Academy Press Release

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St. Johnsbury Academy put out a press release right before I left on my trip:

Teacher Heads to Israel for an Ultimate Experience:

Academy math faculty member and coach of the school’s State Champion Ultimate Frisbee boys  team Josh Seamon is heading to Israel this summer to participate with a program called Ultimate Peace, an organization that uses Ultimate Frisbee as a tool to unite Israeli and Palestinian youth during an annual summer camp. Seamon will travel to the camp later this month. <read more>

Staff Training

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The second day of staff training is coming to a close tonight. The campus has been alive with the sounds of task team prep tasks and coaches training sessions. It’s been quite active here at the Manof. We are well prepared and very excited for the arrived of 130 campers tomorrow!

Yesterday morning started with another great breakfast, followed by our first orientation session in the auditorium. David kicked things off with a discussion of the history of UP, and then we worked through some role-play situations that could happen between coaches. Also, every came on stage one by one to say their name, where they’re from, and do one motion. It was quite impressive to see our large staff group together in one place. The final count is 51 coaches and 32 CITs. It’s a phenomenal group.

Back in the Moadon common room area, everyone signed up for a task team or two and then met up in their groups to work on everything from welcoming committee and registration to media and evening activity planning. I started off at media and pitched in my ideas, before heading out, leaving the group under Rachael’s direction.

After lunch and a camp trip to the pool, David ran another round of staff orientation, followed by coaching training. We kicked off the training with a discussion of Spirit of the Game and the coache’s role with regards to spirit. Abe then led the group through spirit-oriented role-play work. The skits were quite good and showed a great deal of thought. After dinner and a large pickup game outside, people eventually made it to sleep.

This morning, all of the coaches and CITS grouped up on the field after breakfast for their second round of training. I then led them through teaching the 8 basic Ultimate skills of catching, backhand, forehand, marking, pivoting/faking, downfield D, cutting, and the force. Each small group came up with how to teach the skill and then presented to the whole group, with one other group specifically acting as a “critic” group. Each presentation was translated into Arabic and Hebrew, and done in as “live” a way as possible. The presentations were great and the feedback was fantastic.

At around 10:30 we transitioned back to the auditorium for more staff orientation led by David. By 12:30 we made it to lunch and then a large group went to the poo. Back on campus after free time, the coaching teams met up for the first time to discuss plans for the days to come. I am super excited to work with my team of Chelsea (Local Mentor Coach), Julie (UP Coach), Wanda (UP Coach), Ava (CIT), Raz (CIT), and Areen (CIT). During our meeting we distributed team responsibilities such as cheer master, warm up queen, and equipment checker. We talked about our plans for tomorrow and how excited we are for the arrival of all the campers.

By 5pm we were all back on the field for the last round of coaches training. I moved the group through the last two skill presentations and then we had an open discussion about what people are most concerned about for the upcoming days of camp. We also announced a few people’s “Ultimate Majors”, so that people know who they can go to to get help with specific skills. After handing out some more materials covering skill cues and bonding activity ideas, the session came to a close.

Dinner was followed by a quick meeting in the auditorium, after which we all went to the fields for some social games led by David and Jez. We lined up by age and height, as well as in alphabetical order with no talking. We moved through WA (I’m still terrible) and played starfish tag (awesome!). The circle group sit went way better than I expected and the massive lasso-group-hug was pretty cool.

Back in the Moadon common room area David ran a meeting to go over specific plans for tomorrow. All is now set for an amazing first day of camp. Everyone is now enjoying a last few hours of truly free time before the massive arrival of 130 campers tomorrow starting at around 11am.

Summer camp here we come!

Two UP blog posts

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Two new blog posts are online on the official UP blog. They are well worth the read!

Community Happens:

It’s really hard to sum up Ultimate Peace camp. A lot of what happens here is emotional and difficult to articulate anyway, but some of what happens here just sneaks up on you, leaving you totally speechless. I’ll try. <read more>

The next generation steps up:

When the campers started arriving this morning, there was that momentary panic you feel when house guests show up before you’ve even started prepping for the party. Areen Shihade and Yasmeen Maresat of Tamra rolled up with their rolling suitcases. How had they all gotten here, already? We had two days before the kids arrived. Right? <read more>

                                                       UP Training Camp 2012!

Rest

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While everyone was super tired from the crazy spring through training camp, everyone was lively on Wednesday morning, pumped up for a day of spending time together! A great way to see how much fun we had during the first week is to watch this awesome slide show video put together by our resident photographer, Rachel Cerrotti:

After a quick breakfast, the whole staff piled into one coach bus for the trip north to our rafting boat launch! The two hour bus ride was scenic, and took us past sights like a high view of the Sea of Galilee. While I did see some of the views, including the Sea, I made use of the bus ride to sleep and rest some more.

We worked our way quite north, and then unloaded at the Jordan river boat launch where everyone grouped up into “Ultimate” or “Peace” boats. It turns our that lazy-river with some rapids stupe rafting can be quite “active” with lots of splashing, jumping, and other shenanigans. We all had a fantastic time, even those of us who were pulled into the river with no warning :) I do wish I had some pictures of the rafting trip, but we barely managed to get back with most of the very few sandals we brought on the trip, so, bringing cameras we out of the question.

The trip down the river took about 2 hours and by the time we were back on shore, everyone was excited, a bit tired, and quite ready for lunch. A short drive later we all packed into a fantastic restaurant which had a whole table spread of hummus, veggies, and pitas, ready and waiting for us. We obliterated the first round of food, and then had a great time talking while we ate through our second course. After a final round of baklava, and time spent saying goodbye to Jolian, we got back on the bus and drove the short distance to the Galil Mountain Vineyard where we had a great tour. The view from the balcony of the building wad gorgeous and reminded me of Napa. We say the large metal wine tanks, and the wooden aging barrels. We had a lesson on how to taste wine like a pro, but the highlight was definitely the 7 minute Galil promo video that was so… awesome.

The vineyard’s location was also quite interesting, as we could see Lebanon from right outside the building. In fact, on the way out back to Manof, we drove on the road that runs right along the border.

Back at Manof we had a long evening of having fun around campus. We read, played games, relaxed, celebrated Dan’s birthday, and overall had a fantastic time.

This morning I awoke to what sounded like a lively campus and made it downstairs to find… no one. Over at the dining hall I still didn’t find anyone and figured out that most people were still asleep. It turned out everyone was active about 30 minutes later and by 9:15 a bunch of us were headed southbound on the train fo Tel Aviv.

At the station we met up with CITs Ava and Gabe. After dropping off their luggage at Chelsea’s apartment, we met back up with the rest of the group at the Alenby entrance of the Shuk. We walked the crowded market and I picked up a another round of cheese and bread. Yay. We then settled in for lunch at a nearby cafe where we stuffed ourselves with huge salads and some great ice coffee. Ava, Gabe, and I did managed to sneak off for a bit to hit up a localc restaurant. Wonderful. Next, we headed west to the coast where we lounged on the beach for the next 4 hours. It was incredibly relaxing. At around 6pm the group moved east to Rabin square for dinner. I pealed off north to catch the train go the airport to pickup another CIT, Alice. The pickup went smoothly and by 9:45 we made it back to Manof.

The whole place is alive with the sounds of new introductions and reconnections between old friends. It’s an exciting time. Tomorrow orientation and training begins. Summer Camp here we come!

Training Camp Day 4

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The first ever UP training camp has come to a beautiful close. All the kids are on their way home and the staff is unwinding with an evening at the beach. All is well in Acco.

The morning began with another great breakfast followed by a meeting in the auditorium where David ran through the plan for the day. Soon after the whole camp was out on the fields getting ready for the campers vs. coaches game! Two simultaneous games were played with all the campers subbing into both games. Despite David’s assertion that the camper’s wouldn’t score, the campers pulled through and managed to score first in one of the games. With music playing and some great sideline cheer support, the games flew on with an amazing array of skill.

After the games came to a close, the Blue and Yellow boys teams got to warming up for their finals game, a rematch of the last pool play game from yesterday. They game was close the whole way and particularly notables for its high level of play. Yellow even managed to pull off a fantastic greatest play that led to a goal two passes later. In the end, Blue prevailed on a long huck after a very long point.

Next up, the Evergreen girls took on team Mudslide. With the wind picking up, Mudslide came out with a 5-0 lead, but Everygreen fought back to 5-3, before falling a couple points lates 7-5. In addition to the high level of play on the field, Jolian kept things quite lively on the sideline with his announcer antics.

Everyone then moved into cleanup and packing mode. The kids did a good job at cleaning their rooms and soon we were all grouped in the dining hall enjoying our last lunch together. My team, Nutella, broke out our amazingly spectacular three part table cheer, and soon the whole place was lit up with cheers coming from all the other teams. We got further into the action by doing the cheer of girls champs, and sister team, Mudslide. After lunch, every moved back into the auditorium for the closing ceremonies. David spoke well on the ethos of the camp, what Ultimate Peace means, and then moved into the team spirit/MVP awards. We sang the camp song, David got the admin team on stage, and then all the teams went out into the Manof for their last team meetings.

Team Nutella grouped up at our tree and first went around the circle talking about highlights of the week. The kids spoke beautifully. One of our players gave out a special jersey he had brought to his pick for MVP, Asan. Then each coach spoke, and Adam gave out a jersey to the most improved player, Bebosh. Last, we cheered, did a group picture, and then gave out the Ultimate Peace discs. The kids took turns signing each other’s disc, and saying goodbye. Over at the gates the kids found their rides and headed home. It was hard to say goodbye.

After all the kids were on the road home, the whole staff met in the Mohadone break room and David led a feedback session for a little over an hour. We talked about high points and things that could improve. At about 5:15 the meeting broke and we all prepped quickly for a trip to the beach!

A short taxi bus ride later, the whole staff was on the Acco beach enjoying the sunset and the company of friends. We had a fantastic time as the sun went down.

We’re now all back on campus. Tomorrow we all head out to go rafting on the Jordan River, which will be followed by a tour of the Golan Heights. We can’t wait. We then have a free day… and then Summer Camp begins!

The time is flying by.

Training Camp Day 3

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The temperature was already climbing by the time I made my way to the dining hall for our scheduled early breakfast. It was great to connect with team Nutella at our table and to catch up on what everyone had done during last night’s evening activity time.

Immediately after breakfast, all of the boys teams were loaded into two coaches buses for the 30 minute trip to the Eilot fields near Nazareth. Along the way I caught a brief nap, something that was needed after not sleeping too well due to a new, fun cough. I feel fine and my voice is getting better, but the cough has been a bit annoying. At the fields we unloaded into the hot sun and walked out onto the turf soccer field which was setup to accomodate two Ultimate fields.

Nutella had a first round by so we rested some more and then Adam worked them through another great warm up. After stretching we worked on some throwing skills and then setup on the sidelines for our game. Before the game I handed out pink “Love Wins” bracelets to each of the kids. I had them write the names of who they play for on the inner surface of the bands.  In our first game agains blue, we went up early and stayed ahead, winning 4-2 on some well placed mid-range throws. Unfortunately, in our second and third games we lost both 3-2, in very close games. When the games ended at 12:30 everyone was ready to retreat back to the buses and out of the sun. Overall the level of play was very strong and wonderfully spirited.

Back on campus we went straight to lunch, and then the kids had a bit of free time before everyone was back in the auditorium for announcements. The kids then had a couple hours of free time and many of them chose to go to the pool. At 4:30 we were back in the center of Manof for some social team time, and at 5:30 Nutella was warming up on the fields for our last pool play game. We started off our game against white going zone, and scored first. We then went up 3-1 on some great short game action, but then white fought back to tie it up 3-3 when hard camp came on. The next point was about 10 minutes long, with each team getting multiple chances to score. In the end, we won on a great smooth long throw from Elad to finish pool play 2-2 and 3rd out of 5 teams.

Nutella then circled up with white for a spirit circle, which we followed by grouping up on our own to talk about the game. I also went around the circle and told every player at least one thing they did really well on the field. We grouped up for one last cheer and the head over to the BBQ dinner in the center of campus. The social time was quite lively as everyone mixed and mingled.

At a little after 8pm everyone moved over to the auditorium for the massively entertaining talen show. There were about 12 acts in all, ranging from a couple dance performances and ultra impressive disc freestyle, to me folding a crane behind my back while taking about the important of practice. Overall is was a fantastic event.

The kids then had an hour to dance, throw discs, and be social on the main field. It was quite the sight. I hung out for a while on the fields and then retreated to the newly setup media room.

Tomorrow morning everyone will watch the finals of the girls and boys tournaments, have a team social session, pack, and then head home. It’s hard to believe we are already at the end of the training camp!

Training Camp Day 2

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I’ve been getting better at obeying my alarm, so I managed to get all my media work done before heading to breakfast with my roommate, Abe. Grouped up at our table, my team — now names “Nutella” — enjoyed a round of pancakes. Everyone was then moved into the auditorium for announcements before team practices began.

My team had an hour of team time off the field which we filled with WA!, Look up look down, the marking drill, layout drills from our knees, and other social interactions. Several of my players were interviewed by Rachael, Maggie, and Nathan. At 10:30 we grouped up in the middle of campus for snack, and then moved to the field for practice. Adam kicked things off with running warm ups and then I transitioned the team into our standard go-to drill, followed by a vertical stack cutting drill. The kids moved through the drills very well. For the last 30 minutes of the session we scrimmaged team Yellow. We scored first and had some amazing flow on our way to going up 4-1. Yellow scored the last two goals before we had to break for lunch. We payed very well and are super excited for the start of the tournament tomorrow. We finished practice with another one of our utterly amazing cheers and then the kids went off to get cleaned up and ready for lunch.

By 1pm we were back in the dining hall, eating a large lunch of falafel, schwarma, and several other options. I’m a big fan of the local hot-sauce chilly paste. Good stuff. Once again, the dining hall was filled with several rounds of team cheers as we all ate. Next, we all transitioned to the auditorium where we found out about all of the various free time options. In addition to a large pool trip, the kids who stayed on campus could use the slip and slide, watch Ultimate videos, play disc golf, play badminton, or participate in a bunch of other activities.

By 4:30 the kids were grouping up in the middle of campus for evening practices. My team made it out the fields and after a short warm up, we moved through go-to and the cutting timing drill from the morning session. A few of the other staff members joined in and everyone had a great time mastering the timing on their cuts as well as their long throws. We ended on another solid cheers and moved back to our spot in the center of campus for some team social time. We ran through some more social games, and then joined up with team pink for a round of WA! Back over at our standard tree meeting spot, we worked through a new table cheer to break out at dinner.

By 7pm we were at dinner and 20 minutes in we unleashed a perfect, 3 section table cheer. Go us! After getting out fill of food, all of the kids moved into the auditorium for some video clips while the staff met outside to over the plans for the Camp Olympics. By about 8:30pm the kids were spread around the main field participating in 8 different games. A massive amount of fun was had.

The night is now winding down with kids playing in the central area of campus while other watch the Eurocup2012 finals. Everyone is excited for the start of the tournament tomorrow. Time to sleep.