From Atlanta to Parksville: Rabbi Isser New Returns to CGI Parksville

This past week, Camp Gan Israel Parksville warmly welcomed Rabbi Isser New, shliach in Atlanta, GA, for a memorable visit that brought together decades of camp memories, inspiration, and chinuch.

This past week, Camp Gan Israel Parksville warmly welcomed Rabbi Isser New, shliach in Atlanta, GA, for a memorable visit that brought together decades of camp memories, inspiration, and chinuch. Upon his arrival, Rabbi New was warmly received by Camp Director Rabbi Yossie Futerfas, who welcomed him back to the camp where he spent so many formative summers.

The visit was part of CGI Parksville’s ‘Celebration 70’ initiative, commemorating the camp’s 70th anniversary by inviting former head staff members back to camp for Shabbosim throughout the summer. The goal is to reconnect generations of CGI leadership while giving today’s staff and campers the opportunity to hear firsthand from those who helped shape the camp’s enduring spirit. The initiative is being coordinated by Rabbi Bentzion Pearson, who is directing the camp’s Celebration 70 programming.

For Rabbi New, the visit was more than a return—it was a homecoming.

He spent eleven consecutive summers in Camp Gan Israel Parksville, beginning as a camper in 5756 and returning year after year as a staff member. He later served as Learning Director and Head Counselor during the summers of 5765-5767, helping shape the camp experience for hundreds of campers.

This year’s visit was especially meaningful, as for the first time in CGI Parksville’s history, the largest out-of-town delegation of campers came from Atlanta, reflecting the remarkable growth of the Atlanta Chabad community and its longstanding connection to the camp.

Throughout his visit, Rabbi New addressed campers and staff, sharing insights drawn from his years in camp and his ongoing work in shlichus.

Speaking at the Friday night seudah, Rabbi New described camp as many children’s first genuine yeshivah experience. The learning, structured schedule, davening, and overall atmosphere are unlike anything many children experience during the rest of the year. For nearly eight weeks, campers live in a 24/7 environment permeated with the light and warmth of Torah and Chassidus. They daven three times each day, Krias Shema at bedtime is recited with care and seriousness, learning becomes part of the rhythm of daily life, and Yiddishkeit is experienced not merely as something to study, but as something to live.

“In many ways,” he explained, “camp is the training ground or ‘draft’ for becoming one of the Rebbe’s bochurim.”

On Shabbos afternoon, following the daytime seudah, Rabbi New led a farbrengen with the staff that continued until Mincha. Throughout the farbrengen, he spoke about the tremendous responsibility entrusted to every staff member. Camp, he emphasized, is often a bochur’s first genuine experience of shlichus. Every interaction with a camper has the potential to leave a lifelong impression, making each staff member not merely a supervisor, but a mechanech and role model whose influence can extend far beyond the summer.

He challenged the staff to ensure that every aspect of camp is infused with tochen. Sports teams, games, competitions, trips, and informal moments are never “just activities.” Every aspect of camp should be purposeful—an opportunity to educate, inspire, and strengthen a child’s love for Torah, mitzvos, and the Rebbe.

The message resonated deeply with the staff: camp is not simply a summer program. It is an immersive environment in which children grow spiritually around the clock, and where counselors have the privilege—and responsibility—of helping shape the future of the next generation.

Rabbi New’s visit served as a powerful reminder of the unique role Camp Gan Israel continues to play in fulfilling the Rebbe’s vision: creating an atmosphere where Yiddishkeit is not only taught, but lived.

Indeed, when the Rebbe received the news of the purchase of CGI Parksville’s present grounds, he blessed that the camp should “bear fruit, and the fruits of its fruits, throughout the entire year”—a brocha that continues to be realized through the generations of campers and staff whose lives have been shaped by Camp Gan Israel.

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