JCC Maccabi Games
Each summer the JCC sends a team of Ann Arbor teens to the JCC Maccabi Games, a week long Olympic-style sporting competition that incorporates community service and social activities to combine for an unforgettable experience for Jewish teens. The Games include athletes from around the world and are held at a different cities across North America each summer (for the 2011 Games, one of the host sites for the Games will actually be in Israel!). To learn more about the JCC Maccabi Games, please visit www.jccmaccabigames.org.
This past year, in August 2010, Ann Arbor sent a team of dancers, swimmers, volleyball players, tennis players, and soccer players to the JCC Maccabi Games in Omaha, Nebraska. In addition to local Ann Arbor athletes, the team also included three athletes from Nahalal, Ann Arbor's Partnership 2000 (P2K) sister community in Israel. The Ann Arbor-Nahalal team brought home an astounding 28 medals and lots of wonderful memories!
Join the 2011 Team!
Next summer, Ann Arbor athletes may have the option to attend one of two different sites (see details below). A limited number of spots on the team are available, so families with interested teens are encouraged to contact Deborah Huerta as soon as possible at deborahhuerta@jccfed.org or (734) 971-0990.
- Israel (various cities) from July 24 - August 5
At the Israel Games, teens will be able to compete in basketball, bowling, soccer, swimming, table tennis, tennis, and girls volleyball. For the Israeli Games, teens must be JCC members and must be 14-17 years old as of July 31, 2011.
- Philadelphia, Pennsylvania from August 14-19
At the Philadelphia Games, teens will be able to compete in baseball, girls basketball, boys and girls soccer, boys in-line hockey, girls lacrosse, dance, swimming, and tennis. For the Philadelphia Games, teens must be JCC members and must be 13-16 years old as of July 31, 2011.
The 2011 participation fees will be announced soon, and scholarship assistance will be offered for qualifying families.
Athlete Testimonials
Here is what one recent athlete had to say about the Maccabi experience:
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"The 2009 San Antonio Maccabi experience was amazing. There is just something cool about being part of a week long event where you're competing with, hanging out, and befriending Jews your age. Maccabi is a place where you can be proud of your Jewishness and the city you are from. It's amazing to be able to represent Ann Arbor in a city as big as San Antonio filled with athletes from across the nation. And the three Israeli athletes who joined the Ann Arbor delegation this year made the experience truly special. I also really enjoyed staying with a host family because I became friends with their daughter and it was exciting to explore a new city. The competition was really fun, too, but somehow Maccabi seems to be much more than that. It is an experience filled with excitement, laughter (a lot of laughter), hard work, friends, and memories. I would recommend Maccabi to any Jewish teen who likes to have new adventures, have a lot of fun, and make long-lasting memories." |
Support Our Team
The JCC relies on the generous support of the community to help offset costs for the JCC Maccabi Games and provide scholarship assistance to qualifying families. For example:
| $18 provides team pins for a Maccabi athlete to trade. | |
| $50 provides a team uniform for a Maccabi athlete. | |
| $100 provides snacks for a team of hungry teen athletes. | |
| $200 provides t-shirts for Ann Arbor's entire Maccabi team. | |
| $1000 provides a week-long North American Maccabi experience for a teen. | |
| $3600 pays for airfare for Ann Arbor's entire team. |
To make a secure online donation toward Maccabi, please click here. You may also download our donation form here and submit a check made payable to the JCC. Our athletes thank you in advance for your support!
Questions? Contact Deborah Huerta at deborahhuerta@jccfed.org or (734) 971-0990.
