CAREaVAN

JUNE 8 – JUNE 18, 2025
COST: $2,450
REGISTRATION CLOSED – FULL
This summer, embark on a powerful journey with CAREaVAN as we travel up the California coast, earning 35+ hours of community service while making lifelong memories and friendships!
Starting on June 8th at the JCC in Scottsdale, we’ll head straight into our first volunteer mission and spend the next 10 days working together to make a real impact. Along the way, we’ll visit communities in Long Beach, Ventura, Santa Barbara, and Big Sur, where teens will take part in hands-on projects like helping at soup kitchens, supporting animal shelters, and cleaning up beaches. With recent fires in Ventura, we hope to assist in restoration work, embodying the spirit of Tikkun Olam—repairing the world.
Throughout the journey, we’ll reflect on the Jewish values that guide us toward justice and responsibility, learning from each community and discovering that working together to make a change also brings us closer together. Alongside our service work, we’ll explore some of California’s most beautiful spots: from a day at Six Flags and the beaches of Santa Barbara to a peaceful Shabbat in the awe-inspiring Yosemite National Park, with Havdalah under the stars.
Join us to see why CAREaVAN has been a teen-favorite summer trip for over 20 years, filled with fun adventures, new sights, friendships, and the incredible impact of being part of the change. Open to incoming freshmen through seniors for the 2025-26 school year, every day is a new opportunity to make a difference, one city at a time!
What is the plan for Summer 2025?
What type of volunteer work do we do?
A benefit at many of these nonprofits is the on-site project coordinator who briefs the teens on the value of their volunteer work and explains why they are doing it and who benefits.
What will be the fun activities?
sometimes visit a special attraction unique to a particular city. Additionally, we hold planning session with the teens that allow them to make suggestions of the types of experiences they’d like to have.
Are there evening activities?
What’s a typical day like?
The afternoon might involve a special entertainment (rafting or amusement park) in the community or heading off to our next city. At times we will have an additional volunteer activity in the afternoon. Some evenings have special programs or outings planned, and there is often an end-of-day recap and reflection along with sharing important details for the next day. Each day there is a group of teens responsible for various tasks to help make sure things run smoothly.
How much does it cost and what’s included?
Price includes all travel fees, accommodations at hotels, dorms or Airbnbs for 10 nights, 3 meals a day, tickets to pre-planned outings or events, and fees associated with the program. Participants will get their own CAREaVAN shirt and other special take-aways.
What kind of food is served?
There will be free time when teens are on their own and will be allowed to purchase their own food without kashrut supervision. In fact, we will have at least one meal where teens will be responsible for themselves.
All food brought on the bus, must be approved dairy or vegetarian.
See last summer’s itinerary for menu ideas.
What is the travel like?
Parents will be asked to donate snacks for the bus. We keep the snacks in the overhead bins so that teens can help themselves. We figure by having snacks on the bus they won’t spend as much when stopping at rest stops. Although, they do buy when there is opportunity.
Sleeping Arrangements
Groups
What kind of Jewish Rituals will there be?
Shabbat is time for teens to appreciate life in an inspirational setting. We will not do any traveling on Shabbat.
We dress and prepare for Shabbat as we set aside time from the work week. Friday night and Saturday morning services will be held using creative motifs with teen participation. Havdalah is a special time on CAREaVAN.