Some Places You Visit. Some Places Become Home.
I first heard about URJ Henry S. Jacobs Camp from my older brother, who visited toward the end of his camper days. Growing up in Sarasota, Florida, we went to a different Jewish summer camp, but when he came back talking about this mysterious other Southern camp, my curiosity was sparked. I couldn’t wait to see it for myself, but my first real Jacobs Camp connection came on my NFTY in Israel trip, when our buses were paired with a Jacobs cohort. I still have some treasured photos with the NFTY ’99 krewe (including a future assistant director!).
Years later, while studying glassblowing and playing ultimate at Tulane in New Orleans, I found myself skirting oh-so-close to camp on trips to Little Rock or Tulsa. We’d hop off I-55 on MS-27 in our 15-passenger van, cutting the corner of Jackson, and get just a glimpse of the woods around camp. I graduated the summer before Hurricane Katrina, and the storm ultimately brought me back to New Orleans to help rebuild. It was through leading the URJ Mitzvah Corps program—two summers in a row—that I finally drove through the gates for the first time.
And wow… just wow.
After a week of mold remediation and drywall mudding in the Lower Ninth Ward, our group of thirty teens rolled into camp for Shabbat and were immediately blown away. Yes, the fried chicken impressed (which deserves its own paragraph), but what struck us even more was the spirit, warmth, and joy that radiated from the people. Our group from all over the country came to do tzedakah in New Orleans, and we were welcomed in Utica with the kind of Southern hospitality that turns strangers into family.
After six years of rabbinical school in Jerusalem and Los Angeles, my spouse Erica and I moved to Jackson so I could go to work at the ISJL. We loved our ten years there, and we knew we wanted our children to grow up rooted in Jewish community—and at Jewish camp—in the Deep South. After moving to Birmingham in 2022, it felt like the right time to start thinking about sending our first child to camp.
As camp kids ourselves, Erica and I didn’t want to miss out on the fun, so we joined Jacobs as a faculty rabbi and a nurse. Every experience has been fabulous. Riley, getting ready her third summer at camp, is bouncing around our house in Birmingham, excited that her younger sibling, Sandy, will get to attend Jacobs Camp for his first summer. We never imagined when we first signed him up for his summer that an opportunity would arise for me to join the camp full time as Associate Director—but I’m incredibly grateful that it did.
I’m thrilled to join this extraordinary community. I’m excited to connect with parents and make sure they know their children are having the very best experience possible. I’m eager to support and mentor our summer staff as they grow into leaders at camp and far beyond. And I can’t wait to get to know our campers, learn from their stories, and help shape summers that stay with them for a lifetime.
I’m honored to help carry the Jacobs Camp legacy forward—and to add my own dash of spice to the magic with the already amazing full-time staff.
See you soon, and thanks for welcoming me home.
Years later, while studying glassblowing and playing ultimate at Tulane in New Orleans, I found myself skirting oh-so-close to camp on trips to Little Rock or Tulsa. We’d hop off I-55 on MS-27 in our 15-passenger van, cutting the corner of Jackson, and get just a glimpse of the woods around camp. I graduated the summer before Hurricane Katrina, and the storm ultimately brought me back to New Orleans to help rebuild. It was through leading the URJ Mitzvah Corps program—two summers in a row—that I finally drove through the gates for the first time.
And wow… just wow.
After a week of mold remediation and drywall mudding in the Lower Ninth Ward, our group of thirty teens rolled into camp for Shabbat and were immediately blown away. Yes, the fried chicken impressed (which deserves its own paragraph), but what struck us even more was the spirit, warmth, and joy that radiated from the people. Our group from all over the country came to do tzedakah in New Orleans, and we were welcomed in Utica with the kind of Southern hospitality that turns strangers into family.
After six years of rabbinical school in Jerusalem and Los Angeles, my spouse Erica and I moved to Jackson so I could go to work at the ISJL. We loved our ten years there, and we knew we wanted our children to grow up rooted in Jewish community—and at Jewish camp—in the Deep South. After moving to Birmingham in 2022, it felt like the right time to start thinking about sending our first child to camp.
As camp kids ourselves, Erica and I didn’t want to miss out on the fun, so we joined Jacobs as a faculty rabbi and a nurse. Every experience has been fabulous. Riley, getting ready her third summer at camp, is bouncing around our house in Birmingham, excited that her younger sibling, Sandy, will get to attend Jacobs Camp for his first summer. We never imagined when we first signed him up for his summer that an opportunity would arise for me to join the camp full time as Associate Director—but I’m incredibly grateful that it did.
I’m thrilled to join this extraordinary community. I’m excited to connect with parents and make sure they know their children are having the very best experience possible. I’m eager to support and mentor our summer staff as they grow into leaders at camp and far beyond. And I can’t wait to get to know our campers, learn from their stories, and help shape summers that stay with them for a lifetime.
I’m honored to help carry the Jacobs Camp legacy forward—and to add my own dash of spice to the magic with the already amazing full-time staff.
See you soon, and thanks for welcoming me home.
About the Author
Matt Dreffin
Matt is the Associate Director for Jacobs Camp. He loves finding creative ways to make Jewish life exciting (maybe with a frisbee!), his favorite moment at camp is hanging out under the stars, and he believes that camp uniquely allows campers and staff to shine.
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