Do List - Before Quest Begins 17 Thank You 17 3 Adjusting to Quest Going away to a summer camp Quest program includes fun, friendship, and adventure. It provides questers with an opportunity to learn, grow, and feel good about themselves. However, going away to a summer program also entails adjustment for questers and their parents. Preparing for your Quest We encourage parents and teens to talk together before the Quest about expectations for the trip. Please read this guidebook and discuss any questions or concerns you may have with each other. If you wish to discuss any concerns with our staff, please call our San Francisco office at 415.543.2267 or email us at [email protected]. Missing Home Going on a Quest may raise issues of “homesickness.” This is a normal, healthy occurrence for questers, and we refer to this occurrence as “missing home” to help disassociate missing home from a sickness. Quest leaders are trained to be aware of each quester’s moods and emotional adjustment. If a teen is missing home, the Quest leaders will encourage them to talk about it and try to help the teen understand that this feeling is natural. Quest leaders will also make an effort to involve the quester in group activities. Experience tells us that within two or three days most teens are busy having fun with newfound friends and no longer miss home. If a quester is missing home, their family may receive a “homesick” call or letter. If this occurs, parents should not panic. This is a normal part of adjusting to a trip and most of the time these feelings pass quickly. Parents who are concerned about repeated complaints of missing home from their teens can call the San Francisco office at 415. 543.2267. Office staff will follow up with the Quest leaders and let parents know how the teen is doing as soon as possible. Missing Your Teen Sometimes a teen’s departure for a summer program produces feelings of anxiety for a parent. While teens may feel “homesick,” some parents feel “campersick.” This is a normal part of the summer camp and Quest experience. We encourage parents to project confidence and excitement to their teen as they prepare for the Quest, even though parents may feel nervous or anticipate missing them. Often a teen’s attitude about leaving home mirrors the attitude of their parents. Parents can contribute to the success of their teen’s Quest by encouraging them to have a great time. Meeting with the Directors We ask that teens or their parents please let us know of any special circumstances in the teen’s life. This will assist the Quest leaders and other staff in providing the best possible experience for the quester. Sensitive issues will only be shared with the appropriate staff and never with other teens. If you would like to meet virtually with one of the directors before Quest, please call the San Francisco office to make an appointment before May 1, 2021. After-Quest Feedback After questers return home, families will receive evaluation surveys by email. Filling this out together is a wonderful way for parents to learn more about their teen’s Quest experience and helps us improve our service to your family. If parents would like to speak with a director after the trip to discuss their teen’s experience, they may make arrangements by calling the Tawonga office. Additionally, if we have suggestions for a teen’s participation in Tawonga programs for the next summer—like signing up for a longer or shorter Tawonga program, our Teen Leadership Institute or an In Training program —we may contact you in the fall. Of course, you may always call us for help deciding which Tawonga program may be best for your quester. Visiting There is no visiting on Quest trips. This uninterrupted time away from home is important to help questers develop their sense of independence and self-reliance. Parents can consider attending one of our weekend family camp programs, which are open to all ages and are a great way to see what Tawonga is all about. For a list of programs offered, please visit our website at www.tawonga.org. 4 Health and Medical Information COVID-19 Policies Tawonga senior staff along with our COVID-19 Task Force composed of doctors, epidemiologists and health professionals have created extensive COVID-19 policies for this summer. Please find a list of commonly asked questions about COVID-19 on the Tawonga website. While we will do our very best to mitigate the risks of COVID with research-based plans and policies and extensive staff training, we cannot guarantee your quester will not be exposed to COVID while participating in a Tawonga program.