It'll be 30 minutes before big bowls of cheesy ravioli and runny chocolate pudding are delivered to the long, green tables in the mess haul at Camp Airy, in its 78th summer of welcoming Jewish youth to the Catoctin Mountains near Frederick, Md.

So, with a morning of soccer and roller hockey already under their belts, the boys of Bunk 12 are doing what they always do during the pre-lunch rest period.

After quickly scanning their mail, they gather for a serious hand of poker at the center of the little cinder-block hut, which sits atop the severely sloping Bunk Row.

The only thing that takes precedence, ever,
is mail from an actual living, breathing girl, especially one who just happens to be a camper at Airy's sister facility just 10 miles away, at Camp Louise.

When that happens, everything stops and the fortunate lad must follow tradition.

"Any letter from a girl immediately gets read aloud," said Jared, grinning
in a way that sets his freckles to dancing. "There's no exceptions."

And so, on this particular Friday, with a gentle breeze bringing the sounds of basketballs thumping and hockey sticks scraping, camper Jeff "Bones" Sivek of Fairfax stood up to read a letter from a lass at Camp Louise.

"Do you like me? Will you dance with me at the camp dance? Does your friend like my friend?" he read aloud, to the giggles, chortles and assorted silly sounds from his fellows.

And then it was back to poker, with counselor Dan Cotterill shuffling for the first hand.

Miller, one of several Fredericksburg area youngsters who have visited the camp in recent years, said the card game may not look like a lot.

But he said the connections that it signifies are what bring him back for a month to this mountainside camp hours from home.

The fact that Camp Airy gives him a chance to be surrounded by young people of the same faith is a plus, yes, but not the sole reason for coming.