Congregation Or Ami Continues Camp for Support and Community

As the two wildfires continue to grow in Ventura and Los Angeles counties, so does the need for support. In response, Congregation Or Ami on Nov. 9 opened to the entire Jewish community the “day camp” it set up for its members.

Children and adults who are impacted by fire are welcome at the camp, which is being held at de Toledo High School. They have activities for the kids, support for the adults, coffee and food. It will be open on Nov. 10, 11 and 12 from 10 a.m. until at least 3 p.m.

“If you are tired, strung out, if your kids need a place, if you need support, come to our camp,” Rabbi Paul Kipnes told the Journal via phone.

Kipnes and his team spent Nov. 8 reaching out to anyone in their congregation within 20 to 30 miles of the Thousand Oaks bar shooting, which occurred the night before when a gunman killed 12 patrons, to offer support and programing. After the news broke about the fire around 3:30 p.m., they shut it down and evacuated. Or Ami Rabbis Kipnes and Julia Weisz, along with rabbinic interns Elana Nemitoff and Meir Bargeron, then got to work on setting up the camp. 

“Congregation Or Ami has set up a “day camp” at de Toledo High School for those impacted by the wildfires.”

“Having learned from the flood down in Houston (after Hurricane Harvey) and the fires up in Santa Rosa, we immediately set to work to open a camp for kids who don’t have school and for adults who just need a place to gather together,” Kipnes said. “What we learned from the other two places is that the need grows as this disaster continues.”

As far as Kipnes can tell, about 70 percent of the congregation either has been mandatory or voluntarily evacuated. “People are overwhelmed,” he said. “Thankfully a number of them have been talking to the therapists who have been here.”

The smaller crowd on Nov. 9 enabled the Or Ami team to get systems up and running. They expect more people in the coming days now that they’ve opened. 

Or Ami has partnered with other synagogues and the Jewish Federation, and has received support from the Union for Reform Judaism and Camp Newman. Arthur Rozenberg of Fat Sal’s in Encino saw what was going on and brought over lunch on Nov. 9.

When asked how the community is responding, Kipnes said, “The kids like having older teens to play with. There are some adults who have nowhere else to go and are just hanging out.

“It’s been really meaningful to be together,” he said.

Ventura County fire officials issued mandatory evacuation orders for several areas including the Malibu Canyon area, Agoura Hills, Calabasas and Westlake Village.

Detailed fire and shelter information can be found at  vcemergency.com.