Decamped

Three hours before last Shabbos — in a “late Friday news dump,” as Agudath Israel of America characterized it — the state of New York issued a decree that shot like an arrow through the hearts of thousands of frum families in the Tristate area. There will be no summer sleepaway camp this year, for the first time in eight decades.

“Throughout this entire public health response, there isn’t a single decision we have not made based on data and science, rather than emotion,” New York state health commissioner Howard Zucker said in a statement. “Using the best currently available science and data, I have reached a decision to prohibit overnight children’s camps from operating this season in New York state.”

The administration cited the difficulty of managing social distancing and face masks in sleepaway camps as the reason behind the decision.

The announcement elicited shock and undisguised frustration among askanim and camp directors. Several community officials told Mishpacha the cancellation of camp will have long-term, undetermined effects on 100,000 frum children who have been pining for a summer getaway after the endless lockdown.