Camp Galil was founded on its current Bucks County site in 1946 as part of Habonim Dror North America, the progressive labor-zionist youth movement. The name “Galil” refers to the famously scenic area of northern Israel  surrounding the Sea of Galilee. Prior to and during the 1948 Israeli War of Independence, Galil used its resources to help the Jewish war effort by holding weapons in its barn. As the new Jewish state emerged, Galil trained and educated many of its members to visit Israel and eventually make Aliyah. Galilniks, along with other members of Habonim, helped found and build several kibbutzim all over Israel, including Gesher Haziv, Urim, and others.



    The camp was purchased for the sum of $30,000 from the YWCA. The camp was quite primitive-there was no electricity, the kitchen had an old wood-burning stove, and the water supply was dependent upon an old gasoline engine which worked on occasion. The realization that Philadelphia finally had a camp of its own proved a tremendous incentive in the determination of the young adults to create as fine a camp as possible. It can truthfully be said, that the young Labor Zionist movement of Philadelphia grew and was strengthened because of a program, which revolved around the camp. The young branches, whose membership came from ex-Habonim members, supplied the necessary labor and technical knowledge to begin improving the camp site. The electrical engineers in the group planned, designed, and installed electricity; the civil engineers in the group directed the building of the necessary footbridge to cross the stream; and the general membership supplied the muscle-power to dig the ditches so that all electric wires would be underground. Interest in the camp was further heightened by the events of 1947-48, during the struggle for Statehood.



Today, members of the Galil community maintain a strong connection to Israel.   Galil campers and staff participate in Habonim Dror’s Israel programs such as MBI (a summer Israel tour for 16 year-olds), Workshop (a year-long program for high school graduates, and Habo U (a semester-abroad program for college juniors). Galil alumni continue to demonstrate the leadership skills they developed at Galil through their active involvement in local Jewish and Zionist communities.