Inspired and Inspiring

He dismisses the notion that the current generation is less idealistic. On the contrary, he says, today’s world is so shallow that many people are hungry for depth

Then they showed him what he had to do.

“My first thought was, ‘I’m gone. I’m out of here!’ says Charlie, now a world-renowned outreach speaker for organizations such as the Orthodox Union and Aish HaTorah, as well as a member of the OU’s executive board. “I didn’t think I’d last a week.”

Apparently nobody had bothered to inform the ingenuous young man what was really involved in caring for a group of campers with a wide range of disabilities. He’d be up against the actual nitty-gritty of helping them eat and get around, dealing with their personal care, helping them over homesickness, putting them to bed and waking up with them during the night. Over the next eight weeks, Charlie wouldn’t have a minute to play sports, enjoy laps in the pool, or go on a hike. The strenuous exertion of caring for the campers would frequently leave him shvitzing, but there would barely be time to grab a shower. Charlie knew he’d signed up for work, not vacation, but never imagined he’d committed himself to an eight-week sentence in a hard labor camp.

And then, to his surprise, he loved it.